[IER] UK wakes up to worker exploitation

Fri Dec 16 13:49:44 GMT 2016

IER News Brief 16/12/16

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news brief

Friday 16th December 2016

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News over the last few months suggests that the UK may be waking up to the exploitation of workers and the way this blight affects us all.

JD Sports' Rochdale warehouse was exposed on a Channel 4 News special <http://ier.us12.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=1adf72e366&e=71131c031b>  as "worse than a prison" this week, adding to similar accusations levelled at Sports Direct, Asos and Amazon (which was in the news again after workers were found sleeping in tents <http://ier.us12.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=42b57c5b6a&e=71131c031b>  near a Scottish distribution site).

These reports add to growing signs of public dissatisfaction with the poor deal Britain's workers are being served. After GMB's landmark victory against Uber this October, legal representatives for the union at Leigh Day said they received hundreds of calls from other drivers who wanted to try their case to be defined as a "worker" rather than as "self employed" and therefore be deemed eligible to receive employment rights.

And it seems the Conservative Party is acutely aware of the way the tide is turning, trying in vain to rebrand itself as the "party of workers" but failing to back this up with any substantive action.

As we reported last week, Tory reviews into workers' rights appear purely tokenistic <http://ier.us12.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=1cd4c2d08f&e=71131c031b> , and this week they failed once more to back workers when Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said he would consider even more anti-trade union legislation <http://ier.us12.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=bd7f3decbd&e=71131c031b>  in light of the ASLEF and RMT strikes against Southern Rail.

Some employers, meanwhile, are desperate to cling on to an unfair status quo. Sports Direct's Chairman blames everyone but his company <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=9c68d6a04c&e=71131c031b>  for plummeting profits as the firm's reputation turned sour. Uber is now appealing the ruling <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=7927d17c0f&e=71131c031b>  that drivers should be legally defined as workers, even after being told by judges that their argument is based upon a "fiction". 

But there are signs the public isn't falling for it. Over half of commuters <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=2e68a3e570&e=71131c031b>  place the blame for this week's Southern Rail strikes squarely at the door of the government and the company, with only 5% taken in by Tory smears that the unions are solely at fault.

Our Manifesto for Labour Law <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=a5d82bde06&e=71131c031b>  - 25 recommendations adopted by the Labour Party - provides a blueprint for the reform of labour law to reverse the trend of this low-skilled, low-paid, low-productivity economy. Read more and purchase your copy here <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=304ab517da&e=71131c031b> .

And with that we wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! This will be the last News Brief of 2016 but we'll be back in January. Before you take your Christmas break, please consider helping us continue to provide good quality events by taking a few minutes to fill out this survey <http://ier.us12.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=d2cfc55add&e=71131c031b>  about what you would like to see at employment law conferences.

On our timeline this week...

This week, the Tories give themselves a pay rise, an "anti-feminist" is nominated on to the Women and Equalities Committee (then speaks for 78 minutes against a Bill to prevent domestic violence) and the Conservative Party is accused of causing the prison services crisis. Visit the timeline here <http://ier.us12.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=0796415a60&e=71131c031b> 

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 News and comment

 Workers' rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/b1c726de-bf3c-454c-9dd0-50d42672c9ff.png> 

	JD Sports expose reveals working conditions "worse than a prison"
After an undercover Channel 4 News investigation has revealed conditions at a JD Sports warehouse to be "worse than a prison".
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=594b1c6c72&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Workers' rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/b1c726de-bf3c-454c-9dd0-50d42672c9ff.png> 

	Uber appeals ET ruling
Taxi-app firm Uber has filed papers with the Employment Appeal Tribunal after it lost a landmark case this October.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=47c6696d3d&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Union rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/8a74e5d2-ba66-4faf-a08d-e7b95ed9b73b.png> 

	Half of rail users blame Grayling/Southern Rail for strikes
It seems the government's determination to blame RMT and ASLEF for strikes they say are "politically motivated" has not worked with rail users, who around half of whom blame Transport Secretary Chris Grayling and company Southern Rail for the recent disruption.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=48b4eca143&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Union rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/8a74e5d2-ba66-4faf-a08d-e7b95ed9b73b.png> 

	RMT "furious" after Mick Cash barred from ACAS meeting
The General Secretary of RMT Mick Cash has today spoken out against Southern Rail after he was barred from conciliatory talks with the company.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=9972dd1a8c&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Union rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/8a74e5d2-ba66-4faf-a08d-e7b95ed9b73b.png> 

	Grayling considers further anti-trade union legislation
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling has said he will consider looking into further anti-trade union legislation following today's ASLEF and RMT strikes against Southern Rail.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=59f7badce9&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Workers' rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/b1c726de-bf3c-454c-9dd0-50d42672c9ff.png> 

	Amazon workers sleep in tents
Amazon workers have been forced to sleep in tents near their place of work because they cannot afford transport, it has been revealed in the latest shocking story of exploitation and low pay.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=1a3dd6a154&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Andrew Moretta <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/9a4d1116-0823-462c-83db-997c4c680fff.jpg> 

	COMMENT: New barriers to small injury claims could have a grave impact on workers
Andrew Moretta of the University of Liverpool explains a policy ostensibly relating to whiplash injuries could have a grave impact on workers.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=ad7f7fd7e0&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Andrew Moretta <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/9a4d1116-0823-462c-83db-997c4c680fff.jpg> 

	COMMENT: Proposed Employment Tribunal reform will not fix failing system
Andrew Moretta of the University of Liverpool picks through the government's new consultation on employment tribunal reform and finds it lacking.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=b86a32d71d&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 IER Xmas Special Sale! 

It's that time of year again when the IER launches its annual Xmas sale <http://ier.us12.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=304218378d&e=71131c031b> . Our book packages make very good value Christmas gifts for trade unionists, academics and labour lawyers and often sell out quickly, so make sure to avoid disappointment by purchasing early!

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In the second of IER’s series of Mythbusters, Andrew Moretta considers the many myths surrounding access to justice, including the narrative surrounding the “red tape” and “burdens on business” ideology, which he believes paved the way for systematic attacks on the tribunal system.
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Two leading experts on trade union rights – Professor Keith Ewing and John Hendy QC – publish a short but comprehensive overview of the Trade Union Bill and its implications.
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By Professor Ralph Darlington and Dr John Dobson
According to the authors of this timely report, the government is attempting to rush into law ‘the most sweeping and radical tightening of rules on industrial action since the Thatcher era of the 1980’s’. They warn that such proposals could result in ‘the biggest showdown over industrial relations for a generation’ and go on to drill down into one aspect of the government’s proposals – strike ballots.
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	The mythology of business: from £6
By David Whyte
The ‘myths’ that this publication takes into consideration are the kind of things that politicians now routinely say without thinking. Yet these 10 myths have very little foundation in reality and are rarely, if ever, accompanied with any concrete evidence to support them.
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08 February 2017 - 09:30 - 15:00
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Unite the Union, London
This conference will cover migration policy after Brexit, both from the EU and from elsewhere in the world, and the implications of future labour migration patterns for labour standards. The speakers will bring extensive expertise to the subject, as academics, campaigners and trade unionists.
Speakers include Bernard Ryan, Don Flynn, Susan Cueva, Diana Holland, Alex Balch, Alan Bogg, Owen Espley and Sonia McKay
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