[IER] Over 600,000 shielding workers ‘may be put at risk’ tomorrow

[Sarah Glenister]

                            News brief - 31/07/20                                                                             View this email in your browser
                        


                            Over 600,000 shielding workers ‘may be put at risk’ tomorrow



        

Despite the last-minute announcement of a major lockdown across a wide area of the North West last night, the government is going ahead with plans to 'pause' the shielding of clinically vulnerable workers in England.


Around 627,000 people could be affected, as this is the number of working people classified by the government as being of clinical vulnerability to the coronavirus due to underlying health conditions.


The TUC has warned employers not to take this as an opprtunity to call shielding individuals back to work and urged the government to extend the Job Retention Scheme beyond October to protect the most vulnerable.


Another vulnerable group is also suffering disproportionate harm due to the pandemic - pregnant women and new mothers.


Figures from campaign group Pregnant then Screwed revealed the diverse ways in which mothers are losing out compared with fathers, including being made redundant because they can't access childcare and receiving lower income support because of maternity leave taken in the last three years.


Against this background, the goverment is continuing to receive criticism from all sides - for repeatedly misleading parliament on child poverty, for excluding millions of workers from redundancy pay, and for its reluctance to take action on known racial disparities.



                    Lack of childcare key to redundancies among mothers, research finds
Over half of women cannot access the childcare they need to work, raising fears of further redundancies to come.
                    Read the full report



                    Over 600,000 shielding workers ‘may be put at risk’ tomorrow as the govt lifts restrictions on workplaces
Clinically vulnerable workers will no longer be 'shielded' as from tomorrow.
                    Read the full report



                    Statistics watchdog: PM repeatedly misled Parliament on child poverty
The Office for Statistics Regulation said Boris Johnson has repeatedly used inaccurate child poverty figures.
                    Read the full reportIER Director, Carolyn Jones, speaks at People's Assembly event


            

            

        



                    New law protects redundancy pay for some furloughed workers


Only those who are classed as an 'employee' and have been with the same employer for more than two years will be entitled to the new protection.Read the full report



                    Govt ‘dragging its feet’ on tackling racism, watchdog head says
Outgoing Chair of the EHRC says government is reluctant to take action against known racial disparities in the UK.
                    Read the full report



                    Public back a better pay deal for public sector workers

More than four out of five want public sector workers to get a pay rise.
                    Read the full reportIER and Covid-19

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