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Labour Research May 2023
Black workers and the cost-of-living crisis How can the union movement respond to the disproportionate impact of the cost-of-living crisis on Black workers? Opposing the military dictatorship in Myanmar Organised workers have long provided a mainstay of opposition to military dictatorships in Myanmar, including the current regime Minimum service levels: how does the UK compare? The Tories claim their plans for minimum levels of service during strikes are similar to those elsewhere in Europe. But this is far from the case
News
Energy strategy falls short (237 words)
The government’s long-awaited updated strategy on achieving energy security and net zero, Powering up Britain, is “another green fail” and “a ...
Open access
Widespread industrial action set to continue into the summer (386 words)
Widespread national strike action across the public services is set to continue into the summer. ...
Subscribers only
Warning issued over AI exploitation (262 words)
The TUC has warned of “exploitation” by new AI artificial intelligence technologies. ... Subscribers only
Transport investment plan could result in economic boost, says TUC (297 words)
The TUC has called for new investment of up to £18.8 billion a year in public transport — plus £9.9 billion in annual capital expenditure — to ... Subscribers only
‘Deplorable’ Bill must be dropped (247 words)
The TUC last month called on the government to drop its “deplorable” migration Bill, saying it will “give rogue employers the green light to ... Open access
National Care Service needed (230 words)
The UNISON health union has launched a campaign for a National Care Service in England to create consistent standards of care for older and disabled ... Open access
Inflation gloom (74 words)
Inflation has so far failed to fall significantly, defying many predictions. In the year to March, the Retail Prices Index (RPI) rose by 13.5%, the ... Open access
Labour market indicators (205 words)
There were still over a million vacancies in January-March (1,105,000). But the number was down, with some employers saying that continuing economic ... Open access
Key economic indicators
Key economic indicators (421 words)
Inflation +13.5%, Average earnings +7.0% ... Subscribers only
Union news
National Education Union elects new general secretary (298 words)
The National Education Union will have a new leader from the beginning of September after its former president Daniel Kebede won the two-horse race ... Subscribers only
Union merger talks abandoned (323 words)
Merger talks between the TSSA transport union and the GMB general union, which appeared to be well advanced in January of this year, have been ... Subscribers only
Usdaw political fund (64 words)
Members of retail union Usdaw have voted by over 96% to retain their union’s political fund, enabling it to continue its campaigns such as lobbying ... Open access
Union-busting hotline (92 words)
The Unite general union launched a freephone hotline in March for National Express workers to report instances of intimidation in relation to their ... Open access
FBU call (87 words)
The firefighters’ FBU union is urging the TUC to convene an emergency congress to launch a “campaign of defiance and civil disobedience” ... Open access
European news
Deliveroo workers not self-employed (125 words)
The supreme court in the Netherlands has published its final ruling on the employment status of those working for the food delivery company, ... Open access
Call for four-day week in steel (127 words)
IG Metall, Germany’s largest union, has called for the introduction of a four-day week in the steel industry with no loss of pay. ... Open access
Protests continue despite law’s ‘constitutional’ status (342 words)
New legislation which, among other things, increases the pension age from 62 to 64, has been found to be constitutional by France’s highest court, ... Subscribers only
Commission takes first steps on rule change for works councils (266 words)
The European Commission has taken the first steps to improve the current rules for European Works Councils (EWCs). ... Subscribers only
Features
Conference debates ethnic impact of crisis (2,090 words)
Evidence of this disproportion has been mounting. A September 2022 Living Wage Foundation report set out that 33% of workers of Bangladeshi heritage, ... Subscribers only
Challenging oppression (2,383 words)
When they lost the 2020 elections the losers went berserk. “Foul play!” they cried. The elections had been rigged, the ballot boxes stuffed, and ... Subscribers only
Minimum rights for strikers (1,883 words)
The Tories came to office in 2019, promising to introduce legislation to “require that a minimum service operates during transport strikes”. But ... Subscribers only
Law Matters
Poor behaviour did not arise from disability (316 words)
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) agreed with an Employment Tribunal’s (ET) finding that the claimant’s conduct and aggressive behaviour on ... Subscribers only
Claims strike-out overruled (358 words)
An Employment Judge (EJ) was wrong to strike out the claims of an individual and 36 others for non-compliance with an “unless order” — usually ... Subscribers only
increase in compensation limits (216 words)
There have been increases to the compensation limits for certain employment rights, as the Employment Rights (Increase of Limits) Order 2023 came ... Open access
Law Queries
Q&A (919 words)
Challenge to fit note ... Subscribers only
Law Back-up
Where to draw the line on private social media output (881 words)
Misconduct outside work can justify dismissal if the conduct affects the employment relationship in some way, for instance by undermining the ... Subscribers only
Health & Safety Matters
Toolkit tackles sexual harassment (213 words)
As the CBI employers’ body became the latest organisation to face allegations of serious sexual misconduct within its ranks, Wales TUC launched its ... Open access
Inspections must be suspended, says union (308 words)
The NAHT school leader’s union has begun a legal process aimed at suspending Ofsted inspections following the death of primary school headteacher ... Subscribers only
Time for bullying to bow out (240 words)
The Bectu broadcasting and entertainment section of the Prospect specialists’ union has launched a new campaign to tackle “increasing and ... Open access
Health & Safety Back-up
Reviews shine a light on internal cultures (870 words)
In March 2023, Louise Casey’s independent review into the standards of behaviour and internal culture of the Metropolitan Police Service found ... Subscribers only
Equality news
Autism review launched (78 words)
The government has launched an autism review to address how to support employees with autism. ... Open access
Male-dominated councils (146 words)
Analysis by the gender equality charity, The Fawcett Society, has found that women are woefully under-represented on local councils. ... Open access
Decade sees rise in child and pensioner poverty (274 words)
The rise in child and pensioner poverty is a “shameful trend”, according to social change organisation the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF). ... Subscribers only
Strategy for women’s health found wanting (337 words)
The TUC’s response to the government’s original call for evidence on the Women’s Health Strategy for England, which the government published in ... Subscribers only
Workplace Back-up
Esxamining options for pension consolidation (903 words)
A decade ago, it became compulsory for employers to provide and contribute to workplace pensions that eligible workers would be automatically ... Subscribers only