Jessica O'ConnorTUC General Secretary Paul Nowak has urged the Government to deliver stronger protections for workers, warning that insecure employment remains a major challenge despite recent improvements in wages and employment levels.
Responding to the latest labour market data, Nowak said: “It is welcome that wages continue to grow and that employment rates are still rising.
“However, years of Tory cuts and underinvestment have left big challenges in the jobs market – including continued growth in the use of insecure zero hours contracts.
“The Government is raising national investment, repairing public services, and improving the support people need to get into work.
“This is putting Britain on the road to recovery. But more is needed. Bold action must continue to match the size of the problems we face. This should include improved support for disabled workers and a comprehensive youth guarantee.”
Official figures released yesterday showed that the overall employment rate has risen to 75.3%, up from 74.6% a year ago, while unemployment has also edged up to 4.7% from 4.2%.
Youth unemployment remains high at 12%, with no change over the past year.
Real wages increased by 1.2%, but the number of people on zero-hours contracts has reached a record 1.17 million, up from 1.04 million last year.
On the sharp rise in zero-hours contracts, Nowak added: “There are still far too many people trapped on zero-hours contracts, unsure of how much they’ll make from one week to the next.
“But Tory and Lib Dem Lords have been voting to block new rights for workers to a proper contract with regular hours.
“The sight of hereditary Peers voting against workers’ rights belongs in another century. Working people need the Employment Rights Bill delivered in full.”
