[IER] UK Government ‘breaching international law’ with seasonal worker scheme, says UN envoy

Fri Jan 19 15:03:44 GMT 2024

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UK Government ‘breaching international law’ with seasonal worker scheme, says UN envoy

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The UK government could be in breach of international law over failing to investigate “clear indicators of forced labour” in its seasonal worker scheme, an independent UN human rights expert has said.

Tomoya Obokata, the UN’s special rapporteur on modern slavery, said he was “very concerned” by reports of intimidation, threats, sexual harassment and poor living conditions for people working on UK farms.

The reports from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ), NGOs, government officials and parliamentary inquiries into the exploitation of seasonal workers also showed other indicators of forced labour, such as long hours, underpayment and a lack of access to sick leave, Obokata said.

 <https://www.ier.org.uk/news/uk-government-breaching-international-law-with-seasonal-worker-scheme-says-un-envoy/> Read more 

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Thousands of public sector workers stage 24-hour strike in Northern Ireland

Combined action by about 150,000 nurses, teachers, cleaners and other sector workers is biggest in living memory 

 <https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/jan/18/public-sector-workers-24-hour-strike-northern-ireland> More details 

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Minimum service strike law ‘should apply to Northern Ireland’, says Buckland

Robert Buckland, chair of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, said the legislation would help those who are in "dire need" to access services. 

 <https://www.ier.org.uk/news/minimum-service-strike-law-should-apply-to-northern-ireland-says-buckland/> More details 

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"The introduction of minimum service levels is a huge mistake”

“MSLs will result in train companies running dangerously busy train services – resulting in packed carriages and unsafe crowds on platforms. And of course, they’ll also have a catastrophic impact on the workplace. " Dawn Stewart on the TUC blog

 <https://www.tuc.org.uk/blogs/introduction-minimum-service-levels-huge-mistake> Read more 

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Gig economy: UK Supreme Court adds to developing case law with Deliveroo collective bargaining ruling

In late November 2023 the UK Supreme Court ruled that a group of Deliveroo riders aren’t in an employment relationship with Deliveroo and can’t therefore access collective bargaining rights under trade union law. Lucy Trevelyan, writing for the International Bar Association

 <https://www.ier.org.uk/news/gig-economy-uk-supreme-court-adds-to-developing-case-law-with-deliveroo-collective-bargaining-ruling/> Read more 

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“The Simple Things You See Are All Complicated”: thoughts on Deliveroo

The Deliveroo decision is devastating for the 50,000 plus people working for Deliveroo in the UK, writes Gwyneth Pitt on the UK Labour Law Blog 

 <https://uklabourlawblog.com/2024/01/15/the-simple-things-you-see-are-all-complicated-thoughts-on-deliveroo-by-gwyneth-pitt/> Read here 

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‘Unequal, unfair and ripe for reform’: Women twice as likely to miss out on statutory sick pay, TUC finds

The union federation found that 70 per cent of the 1.3 million people who do not earn the weekly minimum of £123 required to qualify for the payments are women. Via the Morning Star 

 <https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/unequal-unfair-and-ripe-reform-women-twice-likely-miss-out-statutory-sick-pay-tuc> More details 

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UnionDues podcast: putting education at the heart of our movement

The latest UnionDues podcast features a vital discussion with the General Secretary of the General Federation of Trade Unions, Gawain Little.

 <https://www.ier.org.uk/news/uniondues-podcast-putting-education-at-the-heart-of-our-movement/> Listen here 

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