Pay and prices

Prices inch ahead of pay rises again (208 words)

The latest figures from the LRD Payline database of collective agreements shows a median pay increase of 4.0% in settlements reached or stages commenced ...

Labour Research Department three-monthly pay figures (73 words)

Percentage increases on lowest basic rates (by agreements covered). ...

Other pay analysts (21 words)

Industrial Relations Services (median, three months to end January 2008)3.5%Incomes Data Services (median, three months to end January 2008)4.0% ...

Full-time weekly average earnings (16 words)

All workers£565.70All male£623.70All female£476.20Managers£851.40Professionals£763.40Associate professional£583.60Admin & secretarial£389.50Skilled/craft£475.40Services£334.50Sales£315.40Operatives£440.30Other manual£343.20 ...

Average earnings indices (including bonuses) (56 words)

Earnings index (1) for whole economy% annual riseWhole economyManufacturingServicesPrivate sectorPublic sectorOctober 2006 (r)128.04.45.34.54.73.2November (r)127.93.84.74.04.13.0December (r)128.83.93.94.34.13.3January 2007129.34.93.55.35.23.3February131.34.93.65.45.42.8March129.73.53.53.33.83.1April129.83.43.23.63.23.2May130.53.64.43.53.83.0June131.13.23.93.23.23.1July131.53.84.33.84.22.5August132.14.22.84.64.43.2September132.74.22.24.54.43.2October (r)132.73.72.54.03.83.2November (r)133.24.23.54.24.33.4December (p)133.53.64.33.63.83.3Headline rate (2) for Dec3.83.53.94.03.3 ...

Inflation forecasts (17 words)

Fourth quarter 2008 ...

Bargaining news

Soldiers’ pay increase ‘reflects disadvantage’ (292 words)

This year’s second public-sector pay award based on a pay review body’s report was decided by the government this month, with defence secretary Des ...

More Royal Mail deals (390 words)

The CWU communication workers’ union has negotiated pay deals for workers in Royal Mail’s Customer Services, Finance Operations and People & Organisational Development Services ...

BBC settles dispute over compulsory redundancies (525 words)

Prolonged negotiations between the BBC and unions appear to have ended a long-running dispute over job cuts at the broadcaster. ...

Reuters backs down over new job roles (247 words)

A plan to change journalists’ career structures unilaterally at press agency Reuters has been withdrawn after the NUJ media union announced a ballot of ...

University’s outsourced workers get £7.50 an hour (152 words)

Cleaners and other support staff at south London’s Kingston University saw their minimum hourly wage increase to £7.50 this month under a new pay ...

RMT is on guard at Great Western (360 words)

The threat of strike action by members of the RMT rail union at train company First Great Western (FGW) has secured a guarantee from ...

Equality news

MPs demand ‘determined effort’ on gender pay gap (408 words)

An influential committee of MPs has called on the government to consider introducing mandatory equal pay audits and extending the gender equality duty – ...

IiP training award leaves minorities disadvantaged (279 words)

A training award from Investors in People (IiP), the body that manages standards for employee development, is meant to be an indication of good ...

Building firms can be good eggs at Easter (231 words)

A joint initiative between building companies and construction union UCATT is urging employers to take family-friendly policies on board over the Easter break. ...

Recruitment and organisation news

Bridge ballot helps RMT across troubled waters (231 words)

The RMT rail union has won recognition at Palmers Ltd, a contractor working on the Forth Bridge in the east of Scotland, despite what ...

UNISON wins recognition for cleaners (145 words)

Public services union UNISON has been awarded statutory recognition, without the need to go through a ballot, for Westminster Council cleaners employed by a ...

USDAW ceremony honours outstanding reps (122 words)

Shopworkers’ union USDAW recruited 2,000 new reps in 2007, and ended the year with 356,046 members – its highest membership level for 16 years. ...

Learning and training news

Apprenticeship strategy doesn’t tackle pay issues (471 words)

The government has set out its strategy for making apprenticeships a “mainstream option for 16- to 18-year-olds” alongside other education and training routes – ...

Midlands get new learning centres (325 words)

Twenty new union-run workplace learning centres are set to be established across the West Midlands as part of the national “Train to gain” skills ...

Sustainability is theme of learning day (152 words)

The Campaign for Learning (CfL) has announced that “sustainable workplaces” will be the theme of National Learning at Work Day 2008 on Thursday 22 ...

European news

Steely determination pays off for Italy’s metalworkers (530 words)

After nine months of negotiations, a pay deal covering Italy’s 1.6 million metalworkers until the end of 2009 has finally been reached. The draft ...

Pilots are on course to beat inflation (168 words)

German airline Lufthansa’s 4,400 pilots have agreed a two-stage deal worth 5.5% over 18 months. ...

Dutch cleaners attain €10 target (315 words)

Unions representing cleaners in the Netherlands have reached an agreement with the largest employers’ association in the industry, setting a new minimum wage of ...

Law - Discrimination

Discrimination case law (836 words)

f For an employee to be regarded as no longer being in the “same job” for equal pay purposes, there must be a clear ...

Equal pay (250 words)

Case 1: The facts ...

Race discrimination (189 words)

Case 2: The facts ...

Victimisation (402 words)

Case 3: The facts ...

Jurisdiction (178 words)

Case 5: The facts ...

Genuine material factor (189 words)

Case 6: The facts ...

Definition of disability (381 words)

Case 7: The facts ...

Duty to make adjustments (816 words)

Case 9: The facts ...

Injury to feelings awards (379 words)

Case 13: The facts ...

Refusal of part-time working (186 words)

Case 15: The facts ...

Part-timers’ pension rights (243 words)

Case 16: The facts ...

Religion or belief (345 words)

Case 17: The facts ...

Health & safety news

Construction union seeks urgent action on fatalities (228 words)

With the death toll in the building industry currently running at more than five fatalities a month, construction union UCATT has urged employers to ...

Use tax breaks to improve minicab safety, says GMB (187 words)

The GMB general union is planning to lobby the Department for Transport (DfT) over the poor levels of protection given to minicab drivers. ...

University puts safety first (162 words)

Unions at the University of Leeds are celebrating a new agreement to promote and safeguard the health and safety of staff and students. ...

Safer driving (102 words)

A training initiative designed to improve driving safety at delivery firm Parcelforce has received the backing of the CWU communication workers’ union. ...

Support for deaf workers (109 words)

The CWU is also calling on its safety reps to check that workplace safety measures are installed for workers with hearing difficulties. ...

TUC resources online (83 words)

The TUC has made some of its Hazards at work manual available free of charge online. ...

Health & safety - HSE Monitor

HSE acts over firefighter deaths in Warwickshire (313 words)

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has strongly criticised Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Authority over the information it gives its firefighters about the special ...

New body will balance deregulation and risk (177 words)

The government has replaced the Better Regulation Commission – set up to oversee deregulation in a range of areas including health and safety – ...

HSE ‘is neglecting its core mission’ (243 words)

A leading research body on occupational health issues has echoed union concerns about the future of the Health and Safety Commission and Executive (HSC/E). ...

Manual handling warning (115 words)

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has warned employers to follow the Manual Handling Operations Regulations, after prosecuting a company over an incident in ...

RSI research (78 words)

A new HSE-funded report into repetitive strain injury has called for “multimodal interventions” to help sufferers return to work. ...

Features

Unions hit back to protect front-line employees from violence (2841 words)

Violence at work is an everyday threat and a frequent reality for workers who come into regular contact with members of the public. Firefighters, ...

Shortened pay scales reduce potential for discrimination (3011 words)

Last month, Workplace Report examined the widespread practice of giving long-serving employees more holiday in recognition of their loyalty to their employer. About one-fifth ...