Yoga teachers get organised

Yoga teachers have voted to organise as a union for the first time in the UK by becoming a new branch of the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB). The IWGB organises a number of groups of precarious and gig economy workers, such as Uber drivers and cycling instructors.

The IWGB says key concerns include unpaid overtime and poverty pay well below the living wage, as well as a lack of basic workers’ rights like sick pay and annual leave. A survey by the branch found that some yoga teachers earned as little as £5 an hour.

Laura Hancock, who chairs the IWGB Yoga Teachers’ Union, said: “By coming together, organising and raising our collective voice, we are much stronger and have a much greater potential to make real, long-term, positive changes that will benefit us all.”