Fact Service June 2021

Issue 25 (24/06/21) - TUC calls for disability status for long Covid; Survey shows public supports union rights at Amazon; Borrowing reduces after hitting record levels; Unions back travel day of action; Think tank: inflation spike could squeeze incomes; Home working is 'new class divide'; Asbestos campaign unveils website

Issue 24 (17/06/21) - Job market 'recovering' from Covid; Inflation jumps; Covid precautions must continue, unions say; Care staff denied full pay when sick; Survey finds staff forced to work; Teachers' union announces long Covid initiative

Issue 23 (10/06/21) - Questions raised over promise of 'powerful' workers' watchdog; Judgment wins protection from mistreatment; TUC: third of disabled workers treated unfairly; Low-paid and young face unemployment risk as furlough ends

Issue 22 (03/06/2021) - Union membership up for fourth year; OECD predicts UK recovery; Inequality rises despite taxes and benefits; Union agrees deal with Uber; Organisations report rising demand for mental health support; Legislation 'needed to stop tips deductions'; Workers 'charged out at double their rate of pay'

Issue 25

TUC calls for disability status for long Covid (313 words)

The TUC has called for long Covid to be treated as a disability and Covid-19 as an occupational disease. Last week teachers’ union the NASUWT ...
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Survey shows public supports union rights at Amazon (427 words)

A poll of 2,000 people commissioned by the Unite general union has found public support for the right of directly-employed workers at Amazon to have ...
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Borrowing reduces after hitting record levels (265 words)

New figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveal the impact of coronavirus spending on the UK’s finances. Government borrowing – ...
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Unions back travel day of action (465 words)

Transport unions supported a day of action this week designed to put pressure on the UK government to support a safe return of international travel ...
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Think tank: inflation spike could squeeze incomes (213 words)

Think tank the Resolution Foundation, which last week described a jump in inflation as “reasonably benign” (see Fact Service issue 24) has stated ...
Open access

Home working is ‘new class divide’ (374 words)

The TUC believes it has identified an emerging class divide as some workers opt to keep working from home, while those who can’t do so are denied ...
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Asbestos campaign unveils website (95 words)

A coalition of unions has launched a website intended to push the government to remove asbestos from educational buildings. ...
Open access

Issue 24

Job market ‘recovering’ from Covid (1,063 words)

The job market is showing signs of recovery, with unemployment dropping slightly and vacancies reaching pre-pandemic levels, according to the Office ...
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Inflation jumps (268 words)

Inflation rose unexpectedly sharply to 2.1% CPI (consumer prices index) in May, up from 1.5% in April, its highest rate in almost two years, ONS ...
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Covid precautions must continue, unions say (373 words)

General union Unite has called on the government to retain the rules on mask wearing and reduced capacity on public transport after 19 July, when the ...
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Care staff denied full pay when sick (224 words)

A third of care staff are only receiving Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) or less when having to shield or self-isolate, public services union UNISON has ...
Open access

Survey finds staff forced into work (156 words)

The TUC has warned that some employers are ignoring official guidance by forcing staff to “needlessly” work in offices and other workplaces. ...
Open access

Teachers’ union announces long Covid initiative (144 words)

Teachers’ union the NASUWT is launching a campaign for long Covid to be legally recognised as a disability under the Equality Act 2010. ...
Open access

Issue 23

Questions raised over promise of ‘powerful’ workers’ watchdog (619 words)

The UK government’s announcement of a planned new workers’ rights watchdog has won little praise from unions, instead attracting suggestions on ...
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Judgment wins protection from mistreatment (366 words)

Employers will no longer be able to get away with mistreating workers who take part in union-organised workplace disputes, UNISON has announced. ...
Subscribers only

TUC: third of disabled workers treated unfairly (236 words)

Nearly a third of disabled workers say that they’ve been treated unfairly at work during the coronavirus pandemic, the TUC says. ...
Open access

Low-paid and young face unemployment risk as furlough ends (1,115 words)

Young and low-paid workers face the greatest risk of unemployment when the CJRS furlough scheme ends in September, according to the Resolution ...
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Issue 22

Union membership up for fourth year (732 words)

Trade union membership increased by nearly 120,000 to 6.56 million in 2020, the fourth year of growth in a row, according to the Department for ...
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OECD predicts UK recovery (348 words)

The UK’s economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic is likely to be stronger than previously thought and faster than many of its trade ...
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Inequality rises despite taxes and benefits (316 words)

Taxes and benefits have failed to stem rising income inequality over the last decade, Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures show. ...
Subscribers only

Union agrees deal with Uber (353 words)

General union the GMB has struck what it calls a historic deal with Uber, under which the taxi company will formally recognise the union, allowing it ...
Subscribers only

Organisations report rising demand for mental health support (109 words)

Demand for mental health support from employees has risen significantly during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a poll by online publication ...
Open access

Legislation ‘needed to stop tips deductions’ (256 words)

The government must introduce promised legislation to prevent employers keeping tips given to staff, according to the Unite general union after it ...
Subscribers only

Workers ‘charged out at double their rate of pay’ (165 words)

The Guardian has reported that call centre workers for NHS test-and-trace who are being paid £9.50 an hour were charged out to the government’s ...
Open access