Pay and prices

Runaway inflation (277 words)

The Retail Prices Index (RPI) rose by 5.3% in the year to April, sharply up from the 4.4% increase for the year to March. ...

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£602.00All male£659.10All female£513.70Managers£884.60Professionals£803.50Associate professional£621.80Admin & secretarial£422.00Skilled/craft£496.60Services£357.90Sales£332.60Operatives£455.10Other manual£355.40 ...

Annual increase in average weekly earnings including bonuses (51 words)

MonthWhole economyPrivate sectorPublic sectorManufact- uringServicesDec. 2008 (r)1.82.53.22.33.0Jan. 2009 (r)0.2-2.13.21.7-1.9February (r)-3.8-7.93.3-0.3-7.3March-2.7-2.12.21.3-2.2April 1.41.13.01.61.7May 0.80.32.8-0.21.1June 1.20.43.91.11.4July 0.6-0.53.3-0.60.5August 0.7-0.33.51.70.5September0.80.03.81.61.1October 0.5-0.43.81.60.5November 0.80.33.82.01.1December 0.70.33.43.20.8Jan. 2010 (r)1.2-1.04.14.4-1.9February (r)5.86.13.85.45.9March (p)5.15.85.28.55.1Headline rate* 4.03.64.46.13.5 ...

Other pay analysts (22 words)

Industrial Relations Services (median, three months to end April 2010)1.0%Incomes Data Services (median, three months to end March 2010)1.9% ...

Inflation forecasts (20 words)

RPIRPI excluding mortgagesAverage3.2%3.1%Oxford Economic Forecasting3.0%3.1%ITEM Club3.6%2.4% ...

Prices (14 words)

Retail prices index (RPI), Jan ’87=100% annual increasesRPIRPI excl. mortgages March 2009211.3-0.42.2April211.5-1.21.7May212.8-1.11.6June213.4-1.61.0July213.4-1.41.2August214.4-1.31.4September215.3-1.41.3October216.0-0.81.9November216.60.32.7December218.02.43.8Jan 2010217.93.74.6February219.23.74.2March220.74.44.8April 222.85.35.4 ...

Bargaining news

Unite overturns court block on BA strikes (537 words)

Unite general union and British Airways remain locked in a bitter struggle over cabin crew staffing levels, pay and travel concessions. The union has ...

Top people’s pay still rising faster than inflation (243 words)

Recent reports have shown that pay for executives and high fliers in both private and public sectors is continuing to rise faster than inflation, ...

Civil service union wins ruling on redundancy (451 words)

The PCS civil service union has won a landmark legal ruling on its protracted dispute with the government over changes to the civil service ...

“Wholly inadequate” BT pay offer rejected (322 words)

The CWU communication workers’ union has firmly rejected a “final” offer from telecoms giant BT of just 2%, and is considering a ballot for ...

Croydon Trams pay deal (121 words)

ASLEF train drivers’ union members at Croydon Trams are being balloted on a revised three-year pay offer. The deal pays 2% on salary backdated ...

The UK’s working poor (175 words)

A study by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions reports that UK levels of in-work poverty are increasing. The ...

Pay freezes continue to decline as inflation rises (566 words)

The gradual decline in pay freezes as a proportion of all deals has continued to be reflected in the three month period from February ...

Government’s pay plans (253 words)

The new coalition government published its policy programme on 20 May. Many of the proposed measures will affect bargaining on pensions, equality and flexibility, ...

Royal Mail deal accepted (112 words)

CWU communication workers’ union members at Royal Mail have backed the deal concluded in March (see Workplace Report March p.3) by more than two ...

Charity work conditions (142 words)

Unite general union has accused charities whose workers have to “sleep-in” of not paying the National Minimum Wage (NMW) for emergency work undertaken during ...

Equality news

Tory migrant worker limits dismay unions (448 words)

Confirmation that the new Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government will adopt Tory plans to cap immigration will be met with dismay by some unions. UNISON ...

Actors’ union petitions for equality in film and TV (291 words)

A petition calling for equal representation of women in TV and film has now been signed by more than seven thousand people including some ...

Prospect rep honoured (157 words)

Satnam Ner, an activist for professional and managerial union Prospect, has been presented with the 2010 One Workplace Equality Award by Scotland’s deputy first ...

Disaffected staff at Remploy (125 words)

Workers at the Norwich Remploy factory for disabled workers are meeting over concerns that the organisation’s management are failing to try to find new ...

Recruitment and organisation news

“Wage premium” rises for unionised workers (347 words)

The trade union “wage premium” – the difference in average hourly pay earned by union members compared with non-members – jumped from £1.45 to ...

Meat vets’ recognition (115 words)

UNISON has won a key recognition battle at Grants Veterinary Services for over 170 vets and contract meat inspectors. ...

Learning and training news

Union learning boosts skills and improves workplace relations (467 words)

New research from the TUC finds more than half of employers (55%) saying that their employees have improved their qualifications through union-led projects. ...

European news

German chemical workers get lump sum but no increase (596 words)

The employers and the chemical workers’ union in Germany, IG BCE, have reached agreement on pay in the industry for the next 11 months. ...

Building unions sign pay pact (472 words)

The building unions from the three main Italian union confederations (CGIL, CISL and UIL) and the building employers’ federation ANCE have agreed new terms ...

Law - TUPE

Transfers – the basic legal rules (156 words)

The Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE) state that, when a business or part of a business is transferred from one ...

Transfers - the key developments (100 words)

• The TUPE regulations transfer contractual obligations already agreed at the time of transfer, but do not preserve the right to benefit from changes ...

“Dynamic” contractual obligations ruled out (342 words)

The claimants were former employees of London Borough of Lewisham. They were transferred to a privatised company in 2002 and again to Parkwood in ...

Transfer of activities (521 words)

Ward Hadaway, a firm of solicitors, provided services for the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). The work involved investigation, preparation and advocacy before various ...

Law - Dismissal

Dismissal law – the basic legal rules (276 words)

Employees dismissed unfairly can go to a tribunal if they have been working for at least a year. There are special rules for retirement ...

Dismissal law – the key developments (125 words)

• Failure to hear a grievance appeal before dismissing an employee on a matter to which the grievance relates does not necessarily make a ...

Disciplinaries and grievances (810 words)

The employer was a small independent brewer running 200 pubs, including the Holly Bush in Doncaster, which was managed by the claimants. Under their ...

Constructive dismissal (700 words)

Professor Buckland held a chair of environmental archaeology at Bournemouth University. One of his tasks was to mark students’ exam papers. The 2006 exams ...

Whistleblowing protected against subsequent employers (351 words)

Mr Elstone had a long career in senior management in the petrochemical industry. He was employed by Petrotechnics Ltd from February 2006 to June ...

Law - Redundancy

Redundancy – the basic legal rules (216 words)

A redundancy situation exists where an employer closes or intends to close the workplace or reduce the number of employees doing a particular kind ...

Redundancy - the key developments (83 words)

• When assessing the amount of a protective award for failure to consult on collective redundancies, it is relevant both to consider the culpability ...

Obligation to consult (790 words)

Shanahan is an engineering construction contractor. In 2007 it won a contract for construction of a power station near Plymouth, which was being constructed ...

Health & safety news

Unions remember dead on Workers’ Memorial Day (306 words)

Unions marked the first official Workers’ Memorial Day on 28 April with local and national events and activities to remember those killed by their ...

Teachers’ mental health (271 words)

The NASUWT teaching union has called on employers to do more to recognise and support teachers with mental health problems. The call came after ...

Unite to survey stress in charities (153 words)

The general Unite union is to launch a major survey of stress in the voluntary sector after research showed that the financial crisis facing ...

Shop safety at work (67 words)

Delegates at shop workers’ union USDAW annual conference in Blackpool called for more protection for women retail staff. They said some employers had a ...

Synthetic boots (115 words)

A traffic officer for the Highways Authority Traffic Information Services, Deborah Allen, was awarded £3,600 in compensation after she was forced to wear unsuitable ...

TUC safety rep survey (52 words)

The TUC is about to conduct its bi-annual survey of safety representatives, which gives an invaluable insight into the role of union activists and ...

TUC Safety Rep Award (49 words)

The deadline for nominations for the TUC award for health and safety representatives is approaching. Unions may submit as many nominations as they wish, ...

Health & safety - HSE Monitor

Updated cancer estimates (396 words)

A new HSE report estimates that more than 550 UK breast cancer deaths and almost 2,000 cases of breast cancer are linked to shift ...

Regulation of emerging energy technologies (224 words)

Regulating health and safety in the emerging energy technologies (EET) sector will raise a range of resource challenges for the Health and Safety Executive ...

Health and safety and disability guidance (106 words)

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is urging better use of its guidance on disability and health and safety. Its Health and safety for ...

ETUI criticises EC’s deregulation agenda (88 words)

The European Commission’s Better Regulation programme promises to save businesses 40 billion euros by slashing “red tape”, particularly laws arising from health and safety ...

Artificial light (77 words)

New regulations protecting workers from the dangers of hazardous artificial light came into force last month. The Control of Artificial Optical Radiation at Work ...

Free training from HSE (77 words)

The HSE has teamed up with training provider Premier Partnership to offer two free or heavily subsidised training courses on collaborative working on health ...

Features

The future of facility time (3687 words)

It won’t hit the national headlines, but one of the more insidious effects of the national and local election results on trade unionists may ...

Toilet breaks and facilities (2510 words)

For most workers toilet breaks are not an issue; they go when they need to and that’s that. However, in some jobs and for ...