Economically inactive rise post-Covid - 1,600 Bolt drivers take legal action - Derby spends £1.5m fighting equal pay claims
3 - 9 October
As the Conservative party conference came to a close last week, the Financial Times published statistics that show that the UK is still a leading nation in one category: it is the only developed country where the number of people dropping out of the labour force kept rising after the first pandemic shock.
The high number of economically inactive adults, now at around 9 million, take some of the shine off the UK’s historically low unemployment figures, but even those are likely to worsen in the coming year. Data from the trade body for recruiters shows hires at the lowest level in a year and a half, as employers implement hiring freezes over the negative economic outlook.
Read on for this, but also more than a thousand Bolt drivers taking their gig-economy employer to court over their employment status and Derby council spending £1.5 million to fight off equal pay claims.
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
“Deal to be done”: Transport secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan told conservative members at the party conference in Birmingham that there was a “Deal to be done” between unions and train operators, but stressed any agreement would require compromise, the Guardian reports.
RMT hit the charts: Musicians from Primal Scream, Dexys Midnight Runners, and the Jesus and Mary Chain are producing a song in support of the RMT, the union says. The song will be released at the end of October 2022.
Avanti strike: Train managers on Avanti West Coast will strike on 22 October, with other workers striking on 6 November, RMT says.
Abellio strike: Workers at Abellio East Midlands are striking in a dispute over pay, Unite says.
NHS Scotland ballot: Unite is balloting 2500 NHS Scotland workers, including workers at the Scottish Ambulance Service, after the Scottish government refused to improve on its 5% offer, the union says.
More disputes among paramedics: Almost 3,000 paramedics and ambulance workers at the East and West Midlands Ambulance Services will be balloted for strike action in response to the government’s 4% pay award, GMB says. GMB has already announced a strike ballot among workers of the North East and Yorkshire ambulance services.
First Group strike: Around 400 First Group workers in Somerset and Cornwall are striking over pay, RMT says.
Prison strike: Over 400 staff working in education at 48 prisons and youth offender institutions across England have overwhelmingly voted to strike, with a 94.47% ‘YES’ vote, UCU says. The union says the pay has fallen by more than 25% since 2009.
Offshore workers strike: More than 300 offshore drilling and contract maintenance workers employed by Archer, Maersk, Transocean and Odfjell are taking striking action after rejecting a 5% pay offer, Unite says.
Newham disputes escalate: Newham street sweepers are voting to strike over “poverty pay”, Unite says. Refuse workers in the borough are already engaged in strike action.
Arriva depot closure: More than 100 Arriva bus drivers in Northumberland will start an all-out strike from 21 October in response to the company’s decision to close the Jesmond depot, Unite says. The union won several pay disputes at Arriva in recent weeks, including in North London and the home counties.
DHL ballot: Around 100 DHL workers at the Bradford depot are voting over whether to take industrial action after the company offered a 5% pay rise, GMB says.
American Airlines strike: More than 50 aircraft maintenance technicians and crew chiefs, responsible for the Heathrow departures of American Airlines, have voted by 98 per cent to strike over pay, Unite says.
Coal museum workers strike: Workers at the National Coal Mining Museum have voted to strike over pay, according to a tweet by the Wakefield Unison branch.
Courts strike back on: Legal advisors and court associates at 65 magistrates’ courts in England and Wales are taking strike action at the end of the month over the “unworkable” Common Platform system, PCS says. The union had previously postponed strike action due to the Queen’s funeral.
Covid workers strike: Workers at healthcare logistics firm Movianto will take strike action later this month over the company’s failure to table a pay offer this year, GMB says.
Union battle at the RSA: The Royal Society of Arts (RSA) is resisting a claim for union recognition by the IWGB, a union to which it had previously given an award to, but now claims is not “fit and proper”, The Observer reports. The Central Arbitration Committee has found that 48% of staff in the proposed bargaining unit are members of the union and a majority of staff support union recognition.
Falmouth university strike: Falmouth University workers will take three days of strike action over the university’s decision to employ staff through a subsidiary company, UCU says.
Suffolk refuse workers ballot: East Suffolk refuse workers are voting to strike over pay, Unison says. The union says workers are struggling to cope with the rising cost of living, coming after more than a decade of below-inflation pay deals.
Emergency firefighters: Emergency firefighters with only three-days training are being hired to scab during potential strike action, Novara reports.
POLITICS AND POLICY
Jobs slowdown: There has been a slowdown in recruitment activity across the UK, with hires at the lowest level in over a year-and-a-half, according to a report by the Recruitment & Employment Confederation.
Rees-Mogg proposals quashed: Prime minister Liz Truss has rejected several proposals by business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg to slash employment rights, the FT reports citing a Number 10 source.
EU minimum wage law approved: The European Council has approved the minimum wage directive that was previously voted on by the European Parliament, kicking off the 2-year implementation period for member states, Euractiv reports.
JOBS AND PAY
Economically inactive rise post-Covid: The UK is the only country in the developed world where people have continued dropping out of the labour force in even greater numbers beyond the acute phase of the pandemic, the FT reports. The rise in worklessness is driven by an increase in people suffering from chronic pain, mental illness issues, and multiple serious health conditions.
Earning below the poverty line: A tenth of UK households make just £7000 before tax and benefit adjustments, according to the Times.
Supermarket pay: Lidl is set to become the highest paying supermarket in the UK after revealing plans to pay £10.90 an hour to new recruits outside London and 11.95 for those in the capital, Retail Gazette reports. Retail Gazette lists pay of all the major retailers, revealing Iceland pays the least, at just £9 an hour.
LEGAL
Bolt drivers group claim: More than 1,600 UK drivers working for the ride-hailing app Bolt are bringing a group claim, backed by Leigh Day and the IWGB, over missed holiday and minimum wage payments, as well as being mis-classified as self-employed contractors, the Guardian reports.
£1.5m fighting equal pay claims: Derby City Council has spent more than £1.5m in legal fees fighting equal pay disputes brought by 200 mostly female workers, according to a freedom of information request by Unison.
Victimisation win: A Unison rep has been awarded more than £7000 after an employment tribunal found that he had been victimised by Lancashire County Council over his trade union activities, according to a judgement.
Pregnancy discrimination: A hairdresser has won £7,500 after being sacked four days after telling her boss she was pregnant again, Wales Online reports.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
Fall through roof: Leicestershire contractor Cairns Heritage Homes has been fined £80,000 after an employee suffered serious injuries falling through a "fragile roof" at Nottingham Recycling, Construction News reports.
MODERN SLAVERY
GLAA contradicts Home Secretary: The chief executive of the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority has said the organisation has not seen anyone gaming the modern slavery system for immigration purposes, contradicting earlier statements by the Home Secretary Suella Braverman, the Guardian reports.
WINS
Canary taking flight: Online publication The Canary has become a workers’ coop, after the publication’s employees uncovered a number of financial irregularities by the company’s directors. The full story of how this happened can be read in a series of articles on the Canary website.
College workers pay deal: Workers at Abingdon and Witney College have voted for an improved pay deal, including an 8% increase for the lowest paid and a 5% increase for middle earners, UCU says.
WHAT’S COMING UP
Ongoing: Dundee university workers strike
Ongoing: Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council workers strike
10 October: Announcement of results of Criminal Bar industrial action
10 October: Scotrail strike
10 October: Ms D Clarke vs GMB Union London at Dundee Employment Tribunal
10 - 14 October: Polyflor Ltd workers strike
10 - 14 October: Alexander Dennis Limited workers strike
10 - 17 October: Liverpool dock workers strike
10 - 13 October: Unison members strike across UK universities
10 - 31 October: Northern Ireland Housing Executive strike
10, 20 and 24 October: BT and Openreach workers on strike
10, 11 October: Arriva workers in Kent strike
10, 21 October, 4, 11 November: First Group workers strike in Somerset and Cornwall
10 - 20 October (not continuous): Strikes at colleges across the UK
13, 20 and 27 October, 3, 10, 17 and 24 November 2022: Honeywell workers on strike
13 October - 30 November (not continuous and different departments): Strike action at Royal Mail
10 October - 29 December: Hull Stagecoach workers strike
11 October: Monthly unemployment figures
11 - 15 October: Sunderland Stagecoach bus drivers strike
12 October - 8 November: EIS industrial ballot of Scottish teachers
12, 14, 17, 21, 24 and 28 October: Walsall Housing Group workers strike
15 October: Protest to save specialist asbestos claim centre Phoenix House
15 October - 5 January (not continuous): West Midland Metro workers strike
17 October: Start of Barnet Council housing repairs workers strike
17 - 18 October: Abellio East Midlands workers strike
17 - 19 October: Falmouth University workers strike
18 - 20 October: TUC Congress
20 - 21 October, 3-4, 17-18 November, 1-2, 15-16 December: Offshore drillers and contractors strike
21 October: Start of continuous strike at Arriva Northumberland
21 October: UCU ballot of 150 universities, Unite ballot of 2000 Scottish university workers and EIS ballot of Scottish higher education workers end.
22 - 30 October: Magistrates Courts workers strike
3 October - 31 October: Unison NHS Scotland strike ballot
22 October, 6 November: Avanti West Coast strike
27 October - 18 November: Unison NHS Northern Ireland strike ballot
27 October - 25 November: Unison NHS England and Wales strike ballot
28, 31 October: Movianto workers strike
2 November: RCN strike ballot ends
2 November: TUC mass lobby of parliament
7 November: End of PCS civil service strike ballot
10 November: Announcement of results of PCS civil service strike ballot
FEEDBACK
Did I miss anything? Email me on theweekinwork [at] gmail [dot] com.