Fact Service May 2021

Issue 21 (27/05/2021) - Covid work deaths 'massively under-reported'; Economic shock continues, wellbeing survey finds; 'Workers win’ as airport dedicates terminal to red list arrivals'; Care staff more likely to refuse jab if threatened; Teachers targeted by increasing online abuse, union says; Bus strikes called off; Rich list 'reveals pandemic profiteers'

Issue 20 (20/09/2021) - Job vacancies hit pandemic high, as unemployment dips; UK inflation rate more than doubles; Supreme Court hears 'critical' union representation case; Unions disappointed by 1.5% offer; RMT: 'it's a Great British rail rip off'; Victory declared in fire and rehire strike; Court safety concessions won

issue 19 (13/05/2021) - TUC attacks government over broken promise; Economy rebounds after first quarter dip; Workplace pension participation levels off; MPs and peers back unions in fire and rehire protest letter; Employers 'don't expect' full-time office future; Survey finds lack of consultation over return to work; Unions slam CEO's bonus while company receives furlough grants

Issue 18 (06/05/2021) - Elections report shows inequality can be fought at local level; Two-thirds believe resources should be found for NHS pay rise; May Day messages anticipate challenges; Low-income staff on share schemes '£11,000 better off'; UK government debt hits 104.5% of GDP; Ikea's Living Wage decision welcomed; Covid crisis changes 'should prompt' welfare state rethink

Issue 21

Covid work deaths ‘massively under-reported’ (512 words)

Work-related Covid deaths are being “massively” under-reported, the TUC has stated. ...
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Economic shock continues, wellbeing survey finds (582 words)

Figures from the ONS show that the personal economic shock caused by the coronavirus continues for many people – and it’s worst for those worse ...
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‘Workers win’ as airport dedicates terminal to red list arrivals (122 words)

General union the GMB is claiming a win for aviation workers after Heathrow airport set aside Terminal 3 as a dedicated terminal for arrivals from ...
Open access

Care staff more likely to refuse jab if threatened (269 words)

Public services union UNISON has said that care staff are more likely to refuse vaccination against Covid if employers insist they get one. ...
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Teachers targeted by increasing online abuse, union says (369 words)

Teachers are increasingly experiencing verbal abuse, criticism and “relentless” contact from parents via social media and emails, teachers’ ...
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Bus strikes called off (157 words)

General union Unite has announced that London bus strikes set for this week have been called off following consultation with members who agreed ...
Open access

Rich list ‘reveals pandemic profiteers’ (192 words)

The Equality Trust has criticised “pandemic profiteers” and noted that, in the middle of the global pandemic, the Sunday Times Rich List has ...
Open access

Issue 20

Job vacancies hit pandemic high, as unemployment dips (699 words)

Unemployment has fallen slightly and job vacancies risen to their highest level during the pandemic, according to data from the Office for National ...
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UK inflation rate more than doubles (261 words)

UK inflation more than doubled in April according to the ONS. The CPI (consumer prices index) rose by 1.5% in the 12 months to April 2021, up from 0.7 ...
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Supreme Court hears ‘critical’ union representation case (338 words)

The Supreme Court is hearing an appeal that could set a landmark precedent in the field of collective bargaining and who employers negotiate with. ...
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Unions disappointed by 1.5% offer (182 words)

Unions the GMB, UNISON and Unite – which between them represent 750,000 council and school support staff in England, Wales and Northern Ireland – ...
Open access

RMT: 'it’s a Great British rail rip off' (204 words)

Ahead of the government announcing rail reforms this week, transport union the RMT has describe what it calls “the Great British rail rip off”, ...
Open access

Victory declared in fire and rehire strike (223 words)

Unite has proclaimed a “great victory” after announcing that bus drivers at Go North West in Manchester have defeated attempts to fire and rehire ...
Open access

Court safety concessions won (182 words)

Public and commercial services union the PCS has announced that, having entered into a formal trade dispute with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) ...
Open access

Issue 19

TUC attacks government over broken promise (404 words)

The TUC has accused the government of failing to honour its 2019 promise to boost workers’ rights, after ministers failed to include an employment ...
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Economy rebounds after first quarter dip (201 words)

UK GDP declined by 1.5% in the first three months of 2021, but picked up again in March, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). ...
Open access

Workplace pension participation levels off (442 words)

The proportion of workers with a workplace pension reached a new high in April 2020, at nearly eight out of 10 UK employees (78%), the ONS has found. ...
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MPs and peers back unions in fire and rehire protest letter (372 words)

Unions once again calling for the banning of fire and rehire by employers have been joined by Labour MPs and peers as signatories in a joint letter ...
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Employers 'don't expect' full-time office future (194 words)

A BBC survey of the UK’s 50 biggest employers has found most do not expect all workers to return to their offices full-time in future. ...
Open access

Survey finds lack of consultation over return to work (286 words)

Research by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) suggests that many managers are failing to consult staff ahead of a return to the workplace. ...
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Unions slam CEO’s bonus while company receives furlough grants (270 words)

General unions Unite and the GMB have criticised XPO Logistics for reportedly paying its CEO a multi-million dollar bonus while claiming millions of ...
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Issue 18

Elections report shows inequality can be fought at local level (416 words)

To coincide with this week’s local and mayoral elections the High Pay Centre released a report arguing that, while most pay and employment policy ...
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Two-thirds believe resources should be found for NHS pay rise (448 words)

Two thirds of the public believe the government should try harder to find the resources to fund a decent pay rise for NHS staff in England, according ...
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May Day messages anticipate challenges (444 words)

This year’s May Day message by TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady looked to the challenges ahead and how they can be met through friendship ...
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Low-income staff on share schemes ‘£11,000 better off’ (230 words)

More workers should be offered the chance to join employee share schemes, a think tank has said, after it found low-income participants could benefit ...
Open access

UK government debt hits 104.5% of GDP (102 words)

ONS figures on UK government debt show that at the end of December, general government gross debt reached £2,206.5 billion – equivalent to 104.5% ...
Open access

Ikea’s Living Wage decision welcomed (180 words)

Unions have welcomed Ikea’s decision to re-commit to paying workers at least the Living Wage Foundation rate. ...
Open access

Covid crisis changes ‘should prompt’ welfare state rethink (334 words)

Changes to the UK’s social security safety net made during the pandemic should prompt a wider public debate about the welfare system, according to ...
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