Tag: ILO

TUC: We will defend the right to strike at all costs

‘Make no mistake – this is one of the most pernicious pieces of union-bashing legislation you will ever see’

The ongoing Conservative Party psycho-drama has dominated the headlines over the last few weeks (writes TUC General Secretary PAUL NOWAK).

While it has been good to see Boris Johnson finally held accountable, it’s meant that many important issues have slipped under the radar.

The Strikes Bill returns to parliament today (23 June). It won’t get anywhere near the coverage of the vote on the Privileges Committee report, but it should.

Make no mistake – this is one of the most pernicious pieces of union-bashing legislation you will ever see.

And the TUC is by no means alone in saying this.

Over the weekend the UN workers’ rights watchdog, the ILO, demanded that the UK bring trade union rights into line with international law.

In a rare intervention, it instructed UK ministers to “seek technical assistance” from the body and to report back to the ILO in September.

The last time the ILO issued this type of rebuke to the UK was in 1995.

Litany of critics

The spiteful legislation has faced a barrage of criticism from employers, civil liberties organisations, the joint committee on human rights, House of Lords Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee, race and gender equalities groups, employment rights lawyers, politicians around the world – as well as a whole host of other organisations.

It is no surprise that this Bill has upset and enraged so many.

The UK already has the most restrictive anti-strikes legislation in Western Europe. And these reforms will take the country in an even more draconian direction.

That would mean that when workers lawfully vote to strike in health, education, fire, transport, border security and nuclear decommissioning, they could be forced to attend work – and sacked if they don’t comply. 

As the TUC has repeatedly warned the Strikes Bill is undemocratic, unworkable and almost certainly illegal.

Far from preventing strikes, the Bill will poison industrial relations and escalate disputes.

And for what? So Rishi Sunak can throw some red meat to his backbenchers and look tough to his ungovernable party.

Next steps

So where do we go from here?

The Strikes Bill is back in the Commons after a series of bruising defeats in the Lords.

The government will whip its MPs to vote down much-needed amendments as they try and fast-track the legislation onto the statute books.

Our challenge remains the same. Unions will continue to fight the Bill at every stage and will not rest until these poisonous reforms are defeated, and if passed into law, repealed by the next Labour government.

Last summer, ministers changed the law to allow agencies to supply employers with workers to fill in for those on strike. Unions are currently challenging the change in courts – with a judgment expected soon.

The right to strike is a fundamental British liberty that is vital for the balance of power in the workplace.

We must defend it at all costs. And as I told a TUC rally last month, we are also very clear that we will stand by any worker who exercises their fundamental right to strike.

MAY DAY: Half of the world’s workers could see their livelihoods destroyed

“For millions of workers, no income means no food, no security and no future. Millions of businesses around the world are barely breathing. They have no savings or access to credit.”

The continued sharp decline in working hours globally due to the COVID-19 outbreak  means that 1.6 billion workers in the informal economy – that is nearly half of the global workforce – stand in immediate danger of having their livelihoods destroyed, warns the International Labour Organization.

According to the ILO Monitor third edition: COVID-19 and the world of work , the drop in working hours in the current (second) quarter of 2020 is expected to be significantly worse than previously estimated.

Compared to pre-crisis levels (Q4 2019), a 10.5 per cent deterioration is now expected, equivalent to 305 million full-time jobs (assuming a 48-hour working week). The previous estimate was for a 6.7 per cent drop, equivalent to 195 million full-time workers. This is due to the prolongation and extension of lockdown measures.

Regionally, the situation has worsened for all major regional groups. Estimates suggest a 12.4 per cent loss of working hours in Q2 for the Americas (compared to pre-crisis levels) and 11.8 per cent for Europe and Central Asia. The estimates for the rest of the regional groups follow closely and are all above 9.5 per cent.

Informal economy impact

As a result of the economic crisis created by the pandemic, almost 1.6 billion informal economy workers (representing the most vulnerable in the labour market), out of a worldwide total of two billion and a global workforce of 3.3 billion, have suffered massive damage to their capacity to earn a living. This is due to lockdown measures and/or because they work in the hardest-hit sectors.

The first month of the crisis is estimated to have resulted in a drop of 60 per cent in the income of informal workers globally. This translates into a drop of 81 per cent in Africa and the Americas, 21.6 per cent in Asia and the Pacific, and 70 per cent in Europe and Central Asia.

Without alternative income sources, these workers and their families will have no means to survive.

Enterprises at risk

The proportion of workers living in countries under recommended or required workplace closures has decreased from 81 to 68 per cent over the last two weeks. The decline from the previous estimate of 81 per cent in the second edition of the monitor  (published April 7) is primarily a result of changes in China; elsewhere workplace closure measures have increased.

Worldwide, more than 436 million enterprises face high risks of serious disruption. These enterprises are operating in the hardest-hit economic sectors, including some 232 million in wholesale and retail, 111 million in manufacturing, 51 million in accommodation and food services, and 42 million in real estate and other business activities.

Urgent policy measures needed

The ILO calls for urgent, targeted and flexible measures to support workers and businesses, particularly smaller enterprises, those in the informal economy and others who are vulnerable.

“For millions of workers, no income means no food, no security and no future. […] As the pandemic and the jobs crisis evolve, the need to protect the most vulnerable becomes even more urgent.”

Guy Ryder, ILO Director-General

Measures for economic reactivation should follow a job-rich approach, backed by stronger employment policies and institutions, better-resourced and comprehensive social protection systems. International co-ordination on stimulus packages and debt relief measures will also be critical to making recovery effective and sustainable. International labour standards, which already enjoy tripartite consensus, can provide a framework.

“As the pandemic and the jobs crisis evolve, the need to protect the most vulnerable becomes even more urgent,” said ILO Director-General Guy Ryder.

“For millions of workers, no income means no food, no security and no future. Millions of businesses around the world are barely breathing. They have no savings or access to credit.

“These are the real faces of the world of work. If we don’t help them now, these enterprises will simply perish.”