Disadvantaged groups trapped in insecure jobs

Workers from under-represented groups are consistently trapped in insecure jobs, says a leading think tank based at Lancaster University.

The Work Foundation’s UK Insecure Work Index, which details in-work insecurity across the country over two decades, shows that women, disabled, BAME and young workers have all been disproportionately affected by an increasingly insecure labour market.

While in-work insecurity affects 20-25% of workers every year, the research revealed that young workers are two and a half times more likely to experience severe insecurity than older workers; women are two-thirds more likely than men; BAME workers are more likely than White workers, with BAME men especially at risk; and disabled workers 6% more likely than non-disabled.

Based on ONS data from 2000 to 2021, the index draws on three elements of insecurity – job contracts, personal finances and access to workers’ rights.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady welcomed the index and called on government to boost workers’ rights. “Up and down the country, millions are trapped in jobs that have wildly unpredictable hours, low pay, and limited rights,” she said. “Instead of tackling insecure work, ministers have sat on their hands and allowed it to flourish. The time for excuses is over.”