Last week, the Trade Union Congress (TUC) Commission on Vulnerable Employment was launched to research and find solutions to issues relating to the UK’s lowest paid workers. The commission pointed out several areas of primary concern, including:
- Illegal and unfair deductions from pay (including for food, clothes, uniforms etc);
- Unsafe workplaces (including health & safety, harassment and bullying);
- Unlawful limits to personal leave (including sickness and maternity leave); and
- Job insecurity and a lack of development opportunities (especially for young and agency workers)
The commission believes that almost 1 in 5 of all employees in the UK are victims of unfair working conditions. People working in certain sectors including agency workers, migrant workers and homeworkers are particularly at risk of being exploited.
DTI research has also found that 50% of respondents who were paid under £15,000 had experienced a problem relating to their employment rights over the previous 5 years. The figure was even worse - at 60% - for respondents aged 16-24.
In a week where the FT has reported on the growing cost of recruitment and retention in the UK, it is important that we don’t forget that CR is about much more than CO2. It is also worth recalling that – while many companies bang on about “beyond compliance” – basic legal compliance is still a problem in many parts of our economy.
CR reports are full of information on the things that companies are doing to promote life-long learning and retention of senior and highly skilled staff, but there is a noteworthy silence when it comes to the treatment of temporary or agency workers.
This should be kept in mind when we hear business complaints about the new European Union directive giving non-permanent or part-time workers the same right to pay, sick-leave overtime etc as other staff. Where voluntary corporate action is absent, government action will not be far behind.
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