Pay and prices

RPI inflation hits 4.4% (270 words)

With inflation at 4.4% and settlements only averaging 1.7% the enduring effects of the recession are clear. ...

Labour Research Department three-monthly pay figures (75 words)

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

Full-time weekly average earnings (17 words)

All workers£580.80All male£635.90All female£495.70Managers£853.50Professionals£775.30Associate professional£599.90Admin & secretarial£407.20Skilled/craft£479.20Services£345.40Sales£320.90Operatives£439.10Other manual£342.90 ...

Annual increase in average weekly earnings (including bonuses) (52 words)

* The latest three-month average. ...

Other pay analysts (22 words)

Industrial Relations Services (median, three months to end March 2010)1.0%Incomes Data Services (median, three months to end February 2010)1.8% ...

Inflation forecasts (20 words)

RPIRPI excluding mortgagesAverage2.9%2.7%Oxford Economic Forecasting2.8%2.9%ITEM Club4.8%2.1%Source: HM Treasury, Forecast for the UK Economy, April 2010. ...

Prices (13 words)

Retail prices index (RPI), Jan ’87=100% annual increasesRPIRPI excl. mortgages February 2009211.40.02.5March211.3-0.42.2April211.5-1.21.7May212.8-1.11.6June213.4-1.61.0July213.4-1.41.2August214.4-1.31.4September215.3-1.41.3October216.0-0.81.9November216.60.32.7December218.02.43.8January 2010217.93.74.6February219.23.74.2March220.74.44.8 ...

Bargaining news

Unions react to election manifestos and debates (637 words)

In the run up to the general election, unions have made it clear that jobs, low pay, pensions, equality, safety, economic recovery and protection ...

Fujitsu pay and pension correction (130 words)

The news story in last month’s issue of Workplace Report (March 2010,) on the end to the long-running dispute at Fujitsu over pay and ...

Honda and Rolls-Royce pay up after freeze (381 words)

Pay at Honda UK, which was cut by 3% (5% for managers) in June 2009, is to be restored to pre-recession levels after 10 ...

Lloyds imposes pay and pensions settlement (417 words)

Lloyds Banking Group has overridden negotiations on the integration of terms and conditions, and imposed a settlement on pay and pensions, after extensive consultation ...

JCB awards 3% rise (225 words)

One of the companies hardest hit by recession has begun to recover. The GMB general union has negotiated a 3% rise from 1 July ...

Stay-at-home dads (100 words)

Research from Aviva, the insurance group, shows there are now ten times more fathers caring for children while their partner works than 10 years ...

No cost of living rise for probation officers (267 words)

NAPO, the probation service union, and UNISON public sector union members have accepted a pay offer from the Probation Board that gives no cost ...

Revised works council laws disappoint unions (503 words)

new regulations giving effect to the revision of the European works council directive recently agreed at EU level will come into force in June ...

BA talks resume (111 words)

cabin crew members of Unite general union are to vote on a new “peace deal” to resolve their dispute with British Airways (BA). ...

NMW to rise by 2% (135 words)

Unless an incoming government decides to alter the decision, the National Minimum Wage (NMW) is set to rise by 2.2% to £5.93 an hour ...

Teachers’ compensation (51 words)

Teachers’ union NASUWT secured more than £8.7 million in compensation in 2009 for teachers who faced discrimination, unfair dismissal, unlawful deduction of wages or ...

Equality news

Young people exploited in internships, TUC says (375 words)

As many as one in three interns is being exploited with many desperate graduates prepared to work for free in the recession, according to ...

Maternity laws ignored (418 words)

The recession has been used as an excuse by some employers to discriminate against women who are pregnant or on maternity leave, according to ...

Disabled high-fliers (263 words)

Disabled people in all sectors are reaching the highest levels of seniority, according to a report by disability networking organisation RADAR. ...

Recruitment and organisation news

Attacks on facility time (381 words)

Squeezing agreements on trade union facility time could be the new weapon of choice for union-busting employers. Evidence revealed during the British Airways strikes ...

Unions and recovery (115 words)

Unions can help businesses to recover from the recession, according to a TUC report. ...

Learning and training news

Right to request training (444 words)

New research from the TUC has found that a third of people who currently do not receive training from their employers are likely to ...

Taxi drivers’ NVQs (108 words)

A total of 350 Merseyside taxi drivers have received National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) in customer service through a project jointly run by general union ...

European news

French employers finally sign harassment at work agreement (678 words)

After six months of negotiations, French employers and unions have reached an agreement on harassment and violence at work. The main sticking point in ...

Polish rail workers get pay increase after two-year freeze (298 words)

Unions representing employees at PKP PLK, the Polish company responsible for the national rail network, have reached agreement with management on an increase in ...

Law - Discrimination

Discrimination – the basic legal rules (325 words)

It is unlawful to discriminate on the grounds of sex, race, disability, gender reassignment, religion or belief, sexual orientation or age. For the purposes ...

Discrimination – the key developments (358 words)

n If an employment tribunal finds there is no contract between an agency worker and an end-user, the worker will not be an employee ...

Agency workers (765 words)

Mr Muschett worked for the prison service from January to May 2007. He was supplied to work at Feltham Remand Centre as a temp ...

Indirect religious discrimination (383 words)

Mrs Eweida, a devout practising Christian, had worked for BA since 1999. She wore a small cross on a necklace under her uniform, which ...

Motive for direct racial discrimination (408 words)

This case was brought by “E” in relation to his 13-year old son, “M”, whom he wanted to send to the Jewish Free School ...

Age-related notice (372 words)

Under the German Civil Code, the notice period for termination of employment by an employer depends on the employee’s number of years’ service. The ...

Discrimination time-limits (366 words)

Ms Caston, a police officer, brought an employment tribunal claim for failure to make reasonable adjustments under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. Her claim ...

Volunteers unlikely to be protected from discrimination (432 words)

“X” brought a disability discrimination case against a Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB). The issue arose as to whether, as a volunteer, she was protected ...

Group pay disparities suggest sex is a factor (499 words)

Carers and cleaners employed by Sheffield City Council were predominantly female. They brought an equal pay case against male street cleaners and gardeners whose ...

Adjournments for Ramadan (548 words)

Mr Khan brought an unfair dismissal and equal pay case, which he lost. He appealed because of the tribunal’s refusal to adjourn the hearing ...

Disability (193 words)

Ms Patel, a teacher, suffered myelitis (spinal cord inflammation) between February and December 2005. By January 2006 she developed a secondary myofacial pain syndrome ...

Health & safety news

Teachers suffer social network cyberbullying (273 words)

A survey of 630 teachers, lecturers, support staff and school leaders carried out by the teaching union ATL in conjunction with the Teacher Support ...

United front to tackle retail violence (253 words)

Shopworkers’ union USDAW has joined forces with retail employers, the police and local and national government representatives to form a united front against retail ...

First official Workers’ Memorial Day (132 words)

this year for the first time Workers’ Memorial Day (WMD) will take place with official government backing. ...

Bus driver working time (183 words)

British bus drivers are working longer than their European counterparts and should have at least an hour shaved off their daily driving time without ...

Rules for safer needles (113 words)

A European directive to make the use of safe needles routine has been hailed as a breakthrough by public services union UNISON. It says ...

Health & safety - HSE Monitor

Tories to bar inspectors from “low risk” firms (355 words)

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) would be barred from inspecting businesses where a private safety audit has been carried out under the latest ...

H&S not a burden, says TUC (239 words)

The TUC has condemned the recommendations of a new report by the right-leaning think tank Policy Exchange, Health and Safety – Reducing the Burdens. ...

Review of Working Time Directive (140 words)

The European Commission has announced a review of EU working time law following failure to reach agreement on revising the Working Time Directive a ...

Safety check failures (79 words)

Work was stopped by HSE inspectors at nearly one in five (18%) construction sites last month. Nearly one in four of the 2,014 building ...

Online tool for MSDs (129 words)

A new downloadable tool to help prevent musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) of the upper limbs has been developed by the HSE and the Health and ...

“Buy Quiet” campaign (66 words)

Businesses are being encouraged to “buy quiet” as part of a new HSE campaign which also encourages manufacturers to make quieter machinery in a ...

Features

End of the road in sight for private sector pay freezes ? (3574 words)

The motor industry seems to be leading private sector manufacturing out of recession, just as it led it into the downturn. The proposed lump-sum ...

Fit for the job? (2354 words)

On 6 April the sick note disappeared to be replaced with a statement of fitness for work commonly known as the “fit note”. The ...