In-work benefits reform demanded by Usdaw to help workers deal with the cost of living crisis

Addressing the Usdaw Annual Delegate Meeting in Blackpool’s Winter Gardens, Paddy Lillis – Usdaw General Secretary said: “This debate always goes right to the heart of issues facing our members and their families. Social Security should provide people with a vital safety net, but with over a decade of shameful attacks by this Tory Government, this safety net has been stripped away from those who need it most. Workers desperately need a Labour Government committed to reversing benefit cuts, removing sanctions and increasing payments.

“Due to the awful way this Tory Government has re-designed our welfare system, the support available drops off significantly once earnings reach a certain level. As such, rather than helping people take on extra hours, or extra responsibility, the system leaves people stuck on low hours and low pay. This cannot be right and cannot be part of a continued welfare and benefits system.

“We need proper changes that provide support for low paid workers, enabling people to keep more of the money they earn. At the same time, we need to look at how disabled people and those with long-term illnesses are treated by the system. As a result of efforts to degrade those who need our support, many disabled people have to go through stressful and intrusive assessments.

“Childcare costs in Britain are the second highest in Europe, meaning that many low paid families have to rely on a patchwork of care from friends, neighbours, grandparents and other family members, rather than formal provision and during the pandemic, we saw how easily these arrangements can simply fall apart.

“The Government committed to some additional support in the recent budget, however this support simply did not go far enough, and will leave the sector massively underfunded. The union continues to campaign for free, flexible, fully funded childcare for all working parents, alongside proper investment in the childcare sector.

“Universal Credit is based on the income you received in the previous month. Therefore, if a worker receives a one-off bonus payment, they are subject to fluctuations in their Universal Credit payment the following month. These changes can be significant. For some, a bonus payment earned over the period of a year, can mean their next month's payment is wiped out entirely and that their Universal Credit claim is stopped altogether. It is simply unacceptable that workers are refusing hard earned bonuses, just because accepting the money they have rightly earned would actually leave them financially worse off.

“The union is campaigning for a better system. One that acknowledges the issues facing low paid workers and enables them to keep more of the money they have rightly earned. Our New Deal for Workers campaign is calling for a proper Social Security system that protects families and treats people with dignity and we have secured commitments from the Labour Party to fix the current system.”