Issue 12

Budget 2010 (574 words)

The economy contracted by 6.0% in the recession, according to chancellor Alistair Darling presenting his last Budget before the general election. However, the recovery ...

Ill and disabled pushed into work (384 words)

Grave concerns about how sick and disabled people are being assessed for benefits have been raised the national charity Citizens Advice. ...

Average earnings data shows fall in growth (289 words)

Earnings growth slipped back at the start of 2010, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics. Headline average annual earnings ...

Skills academies for key industries unveiled (355 words)

Key programmes to ensure the UK economy is supplied with the skills needed to fuel the growth of new industries in the coming years ...

RPI inflation sticks at 3.7% for another month (306 words)

Inflation remained at its highest level for 16 months, according to official figures. Under the Retail Prices Index (RPI), the inflation rate was steady ...

Acas helpline heads off tribunal claims (216 words)

The number of employees and businesses trying to avoid employment tribunal claims continued to rise in recent months, the employment relations service Acas has ...

Issue 11

Migrant workers are exploited and abused (592 words)

Evidence of the widespread mistreatment and exploitation of migrant and agency workers in the meat and poultry processing sector has been uncovered by the ...

Unemployment falls further to 2.45 million (509 words)

Unemployment fell once again to bring some good news to the start of 2010. ...

Holiday pay must be paid to sick staff (195 words)

Employers must pay staff their full holiday entitlements if they are off sick for more than a year and are unable to take their ...

Earnings growth puts on a small spurt (353 words)

Growth in average weekly earnings showed some recovery at the start of the year, the latest official figures show. ...

Unions worldwide back cabin crew action (135 words)

Rising support for the British Airways cabin crew industrial action from their colleagues around the world has been reported by the civil aviation section ...

Garlic bread — it’s the future, says ONS (197 words)

The bread so loved by comedian Peter Kay — garlic bread — replaces pitta bread in the latest revision of the basket of goods ...

Issue 10

Manufacturing’s green shoots grow stronger (226 words)

Manufacturing continued its recovery into the start of 2010, according to the latest official figures. ...

Blacklisting law comes into force (260 words)

New regulations to outlaw blacklisting of trade unionists came into force on 2 March. However, they have come under attack from unions as not ...

How to protect public staff from violence (314 words)

Scotland’s local authorities have come together to protect staff from violence in the workplace following the launch of new guidelines. ...

Public spending cuts would hit women hard (335 words)

Deep public spending cuts would lead to heavy job losses for women and substantially reduce their income in retirement, according to a TUC report. ...

Take-home pay index hits all-time low (248 words)

Take-home pay for February has continued January’s downward spiral to hit an all-time low of 1.0%, according to the index figures produced by pay ...

Challenge is laid down on staff well-being (490 words)

The concept of “good work” is not just about ensuring that jobs do not make people ill; it is about organising work in a ...

Millions are wasted on rail franchises (166 words)

The rail franchising system could be costing the industry over £25 million a year. ...

Industrial action — new LRD legal guide (175 words)

Knowledge of the law of industrial action is vital for trade unionists as the consequences of a failure to observe the provisions of the ...

Issue 9

Drug firm’s boardroom pay bill rises by a third (171 words)

The total boardroom pay bill of drugs giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) rose by 30.6% to £11.78 million last year. But the biggest beneficiary was no ...

Rich are throwing their money at Tory Party (521 words)

Rich individuals have been signing big personal cheques over to the Conservatives as David Cameron’s party builds up a big election war chest, latest ...

Merger activity is at historic low levels (323 words)

There were 100 acquisitions of UK companies by foreign companies in 2009. This is the lowest annual total since 1988, according to the Office ...

Economy was in better shape at the end of '09 (144 words)

The UK economy fared better than previously thought in the final quarter of 2009, revised data from the Office for National Statistics show. ...

Arthritis sufferers need support at work (342 words)

Positive action to ensure the 6.5 million people with musculoskeletal disorders are properly supported to access employment and remain in their jobs has been ...

Reformers want more diverse judiciary (431 words)

A package of reforms to increase the diversity of the judiciary has been recommended in a report by the Advisory Panel on Judicial Diversity. ...

Prostate cancer effort (135 words)

March is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month and the CWU communications workers’ union is making a big push to inform its membership of the disease. ...