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Workplace Report November 2023
PAY AND PRICES
BARGAINING Dispute remains unresolved Harmonisation deal at Santander Musicians want their 10% back Workers to target Black Friday Pensions regulator imposes settlement
EQUALITY TUC renews call for sexual harassment law Childcare costs driving parents out of work Labour pledges guidance
LEARNING AND TRAINING Learning reps project supports creative workers
RECRUITMENT AND ORGANISATION Freeport win is just one of latest recognition successes
EUROPE Unions begin unusual tripartite negotiations More than a third of workers unhappy with their jobs
LAW AT WORK Employment law — the latest cases
HEALTH AND SAFETY Joint call for commitment to action by general election Doctors' and nurses' unions testify on Covid Union highlights duty to manage pests
PAY SURVEY 2022-23: HISTORIC WINS BUT THE BATTLE CONTINUES The story of the 2022-23 pay round is one of historic rises and epic battles. The 832 deals on LRD’s Payline database capture just how many workers fought to mitigate the impact of rampant inflation and the biggest squeeze on living standards for decades. We look at the events of what has been a historic year in pay
Pay and prices
Median pay 7%, inflation stalls (125 words)
The median pay rise achieved in unionised workplaces in the three months to September was 7%, according to LRD Payline. This figure was for workers ...
Open access
Full-time weekly average earnings (33 words)
... Open access
XpertHR (21 words)
Median increases for three months to end of October 2023 ... Open access
Labour Research Department’s Payline database (270 words)
Percentage increases on lowest basic rates (by agreements covered) ...
Subscribers only
Average weekly earnings (AWE) (204 words)
(r) revised, (p) provisional ... Open access
Prices (65 words)
... Open access
2023 Forecasts (37 words)
Source: HM Treasury, Forecasts for the UK economy, September 2023. 1Fourth quarter 2Calendar year
... Open access
Bargaining news
Are managers causing staff to leave? (844 words)
Tense industrial relations combined with the cost of living crisis and staff shortages add up to a difficult workplace environment. A new report from ... Subscribers only
Musicians want their 10% back (91 words)
Musicians in the Royal Opera House orchestra are campaigning for a return of a 10% pay cut they took in 2020 to help the company through Covid-19 ... Open access
Tips row (111 words)
The restaurant chain Miller & Carter Steakhouses has found itself at loggerheads with members of the Unite general union after imposing a new ... Open access
Pay retired members £1,500 cost of living (89 words)
The PCS national Associate and Retired Members (ARMs) network has launched an e-action, calling on central government to pay recently retired members ... Open access
Harmonisation deal at Santander (403 words)
A complex harmonisation deal negotiated by the CWU union has brought harmonisation with other parts of the business for IT operations workers at ... Subscribers only
Dispute remains unresolved (304 words)
Members of the Educational Institute of Scotland – Further Education Lecturers’ Association (EIS-FELA) have been undertaking industrial action ... Subscribers only
Banking group makes pay offer (345 words)
Lloyds Banking Group has made a two-year pay offer for 2024 and 2025, supported by an interim payment in December 2023, in negotiations with the ... Subscribers only
Workers to target Black Friday (454 words)
A pay award announced by online retailer Amazon on 9 October will bring “little comfort” to its workers, according to Rachel Fagan, GMB organiser. ... Subscribers only
University pensions (116 words)
A joint statement from the University and College Union, and Universities UK (UUK) has confirmed the restoration of benefits available under the USS ... Open access
TV licensing pay (61 words)
Around 300 CWU members at Capita TVL have endorsed an increase in pay from £10.07 to £11.12 per hour for 2023, and a £1,450 consolidated pay ... Open access
Pensions Regulator imposes pay settlement (116 words)
The PCS civil service union entered into talks through Acas last month with a view to resolving the long-running dispute with The Pensions Regulator ... Open access
Equality news
Class is main barrier in financial services (131 words)
Social class is a bigger barrier to career progression in financial services than gender or ethnicity, a new report from non-profit consultancy The ... Open access
Follow Kellogg’s lead on abuse, says union (125 words)
Retail workers’ union Usdaw has hailed a new domestic abuse policy agreed by Kellogg’s and called on other large employers to match the ... Open access
TUC renews call for sexual harassment law (278 words)
The TUC has called on the government to introduce laws to protect workers against sexual harassment, as a new poll reveals that a third of employees ... Subscribers only
Childcare costs driving parents out of work (157 words)
One in five parents in households earning less than £50,000 are leaving work due to childcare costs, and three-quarters have reduced their hours, ... Open access
Labour pledges guidance (158 words)
The Labour Party has promised to introduce new menopause guidance to support women who work for small businesses if it wins power at the next general ... Open access
Learning and training news
Learning reps project supports creative workers (237 words)
Freelance creative workers are set to get a boost to their learning opportunities thanks to four key unions in the sector and the Wales Union ... Open access
Learning prize awarded (106 words)
Royal College of Midwives learning rep Afshan Ali has won the TUC Union Learning Rep Award for her work with members of the South Tees Trust Branch ... Open access
Recruitment and organisation news
Freeport win is just one of latest recognition successes (579 words)
After a campaign lasting several years, general union Unite has secured collective bargaining rights for 230 DHL staff working on ramp duties at East ... Subscribers only
European news
Tesla increases pay (110 words)
Tesla, the US-owned electric vehicles maker, has announced that it will increase pay for employees at its plant in Grünheide, near Berlin. The ... Open access
Health and care workers fared worst in pandemic (127 words)
A new study by the EU’s social and employment research agency EUROFOUND that looked at the experience of key workers during the pandemic has found ... Open access
Dutch wages still rising (64 words)
The latest figures from CBS, the official statistical agency, show that collectively agreed wages in the Netherlands went up by 6.1% in the third ... Open access
Unions begin unusual tripartite negotiations (408 words)
Public sector unions in Denmark have started a very unusual set of negotiations on pay for key groups of public sector workers. ... Subscribers only
More than a third of workers unhappy with their jobs (358 words)
More than a third (36%) of French workers are dissatisfied with their jobs, and this rises to 60% among those aged between 20 and 22. This is one of ... Subscribers only
Employment law - Case reports
No gaps for backdated holiday pay (609 words)
Over 3,000 police officers and civilian employees of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) brought claims for outstanding holiday pay. Since 1 ... Subscribers only
Refusal of alternative employment not unreasonable (375 words)
Ms Stevenson and two colleagues were employed in the roles of head of human resources. Their roles became redundant and they were offered alternative ... Subscribers only
Non-contractual share plan transferred under TUPE (421 words)
Mr Gallagher’s employment transferred from Total Exploration and Production UK Ltd (Total) to Ponticelli Ltd under the Transfer of Undertakings ... Subscribers only
Date of TUPE not affected by location (588 words)
Ms Rajput worked in London for Commerzbank as a senior compliance officer. In 2018 an agreement was reached between Commerzbank and Société ... Subscribers only
Date of knowledge crucial in reasonable adjustments claim (541 words)
Ms Fernandes worked for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) as a Universal Credit agent. She was disabled by depression, anxiety and back pain. ... Subscribers only
Mutual termination was not a dismissal (690 words)
Mr Riley was employed by Direct Line as a home claims advisor and was disabled under EA 10 by autistic spectrum disorder, anxiety and depression. ... Subscribers only
Regulator's investigation did not limit claim for losses (537 words)
Ms McNicholas is a teacher who worked on a casual basis for Care and Learning Alliance (CALA) through their staff bank. CALA provide nursery and ... Subscribers only
Anonymity may be granted to safeguard mental health (617 words)
LQP worked for City of York Council from 2015 to 2019 through a recruitment agency, Work with York, which was wholly owned by the council. ... Subscribers only
Health & safety news
Joint call for commitment to action by general election (357 words)
A coalition of 27 trade unions, representing more than four million UK workers, has called on the leaders of the Conservative, Green, Labour and ... Subscribers only
Doctors' and nurses' unions testify on Covid (343 words)
The RCN nurses’ union called for long Covid to be recognised in disability law and for healthcare workers with ongoing health issues to be properly ... Subscribers only
Union highlights duty to manage pests (165 words)
The POA prison officers’ union has issued guidance on steps employers must take to manage pests, after becoming aware that many workplaces are ... Open access
Government issues new guidance on fit notes (98 words)
The government has produced new guidance on statements of fitness for work, or “fit notes”/Med 3 forms. These are aimed at allowing the employer ... Open access
Health & safety - HSE Monitor
Corporate manslaughter investigation follows Letby conviction (105 words)
Cheshire Police is carrying out an investigation into corporate manslaughter at the Countess of Chester Hospital, following the conviction of Lucy ... Open access
£1.25 million fine follows quarry crush death (145 words)
Tarmac Aggregates Limited was fined £1,275,000 after 26-year-old Luke Bramston was crushed to death during maintenance work at Mountsorrel Quarry in ... Open access
Dust Kills campaign shows need for action (390 words)
The HSE health and safety executive marked UK construction week last month (3-5 October) by highlighting good and bad practice examples of how ... Subscribers only
HSE warns of dangers of metal fluids (314 words)
The HSE is warning employers they must make sure staff are safe when working with metal fluids or coolants in the highly technical and specialist ... Subscribers only
Features
Pay survey 2022-23: historic wins but the battle continues (5,442 words)
During the 2022-23 pay round, the median rise achieved by the lowest paid was 7.2% and that by most workers was 6.5% (see table 1). However, as the ... Subscribers only