Usdaw welcomes new employment rights and seeks further strengthening

Paddy Lillis – Usdaw general secretary says: “Usdaw has long campaigned for a new deal for workers and the Employment Rights Bill delivers on that. This landmark legislation will contribute to Labour’s mission to grow the economy, raise living standards across the country and create opportunities. The Bill also builds on the action already taken by Labour in Government to significantly increase minimum wage rates from April, with the Low Pay Commission for the first time required to take into account the cost of living and make progress towards ending rip-off youth rates.

“We continue to engage with the Government as the Bill progresses, to make sure it
delivers the much-needed change that our members and all workers need. At report stage of the Bill on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, Usdaw is welcoming the Bill, while seeking to ensure that: much-needed reforms of Statutory Sick Pay benefit everyone; new rights for those on low-hours contracts are applied widely; and changes to redundancy consultation mean everyone is treated fairly when facing the loss of their job.

“Extending Statutory Sick Pay to all workers, and paying it from day one of the absence, is the right thing to do and will make a positive difference for millions of low-paid workers. However, the way that the Government is replacing the Lower Earnings Limit needs to be looked at again, as it will currently result in a small number of workers being worse off. 

“Proposed changes to redundancy consultation are intended to close the loophole that discriminated against Woolworths staff in small stores when they lost their jobs without proper consultation. New amendments could dilute these changes. We are therefore asking the Government to stick to its original plans which would guarantee that all employees have a right to consultation when 20 or more jobs are at risk, regardless of whether they are in one location.

“The Bill introduces a right for some workers to receive a contract based on their ‘normal’ working hours. This could remove exploitative zero-hours contracts and significantly tackle job insecurity. We strongly welcome the decision to extend this right to agency workers. We will continue to engage with Government to seek assurances that this right will be applied to everyone, using a 12-week reference period. 

“This historic legislation will help end years of low-paid, insecure employment, which failed our economy, businesses and working people. The Employment Rights Bill will help secure economic growth by improving productivity after years of stagnation. It will help stop rogue employers undercutting those who treat their staff properly, while giving workers security, respect and the decency of an income they can live on.”