Miliband’s extra rights for zero-hours contract workers
25 April 2014
Workers on zero-hours contracts will have the right to request a contract with a minimum amount of work after six months with an employer, Labour leader Ed Miliband will say today.
Fri, 25 Apr 2014
Workers on zero-hours contracts will have the right to request a contract with a minimum amount of work after six months with an employer, Labour leader Ed Miliband will say today.
As he sets out the Labour Party’s plans to end “the worst abuses” of zero-hours contracts, among the other rights that Milliband will promise zero-hours workers today in a speech in Scotland are an automatic right to a fixed-hours contract after 12 months with an employer.
In the speech, Miliband will lay out his plans to give zero-hours workers a range of additional rights should Labour come to power in next year’s General Election. These are:
The plans are based on the recommendations of Norman Pickavance, former HR director at supermarket chain Morrisons, whom the Labour Party asked to carry out a review.
As reported by the BBC, Miliband will say the contracts can offer "short-term flexibility for employers and employees" but that most employers don't use them because they are "incompatible with building a loyal, skilled and productive workforce".
He will say that Labour is determined to ban the "worst abuses of the system", adding "it has left too many people not knowing how they will make ends meet from one week to the next, and unable to plan for the future”.
Zero-hours contracts allow employers to hire staff with no guarantee of work, paying them only for the hours they work.
While employers and many workers value their flexibility, critics say that these contracts are often abused, with workers uncertain about their hours unable to plan their finances. Some workers are also restricted from working with other employers.
Among the well-known companies that use or have used zero-hours contacts are Sports Direct, Buckingham Palace and McDonald’s. Estimates of the number of workers on zero-hours contracts vary from around 290,000 to a high as 1m.
Kate Shoesmith, head of policy at the Recruitment & Employment Confederation, tells Recruiter: “Flexible work is absolutely essential to the success of the UK labour market; 47% of people in work don’t work in the ‘traditional’ full-time, permanent model – being either part-time, self-employed, contractors or temporary workers. Millions of people choose to work flexibly because it suits their lifestyles.
“Zero-hours contracts account for only a tiny percentage of employees in the UK. There is nothing inherently wrong with zero-hours contracts, and most of the examples of bad practice that have come to light are the fault of bad management practices. In fact, research by the CIPD found that workers on zero-hours contracts are happier with their work-life balance than permanent employees.”
Ben Willmott, head of public policy at the the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), says: “We broadly welcome the Labour proposals to reform the use of zero hours, with a caveat over the plans to provide a right to request fixed hours after six months and an automatic right to fixed hours for some zero hours staff after 12 months unless the employee or worker seeks to opt out of the arrangement.
"This last suggestion in particular would increase red tape, and is likely to lead to disputes and create more work for employment lawyers. Our research with employers suggests that employers would respond by using very low minimum hours contracts or increasing the use of agency staff if these types of restrictions on zero hours were introduced."
A spokesperson for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills says: “The government recognises that a growing number of employers and individuals are using zero-hours contracts. While for many people they offer a welcome flexibility, for others it is clear that there has been evidence of abuse around this type of employment, which can offer limited employment rights and job security.
“We believe they have a place in today’s labour market and are not proposing to ban them outright, but we also want to make sure that people are getting a fair deal. This is why we conducted research last summer and carried out a consultation looking at the key concerns.”
A three-month consultation by the government ended in March.
“The consultation received a high level of interest, with over 30,000 responses. We are currently analysing these and will publish our response in due course,” adds the spokesperson.
As he sets out the Labour Party’s plans to end “the worst abuses” of zero-hours contracts, among the other rights that Milliband will promise zero-hours workers today in a speech in Scotland are an automatic right to a fixed-hours contract after 12 months with an employer.
In the speech, Miliband will lay out his plans to give zero-hours workers a range of additional rights should Labour come to power in next year’s General Election. These are:
- not being obliged to be available outside contracted hours
- being free to work for other employers
- the right to compensation if shifts are cancelled at short notice
- the right to request a contract with a minimum amount of work after six months with an employer. This could only be refused if an employer can prove their business could not operate any other way
- an automatic right to a fixed-hours contract after 12 months with an employer
The plans are based on the recommendations of Norman Pickavance, former HR director at supermarket chain Morrisons, whom the Labour Party asked to carry out a review.
As reported by the BBC, Miliband will say the contracts can offer "short-term flexibility for employers and employees" but that most employers don't use them because they are "incompatible with building a loyal, skilled and productive workforce".
He will say that Labour is determined to ban the "worst abuses of the system", adding "it has left too many people not knowing how they will make ends meet from one week to the next, and unable to plan for the future”.
Zero-hours contracts allow employers to hire staff with no guarantee of work, paying them only for the hours they work.
While employers and many workers value their flexibility, critics say that these contracts are often abused, with workers uncertain about their hours unable to plan their finances. Some workers are also restricted from working with other employers.
Among the well-known companies that use or have used zero-hours contacts are Sports Direct, Buckingham Palace and McDonald’s. Estimates of the number of workers on zero-hours contracts vary from around 290,000 to a high as 1m.
Kate Shoesmith, head of policy at the Recruitment & Employment Confederation, tells Recruiter: “Flexible work is absolutely essential to the success of the UK labour market; 47% of people in work don’t work in the ‘traditional’ full-time, permanent model – being either part-time, self-employed, contractors or temporary workers. Millions of people choose to work flexibly because it suits their lifestyles.
“Zero-hours contracts account for only a tiny percentage of employees in the UK. There is nothing inherently wrong with zero-hours contracts, and most of the examples of bad practice that have come to light are the fault of bad management practices. In fact, research by the CIPD found that workers on zero-hours contracts are happier with their work-life balance than permanent employees.”
Ben Willmott, head of public policy at the the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), says: “We broadly welcome the Labour proposals to reform the use of zero hours, with a caveat over the plans to provide a right to request fixed hours after six months and an automatic right to fixed hours for some zero hours staff after 12 months unless the employee or worker seeks to opt out of the arrangement.
"This last suggestion in particular would increase red tape, and is likely to lead to disputes and create more work for employment lawyers. Our research with employers suggests that employers would respond by using very low minimum hours contracts or increasing the use of agency staff if these types of restrictions on zero hours were introduced."
A spokesperson for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills says: “The government recognises that a growing number of employers and individuals are using zero-hours contracts. While for many people they offer a welcome flexibility, for others it is clear that there has been evidence of abuse around this type of employment, which can offer limited employment rights and job security.
“We believe they have a place in today’s labour market and are not proposing to ban them outright, but we also want to make sure that people are getting a fair deal. This is why we conducted research last summer and carried out a consultation looking at the key concerns.”
A three-month consultation by the government ended in March.
“The consultation received a high level of interest, with over 30,000 responses. We are currently analysing these and will publish our response in due course,” adds the spokesperson.
