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Labour Research August 2013
Waging war on low wages - Alongside the statutory minimum wage, new measures are needed to boost low pay, says the TUC; Union education - Despite a difficult political climate, education programmes run by the TUC and unions are bearing up; Mind the gap - Progress on closing the UK’s gender pay gap now appears to be in serious danger of grinding to a halt; Garment industry - Following the horrific building collapse in Dhaka in April, global unions have spearheaded a safety Accord
News
Strike action âinevitableâ if Royal Mail sell-off proceeds (316 words)
The governmentâs long-awaited announcement that it intends to float the Royal Mail on the London Stock Exchange this year has angered unions. ...
Subscribers only
New jobs are in low-paid sectors (372 words)
Four in five new jobs created in the last three years are in industries where the average wage is less than £8 an hour, warned the TUC last month. ... Subscribers only
Post Office dispute (104 words)
The national dispute over the Crown offices (large post offices) is continuing, with 4,000 CWU members taking their eighth day of strike action on 17 ...
Open access
One Housing Group (142 words)
Staff at London-based One Housing Group (OHG), members of general union Unite, have been taking strike action over wage cuts for support workers. ... Open access
Staffing levels highlighted as key to safe hospital care (360 words)
A shortage of nurses has been cited in a review of high hospital mortality rates at 14 hospital trusts â leading to union calls for safe staffing ... Subscribers only
Teachersâ strike action continues (158 words)
The NASUWT and NUT teaching unions have said they are left with no option but to continue with strike action in order to defend their profession ... Open access
Jaguar Land Rover (135 words)
Workers at logistics giant DHL who supply Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) UK plants across three sites have voted for strike action over pay, with a walkout ... Open access
Privatising fines (120 words)
The PCS civil service union has called on the government to scrap plans for the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to hand over the collection of court fines ... Open access
Long-term jobless numbers up (213 words)
The number of unemployed people that have been jobless for more than a year rose by 15,000 to stand at 915,000, according to the latest official ... Open access
Inflation rises again (75 words)
Inflation was on the rise for the second consecutive month, the latest official figures show. Under the Retail Prices Index (RPI), inflation was up ... Open access
Key economic indicators
Key economic indicators (405 words)
Inflation +3.3%, Average earings +1.5% ... Subscribers only
Union news
Unions give mixed response to Miliband proposal to reform Labour-union link (821 words)
The leader of Labourâs largest union affiliate, general union Unite, gave a surprise reaction to Labour leader Ed Milibandâs proposals to reform ... Subscribers only
European news
Protests continue over plans to slash Greek public sector jobs (440 words)
Greeceâs two main union confederations, GSEE, representing private sector workers, and ADEDY representing those in the public sector, are ... Subscribers only
National strikes set for Poland (220 words)
Polandâs three main union confederations, Solidarnosc, OPZZ and FZZ, have agreed to act together to organise national strikes against government ... Open access
French unions divided over pensions (215 words)
Two of Franceâs five nationally representative union confederations, the CGT and the FO, are planning national action on 10 September over ... Open access
Features
How to maximise the value of minimum pay (2,166 words)
The TUC is arguing for a modern version of Wages Councils as a way of boosting the pay of those on low incomes. ... Subscribers only
Education stays the course (1,919 words)
The TUC and unions are having to rise to the challenge of ensuring that todayâs union reps can continue accessing trade union education in a tough ... Subscribers only
Could pay gap begin to widen? (1,581 words)
Five years on from the start of the economic crisis, there is concern that progress in tackling the gender pay gap could now be set in reverse. ... Subscribers only
Unions fashion improved safety (1,625 words)
A new safety Accord in Bangladesh, developed for garment workers, could help halt the race to the bottom in the global clothing industry. ... Subscribers only
Law Matters
Unionâs victory is a win for all employees (281 words)
Retail workersâ union Usdaw has won a landmark victory in the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT), changing the law on collective redundancy ... Subscribers only
Workersâ right to choose rep is upheld (347 words)
In an important tribunal ruling, Toal v GB Oils Limited [2013] UKEAT/0569/12/LA, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has upheld every workerâs ... Subscribers only
Yet more legislation announced (229 words)
On 1 July 2013, the government published yet more draft employment legislation â the Deregulation Bill â relentlessly pursuing its âanti-red ... Open access
Law Queries
Fitness to return to work (313 words)
Q. Iâve been off work from my clerical job for four months with a back injury. My GP says Iâm now well enough to go back to work, but my ... Subscribers only
Family leave (238 words)
Q. My member is from India and plans to travel home for a family wedding. Her employer has said âyesâ on condition she signs a written agreement ... Open access
Reasonable adjustments (221 words)
Q. My member works as a probation officer and has chronic fatigue syndrome. Her consultant has advised that her chances of recovery would be much ... Open access
Law Back-up
Tribunal feesâ legality comes under scrutiny (924 words)
As Labour Research went to press, the Ministry of Justice continued to press ahead with plans to launch employment tribunal fees on 29 July 2013, ... Subscribers only
Health & Safety Matters
Long-term night work may pose cancer risk (325 words)
Women who work long-term night shifts are twice as likely to develop breast cancer as other women, according to a Canadian study. ... Subscribers only
Event raises awareness about working at height (187 words)
Emley Moor transmission station â the UKâs tallest free standing structure â was last month used by the Institution of Occupational Safety and ... Open access
Offshore inspection weakened (235 words)
Government meddling in the offshore inspection regime has been slammed by the RMT maritime union. ... Open access
Health & Safety Back-up
Safety reporting faces a further downgrade (848 words)
Changes to the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 (RIDDOR regulations) will come into effect on 1 October 2013 ... Subscribers only
Equality news
NEETs want to work but lack support (339 words)
A third of young people currently not in employment, education or training (NEETs) fear they will never get a job, according to a report ... Subscribers only
TUC welcomes report on women in the workplace (315 words)
The TUC has welcomed proposals put forward by the Business, Innovation and Skills select committee in its Women in the workplace report (see Labour ... Subscribers only
Disabled teachers (129 words)
The overwhelming majority of disabled teachers have faced discrimination and bullying in the workplace during their careers, according to a poll ... Open access
Remploy closures (98 words)
The closure of a further nine Remploy factories has been branded as cruel by general union Unite. Minister for disabled people Esther McVey last ... Open access
Workplace Back-up
Preparing to manage an ageing workforce (811 words)
The number of over-65s employed in the UK labour market has exceeded one million â the highest level since records began, according to the latest ... Subscribers only
Reviews
Girls with balls (245 words)
The secret history of womenâs ... Open access
The making of the English working class (218 words)
E P Thompson, Penguin, 960 pages, paperback, £25 ... Open access
E-views
e-views (412 words)
I ran a workshop on digital organising at the recent Connect telecoms sector conference of the Prospect professional and managerial union. I asked ... Subscribers only
News from LRD
LRD will be at the TUC Congress (42 words)
The Labour Research Department will once again have a stand at the TUC Congress in Bournemouth from 8 to 11 September. If youâre attending ... Open access