The proliferation of zero-hour contracts is quite gaining attention. However, Andrew James points out that “ZHCs are simply one of a number of different forms of exploitative employment relationship which now exist in the type of casualised and de-regulated labour market that characterises many Western economies”. In this blog, James analyses the legislation allowing for an increasingly unequal relationship between employee and employer, and offers some suggestions moving forward…
18 February 2015 has been designated by the International Trade Union Confederation as a global day of action in defence of the right to strike. In the UK, Early Day Motion 802 has been tabled in the House of Commons in support of the global day of action and against threats by the UK government to further weaken the right to strike in the UK.
The government is collecting £33.4bn less in income tax and national insurance than official forecasts indicated. If earnings had grown as the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) had forecast in 2010, income tax and national insurance would now total £308.4bn. Instead, it is expected to reach just £275bn. The Tories have not just failed on everyone else’s terms, they’ve failed on their own terms too. The OBR now expects the government to have borrowed £91bn in the year to March 2014/15 – £54bn higher than the Chancellor had originally planned.
To mark #fairpayfortnight we have released a video on collective bargaining. What is it? Why do we need it? What will be the consequences of its restoration? Keith Ewing and John Hendy explain all…
Forthcoming Events
Employment law after the election: what do we want?, The Adelphi Hotel, Liverpool
Wednesday 25th March 2014
Following the tremendous success of the IER’s What We Want conference in London on 11 February, a similar, half-day event will take place in Liverpool to allow more people to engage in the debate. The conference will be a key event in the run-up to the general election, asking how the lives and living standards of Britain’s population can be improved under a new government.
It has been said that the next general election will be won or lost on the issue of employment rights. Little wonder. Whether it’s the growth in zero hour contracts, the attacks on pension provision, the destruction of collective bargaining, the limitation on trade union action to defend workers, the exploitation of agency workers, the restrictions on access to justice or the ease with which employers can impose mass redundancies – workers and their families can see the injustices in the system and want change.
A summary of the London event is available to read here.
What laws do you want after the election? Let us know on #ierwhatwewant.
Can unions stay within the law any longer?
Bill Wedderburn Lecture addressed by Len McCluskey, 19 March 2015
This meeting will be held at The Royal College of Surgeons, 35-43 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3PE at 6.30pm. The attendance fee will be waived for Trade Union members. More information and online booking is available here.
The Institute is hiring!
There is an exciting opportunity to join our small but dedicated team of staff at the Institute of Employment Rights. We are looking to appoint a National Coordinator to join our busy office in Liverpool. The job description and information on how to apply is available here.
New on the Coalition Timeline
Pay and Benefits
- Cameron: Unemployed young people should work for free
Health and safety
- Assaults on tube staff up by 44 per cent after cuts
Increasing vulnerability in the workplace
- Sports Direct founder called in front of MPs
- Cable clashes with Grayling over ET fees
New – Election 2015: What’s at stake for work, pay and trade unions?
Contributors: Professor Tonia Novitz, University of Bristol Law School; Professor Ozlem Onaran, University of Greenwich; Dr Lydia Hayes, Cardiff University; Carolyn Jones, Institute of Employment Rights; and James Lazou, Unite the Union.
This guide outlines the scale of the fall in living standards since 2008, the explosion of low-wage, insecure work and how working people and their unions have seen their rights attacked. By explaining the link between strong trade unions, widespread collective bargaining and lower inequality the pamphlet suggests short and long term policy interventions that would improve the living standards of working people and begin to steer the economy in a more equitable direction with collective bargaining at its core.
You can read and download the election guide here.
Publications
By David Renton and Anna Macey
This publication offers a chilling reminder of the extent to which access to justice is being systematically shut down by the Coalition government.
By Dr Lydia Hayes and Professor Tonia Novitz
What is the point of trade unions? What do they deliver? Are trade unions relevant in 21st century modern society? These and many other questions are answered by the authors of this timely and well presented report. Order your copy here
By Zoe Adams and Simon Deakin
ZHCs are highly profitable for employers, but lead to insecurity of income and low pay for workers. The authors point to rigidities in employment law and the operation of the tax-benefit system as being responsible for the rise in zero hours contracting. Order your copy here
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