![[Basket]](images/basket.png){kind=small}
Your order![[cover image]](images/issue/LR202308.jpg)
Labour Research August 2023
IVF treatment: women workers need more support Many women undergoing fertility treatment either receive no support from their employer or experience discrimination Dealing with dementia in the workplace With increasing numbers of older people in the workforce, unions and employers need to be “dementia aware” Just transition and sustainable economies While unions pressed the case for just transition at this year’s International Labour Organization conference, employers stonewalled
News
Victory for bar staff (136 words)
Former Saint James Tavern pub landlords have agreed to pay more than £80,000 in compensation to bar staff who were sacked after voting to strike. ...
Open access
Edinburgh College (99 words)
Members of the EIS-FELA education union have taken strike action at Edinburgh College in a dispute over compulsory redundancies. ... Open access
Unions react to government acceptance of recommendations (409 words)
More than a million public sector workers, including teachers, police, senior civil servants and doctors will get pay rises of between 5% and 7% for 2 ...
Subscribers only
Ticket office campaign steps up (244 words)
The RMT rail union stepped up its campaign to save ticket offices after train operators announced plans to close up to 1,000. ... Open access
First-time strikers add weight to widespread and continuing action (317 words)
Several groups of workers have voted to take industrial action for the first time. ... Subscribers only
Workforce plan ‘light on detail’ (242 words)
The long-delayed NHS workforce plan is light on detail with serious gaps, say unions. ... Open access
Ruling welcomed (143 words)
The PCS civil service union has welcomed the Court of Appeal ruling that the government’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda is unlawful. ... Open access
Seasonal workers (96 words)
A new Landworkers Alliance union report on debt, migration and exploitation, adds to a mounting body of evidence about the poor treatment of migrant ... Open access
High inflation falls slightly (64 words)
Falling motor fuel prices, and a slight cooling in the still very high rate of increase in food and non-alcoholic beverages (over 17%) helped reduce ... Open access
Labour market indicators (208 words)
Historically high earnings growth continues and may be helping to tempt some people back into work. ... Open access
Key economic indicators
Key economic indicators (421 words)
Inflation +10.7%, Average earnings +7.4% ... Subscribers only
Union news
Government suffers major defeat over strike-breaking regulations (328 words)
Unions inflicted a major defeat on the government last month when the High Court ruled its “strike-breaking” changes to the agency worker ... Subscribers only
Unite rejects rule change bid to affiliate to parties other than Labour (272 words)
The leadership of the Unite general union last month persuaded its union rules conference to stay affiliated to the Labour Party, despite concerns ... Subscribers only
Pharmacists’ union (60 words)
The PDA pharmacists’ union grew by 7% in the last year to reach a new membership record of 36,806, it has announced. ... Open access
Zero Hours Justice (83 words)
The BFAWU food workers union has signed up to be the first Zero Hours Justice-accredited trade union. ... Open access
Certification Office levy (94 words)
The certification officer has reported on the first year in which trade unions and employers’ associations were required by law to cover the ... Open access
European news
Women lead French union groups (140 words)
France’s largest trade union confederation, the CFDT, is now led by a woman, following the appointment of Marylise Léon as its general secretary ... Open access
Possible increase in minimum wage (103 words)
Hungary’s minimum wage could increase next month because of higher-than-expected inflation. ... Open access
Germany may be headed for nationwide strike on railways (310 words)
Negotiations this month will determine whether Germany is headed into a major nationwide rail strike, with the largest rail union, EVG, locked in a ... Subscribers only
Unions and employers to look at new rules on treatment of interns (337 words)
The European Commission has asked unions and employers at European level whether there is a need for new rules on the treatment of interns and other ... Subscribers only
Features
Fertility treatment: more support needed (2,455 words)
Infertility affects one in seven (heterosexual) couples in the UK. Figures from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), published in ... Subscribers only
A hidden issue at work (2,210 words)
Record numbers of economically active older workers mean employers and unions need to be “dementia aware”. ... Subscribers only
Tackling the climate emergency (2,204 words)
Thick smoke blanketed New York, suffocating America’s biggest city and leaving it with the worst air quality in the world. As Manhattan’s iconic ... Subscribers only
Law Matters
Dismissal was not due to pregnancy discrimination (326 words)
A tribunal was wrong to look behind a decision-maker’s motivation and find a pregnant employee’s dismissal discriminatory when it was unclear ... Subscribers only
Appeal tribunal rules on Calculation of holiday pay (327 words)
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has given judgment on the question of whether a “relevant agreement” can provide for holiday pay to be paid ... Subscribers only
New legal protections for parents and unpaid carers (236 words)
The government has announced three Private Members’ Bills that will give new workplace protections to parents and unpaid carers. This means the ... Open access
Law Queries
Q&A (795 words)
Jobs scams ... Subscribers only
Law Back-up
Misconduct arising from mental illness (895 words)
In cases of misconduct, unfair dismissal law requires that employers conduct a reasonable investigation, follow a fair procedure and be genuinely ... Subscribers only
Health & Safety Matters
Young workers demand safe transport home (234 words)
The Scottish TUC last month relaunched its Safe Home campaign at its annual youth conference in Glasgow. ... Open access
Long covid has major impact on doctors (281 words)
The BMA doctors’ union is demanding better protection for healthcare workers who remain at risk of Covid-19 infection. The call follows the first ... Subscribers only
Call for action on asbestos (250 words)
Unions and safety campaigners marked Action Mesothelioma Day on 7 July with calls for measures to prevent exposure to deadly asbestos fibres. ... Subscribers only
Health & Safety Back-up
Deregulation looms despite brexit u-turn (883 words)
Unions and other organisations successfully campaigned against the wholesale deregulation of European-derived legislation through the Retained EU Law ... Subscribers only
Equality news
Women face pay inequality from start of working life (262 words)
A woman aged 18-30 takes home, on average, a fifth less per year than a man of the same age. ... Subscribers only
Paternity reforms come in for heavy criticism (328 words)
The government’s announcement that the UK’s statutory paternity leave and parental leave system is to remain fundamentally unchanged has been ... Subscribers only
Discrimination against LGBT+ workers remains (268 words)
A new TUC report says homophobia, biphobia and transphobia are still very much alive in UK workplaces. ... Subscribers only
Workplace Back-up
Who’s got a plan for skill shortages? (893 words)
Local health services have over 112,000 vacancies — and that could rise to between 260,000 and 360,000 as the NHS tries to cope with a growing ... Subscribers only