Commenting on the publication of the employment rights bill today (Thursday), UNISON general secretary Christina McAnea said:
“At last the lives of millions of employees across the UK look set to change for the better. The bill lays the groundwork for a brighter future for everyone at work.
“There’ll be improved protection from the first day in a job and more family-friendly roles. Bad bosses won’t be able to exploit at whim using dodgy ‘fire and rehire’ tactics, and it’ll be easier for unions to offer support to all employees.
“The means to create a fair pay agreement to increase wages for care workers in England is game-changing. It’s an historic first step towards transforming a sector that’s been neglected and ignored for far too long. The result will make a world of difference to people who need care and to their families too.
“The two-tier workforce will be no more, with penny-pinching employers no longer able to treat outsourced workers less favourably than everyone else.
“A new body to negotiate pay for school support staff will bring a much-needed boost for the low-paid, mostly female workforce and attract recruits into currently hard-to-fill roles.
“The bill marks a sea-change in industrial relations after years of worsening workers’ rights and unnecessary hostility towards unions. It’ll stop employees being penalised for going on strike* and bring union ballots into the digital age.
“All this can only help the economy thrive and improve services to the public. Good employers have absolutely nothing to fear, but the bad ones won’t like it one bit.
“This is a complex programme of legislation, and the details will need to be fine-tuned. There’s still much work to do. But the government has stuck to its pledge to overhaul working life, a huge achievement in less than100 days.”
Notes to editors:
– *UNISON won a landmark Supreme Court case earlier this year on behalf of care worker Fiona Mercer. This found that employers should not discipline staff for taking part in legal strikes. The bill will enshrine this in legislation.
– The bill applies to Great Britain and does not cover Northern Ireland. Some measures – the social fair pay agreement, the school support staff negotiating body and a code relating to a two-tier workforce in public procurement – apply only to England.
– UNISON is the UK’s largest union, with more than 1.3 million members providing public services in education, local government, the NHS, police service, and energy. They are employed in the public, voluntary, and private sectors.
Media contacts:
Liz Chinchen M: 07778 158175 E: press@unison.co.uk
Anthony Barnes M: 07834 864794 E: a.barnes@unison.co.uk
The article Bill will make game-changing improvements to working life, says UNISON first appeared on the UNISON National site.
Comments are closed.