As many of us enjoy the bank holiday, it is worth remembering that the government left the decision to each individual employer as to whether to give their workers the day off or not, and in the case of zero-hours and precarious workers, it is causing chaos for their childcare plans.
In terms of disputes, it was a quieter week than usual, with fewer unions announcing strikes than in previous weeks. However, some major ballots were announced, including one at an Amazon warehouse in Coventry and the rescheduling of the RCN strike ballot, now set to start next month.
Read on for this, as well as the latest jobs figures, statistics that show that it is better to be poor in Slovenia than in the UK and the first mass redundancy by the new King Charles.
As always, if you have something coming up that I should include in the newsletter let me know here, or send me an email to theweekinwork [at] gmail [dot] com.
DISPUTES
Further education strikes: Staff at 26 further education colleges will take ten days of strike action over pay, UCU says.
Train strikes over tory conference: Train operators have been notified of two 24-hour walkouts on 1 and 5 October, the first and last days of the Conservative party conference, the Guardian reports.
First ever Amazon ballot: Amazon workers at the company’s Coventry warehouse are voting on possible industrial action, in the first ever formal strike ballot of an Amazon warehouse, GMB says. The ballot closes on 19 October.
RCN strike ballot: The RCN announces new dates for its strike ballot, which will now start on 6 October and run until 2 November. The ballot had previously been delayed due to the death of the Queen.
Scottish teachers ballot: Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) is moving forward with preparations for a statutory ballot for strike action after 94% of teachers voted to reject the Scottish government’s 5% pay offer, the union says.
More days in Newham dispute: Newham borough council refuse workers have announced two more weeks of strike action, Unite says. The union also says that Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz’s claim that workers were offered an up to 17.9% pay rise is misleading, as they were only offered £950 if they worked every bank holiday week.
Felixstowe pay deal rejected: More strike days have been announced as part of the Felixstowe dispute after workers rejected the company’s 7% deal, Unite says.
Bus manufacturing workers dispute: Workers at bus manufacturing company Alexander Dennis Limited are striking, following a 6.6% pay offer, Unite says.
Stagecoach strike ballot: Almost 200 Stagecoach drivers in Sunderland are voting on strike action, following a 4% pay offer this year and a 2% pay offer last year, GMB says.
Architects strike ballot: Workers at Atomik, a London based architectural company, are voting on potential strike action in a dispute over pay and conditions, United Voices of the World says. The announcement comes after the company announced a redundancy consultation.
Baker Hughes strike ballot: More than 200 employees of oil and gas company Baker Hughes in Walker, Newcastle, are being balloted for strike action, after they twice turned down a real terms pay cut, GMB says. Baker Hughes workers are already striking in Scotland, where the company is proposing contract changes that would result in a £10,500 pay cut, Unite says.
Teesside Airport workers ballot: Dozens of Teesside Airport workers, including air traffic controllers and fire fighters, are being balloted for strike action after turning down a pay offer, GMB says.
Usdaw staff dispute: Usdaw is facing potential strike action from some of its staff in a dispute over pay and home working, the Guardian reports.
JOBS AND PAY
Fall in unemployment driven by economic inactivity: The UK’s unemployment rate has dropped to 3.6%, the lowest rate since 1974, but it is mostly driven by people leaving the labour market, according to the Office for National Statistics. The economic inactivity rate has increased to 21.7%, the highest since January 2017.
The statistics also show real pay falling by 4%, with the average weekly wage being £25 less per week than it was in the same period last year.
Poorest in UK are worse off than peers in Slovenia: Last year, the lowest earning households in the UK had a standard of living that was 20% “weaker” than their counterparts in Slovenia, the Financial Times reports. Meanwhile, the average UK household is currently 20% worse off than their peers in north-western Europe.
Worst crisis ever faced: 78% of workers paid below the real Living Wage – 3.7m workers nationally – say the cost-of-living crisis is the worst financial period they have ever faced, according to a survey by the Living Wage Foundation. This week the Living Wage Foundation is announcing living wage rates for 2022-2023.
Royally sacked: Up to 100 employees at King Charles’s former official residence, Clarence House, including some who have worked there for decades, received notification that they could lose their jobs, the Guardian reports. PCS says it is supporting staff to ensure they have job security.
POLICY AND POLITICS
Don’t bank on it: Not everyone has been able to enjoy the bank holiday. Workers, including those at chicken processing company 2 Sisters and many in the construction sector, were not given a day off or compensation, Unite says.
Some outsourced workers at Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust, who are engaged in a long-running dispute, are also saying that they have to work on the bank holiday, as are bin workers in Waltham Forest.
Joeli Brearley, founder and CEO of charity Pregnant Then Screwed, tells HR Magazine that the bank holiday will create problems for parents on precarious or zero-hours contracts, as well as those who are self-employed, because schools are closed meaning they will have to take a day off and lose a day’s pay.
Employment lawyers oppose Truss’s proposals: UK Prime Minister Liz Truss’s plans to shake up employment rights have been met with dismay by employment practitioners, International Employment Lawyer reports.
EU minimum wage directive: The European Union parliament has voted in favour of legislation regarding adequate minimum wages for member states, Employee Benefits reports. The council is expected to formally approve the agreement this month.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
Construction death: The boss of roofing company Vanguard Roofing has been handed a suspended prison sentence after an employee fell and died at a construction site, Construction News reports.
Tata Steel accident: A man has died following a medical emergency at a Tata Steel plant in Llanwern, Newport, Wales Online reports.
LEGAL
NHS whistleblower win: A whistleblower nurse who was sacked after warning that the workload on NHS staff had led to a patient’s death has been awarded £462,000, The Northern Echo reports.
Construction company redundancies: An employment tribunal has ruled against Central Building Contractors (CBC), a collapsed building company which laid off 149 staff on the same day it appointed administrators, Construction News reports.
Cleaner wins discrimination claim: A Somali cleaner that was told by his manager that a racist term used by a colleague was a “term of endearment” has won an employment tribunal claim against his employer, Yahoo News reports. Faisal Abdi worked for TC Facilities Management at a Nationwide Building Society office.
WHAT’S COMING UP
Ongoing: Bosch Rexroth Glenrothes strike every Monday and Tuesday and overtime ban every day
Ongoing: Foinaven Floating Production, Storage and Offloading vessel (FPSO) workers on strike
Ongoing: Dundee university workers strike
Ongoing: Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council workers strike
19 September - 16 November (not continuous): Baker Hughes workers on strike
19, 23, 26 and 30 September: Walsall Housing Group workers strike
20 September - 3 October: Newham refuse workers strike
20, 30 September: Arriva bus workers strike in Kent
20 - 21 September, 3 - 4 October: Scotland higher education workers strike
22 September: LIving Wage Foundation announces new living wage rates
23, 26 September: Wandsworth parking attendants on strike
24 - 25 September: Unite Scotland policy conference
27 September - 4 October: Felixstowe port strike
27 - 29 September: Venator Material workers on strike
27 September - 9 October: OCS workers strike at Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Trust
22 & 29 September, 6, 13, 20 and 27 October, 3, 10, 17 and 24 November 2022: Honeywell workers on strike
19 September - 3 October: Liverpool dock workers on strike
22, 23, 26, 29, 30 September, 3 October: Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) workers on strike
26 September - 7 November: PCS national strike ballot
30 September - 1 October: Royal Mail workers on strike
3 - 14 October: Alexander Dennis Limited workers strike
6 October - 2 November: RCN strike ballot
19 October: TUC mass lobby of parliament
21 October: UCU ballot of 150 universities ends
27 October - 25 November: Unison NHS strike ballot
FEEDBACK
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