[IER] New data adds to evidence that UK workers getting a poor deal

Fri Jun 16 17:17:13 BST 2017

IER News Brief 16/06/17

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news brief

Friday 16th June 2017

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The Labour Party put in an extraordinary performance in the Snap Election last week on a platform that included workers' rights proposals put forth by the Institute of Employment Rights.

In our Manifesto for Labour Law <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=b051a8e147&e=71131c031b> , 25 recommendations for reform, we proposed the restoration of sectoral collective bargaining and improved trade union rights, underpinned by stronger statutory rights (such as the living wage and equality legislation). These recommendations were adopted by the Labour Party for its General Election Manifesto, which proved popular with millions of voters across the UK.

But while we celebrate this leap in the right direction, we must not take our eye off potential threats to workers' rights from the Conservative Party and the DUP. Theresa May has been criticised for reappointing Chris Grayling as Transport Secretary despite widespread anger over his attitude towards the Southern Rail dispute; as well as promoting a Minister with anti-LGBT views to the Justice Department in what some think is a move to appease the DUP. These stories plus the Pensions Minister who says he understands zero-hour workers because he was once a £250 per hour barrister are among those reported on our interactive Tory Timeline <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=5900e725cd&e=71131c031b>  this week.

Meanwhile, the publication of further statistics showing the continued fall of living standards in the UK is causing concern, including a fall in real wages <http://ier.us12.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=c3286c47b7&e=71131c031b> , evidence that UK Dads are getting a bad deal <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=9172e12386&e=71131c031b> , and a pessimistic outlook from Britain's young people <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=357dda3f43&e=71131c031b> .

In brighter news, our congratulations go out to Unite the Union, which this week won a landmark case that could benefit thousands of refuse workers <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=a0f7f53da1&e=71131c031b> . 

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	Welsh govt announces plans to curb zero-hour contracts in social care sector
The Welsh government has this week announced plans to reduce the social care sector's reliance on zero-hour contracts.
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	Most Brits think inequality is rife in the UK, new poll shows
New figures published by the Social Mobility Commission show that half of the population think their opportunities in life depending mainly on their background and who their parents are; and most agree there is a large gap between the social classes.
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	UK paternity leave lower than that of 28 other countries
Fathers in the UK get a worse paternity leave deal than Dads in 28 countries across the world, including Ecuador, Burkina Faso and the Congo.
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 Workers' Rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/b1c726de-bf3c-454c-9dd0-50d42672c9ff.png> 

	Thousands of refuse workers to benefit from landmark holiday pay victory
Unite the Union this week celebrated a landmark victory for refuse workers in a case against French firm Veolia Environmental Services.
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	Real wages falling; one in five children live in poverty, stats reveal
Real wages turned negative in the three months to April, prompting fears of falling living standards for workers at a time when one in five children are already living in poverty.
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 Union Rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/8a74e5d2-ba66-4faf-a08d-e7b95ed9b73b.png> 

	Commuters accuse govt of 'covering up' failure in Southern Rail crisis
The Association of British Commuters (ABC), which has been campaigning for better conditions for travellers in London and an end to the Southern Rail dispute, has accused ministers of covering up a damning report into the crisis.
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 Featured publication 

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In the run-up to the election, did you hear politicians or people in the press claim that policies designed to reduce income inequality will chase away the "wealth creators", reduce investment in Britain, or tie enterprise up in "red tape"? David Whyte, Professor of Socio-legal Studies at the University of Liverpool, provides the hard facts that prove these soundbites are nothing more than neoliberalist propaganda in this easy-to-read mythbuster.

Click here to read more about The Mythology of Business and purchase your copy for just £6 <http://ier.us12.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=f30ac03fc7&e=71131c031b> . Paid subscribers can read it for free online by logging into our website. For access to our extensive electronic library of all of our publications, as well as new publications sent straight to your door and discounts on our employment law conferences, subscribe to the IER <http://ier.us12.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=bbeb10d48c&e=71131c031b> .

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	Labour Law Highlights 2016: £8
Edited by Rebecca Tuck
This year’s Labour Law Highlights is produced against the backdrop of a Brexit vote in the UK and a Trump victory in the USA. It promises to be a bumpy ride ahead!
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	Health and Safety at Work Act: Time for Change: £10
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The world of work is changing. Fast. But the framework of law tasked with protecting the health, safety and well being of workers is now 50 years old and – according to the authors of this report – no longer fit for purpose. The authors put forth proposals for reform
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	Access to Justice: Exposing the myths: £6
By Andrew Moretta
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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	Protect the right to strike: kill the bill: £5
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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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 Ballot Thresholds <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/cee8b19e-c2dc-452d-a284-b14209fbf568.jpg> 

	The Conservative Government’s proposed strike ballot thresholds: The challenge to trade unions: from £6
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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 Keithe Ewing <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/6ac2ddd4-6bd6-4c3f-81ad-06fdb882171c.jpg> 

	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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