Tag: trade unions

Biggest shake up to welfare system in a generation ‘to get Britain working’

UNIVERSAL CONDEMNATION OF LABOUR PLANS

Largest welfare reforms for a generation to help sick and disabled people who can and have the potential to work into jobs – backed by a £1 billion investment, unveiled by the Work & Pensions Secretary today

  • Work Capability Assessment to be scrapped and “right to try” work guarantee to be introduced in drive to tear down barriers to work
  • Changes will unlock work, boost employment, and tackle the broken benefits system to unlock growth as part of the government’s Plan for Change

Record £1 billion employment support measures have been announced ‘to help disabled and long-term sick people back into work’.

The new measures are designed to ensure a welfare system that is fit for purpose and available for future generations – opening up employment opportunities, boosting economic growth and tackling the spiralling benefits bill, while also ensuring those who cannot work get the support they need as part of the government’s Plan for Change.

This will end years of inaction, which has led to one in eight young people not currently in work, education or training and 2.8 million people economically inactive due to long term sickness – one of the highest rates in the G7. 

The number of people receiving one of the main types of health and disability benefit, Personal Independence Payments (PIP), has also risen rapidly and is becoming unsustainable. 

Since the pandemic, the number of working-age people receiving PIP has more than doubled from 15,300 to 35,100 a month. The number of young people (16-24) receiving PIP per month has also skyrocketed from 2,967 to 7,857 a month. Over the next five years, if no action is taken, the number of working age people claiming PIP is expected to increase from 2 million in 2021 to 4.3 million, costing £34.1 billion annually. 

All this has driven the spiralling health and disability benefits bill, forecast to reach £70 billion a year by the end of the decade, or more than £1 billion a week. This is equivalent to more than a third of the NHS budget, and more than three times as much as is spent on policing and keeping communities safe.

Speaking in Parliament today, Liz Kendall announced a sweeping package of reforms to overhaul the system, so it better supports those who need it while tearing down barriers to work including:

Ending reassessments for disabled people who will never be able to work and people with lifelong conditions to ensure they can live with dignity and security

Scrapping the controversial Work Capability Assessment to end the dysfunctional process that drives people into dependency – delivering on the government’s manifesto commitment to reform or replace it

Providing improved employment support backed by £1 billion – one of the biggest packages of employment support for sick and disabled people ever – including new tailored support conversations for people on health and disability benefits to break down barriers and unlock work

Legislating to protect those on health and disability benefits from reassessment or losing their payments if they take a chance on work. 

To ensure the welfare system is available for those with the greatest needs now and long into the future, the government has made bold decisions to improve its sustainability and protect those who need it most, including:

  • Reintroducing reassessments for people on incapacity benefits who have the capability to work to ensure they have the right support and aren’t indefinitely written off.
  • Targeting Personal Independence Payments for those with higher needs by changing the eligibility requirement to a minimum score of four on at least one of the daily living activities to receive the daily living element of the benefit, in addition to the existing eligibility criteria.
  • Rebalancing payment levels in Universal Credit to improve the Standard Allowance. Raising it above inflation by 2029/30, adding £775 annually in cash terms.
  • Consulting on delaying access to the health element of Universal Credit until someone is aged 22 and reinvesting savings into work support and training opportunities through the Youth Guarantee.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: “We inherited a fundamentally broken welfare system from the previous government. It does not work for the people it is supposed to support, businesses who need workers or taxpayers who foot the bill.

“This government will always protect the most severely disabled people to live with dignity. But we’re not prepared to stand back and do nothing while millions of people – especially young people – who have potential to work and live independent lives, instead become trapped out of work and abandoned by the system. It would be morally bankrupt to let their life chances waste away. 

“When I talk about opportunity for all, I mean it. That’s why we are bringing forward the biggest changes to the welfare system in a generation and improving support for those who need it. Ensuring those who can work do work is not only right, but it will also improve living standards and drive growth, the number one priority in our Plan for Change.”

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall said: “Our social security system must be there for all of us when we need it, now and into the future. That means helping people who can work to do so, protecting those most in need, and delivering respect and dignity for all. 

“Millions of people have been locked out of work, and we can do better for them. Disabled people and those with health conditions who can work deserve the same choices and chances as everyone else.

“That’s why we’re introducing the most far-reaching reforms in a generation, with £1 billion a year being invested in tailored support that can be adapted to meet their changing circumstances – including their changing health – while also scrapping the failed Work Capability Assessment.

“This will mean fairness for disabled people and those with long term health conditions, but also for the taxpayers who fund it as these measures bring down the benefits bill. 

“At the same time, we will ensure that our welfare system protects people. There will always be some people who cannot work because of their disability or health condition. Protecting people in need is a principle we will never compromise on.”

In her statement to Parliament, the Work and Pensions Secretary outlined the clear case for change to the welfare system and set out her commitment to ensuring that disabled people and those with a health condition have the same opportunities to work as anyone else.

In particular, she highlighted that the UK has one of the highest reported rates of working-age people out of work due to ill health in Western Europe and the UK is the only major economy whose employment rate hasn’t recovered since the pandemic – exacerbated by a broken NHS with millions of people on waiting lists. 

The government has already made huge progress to fix the NHS, including by hitting the manifesto commitment to deliver over two million extra elective care appointments seven months early, and bringing forward a wider programme for NHS reform through the rollout of community diagnostic centres and 10-year plan. The Health Secretary has also sent crack teams spearheaded by top clinicians into areas of high economic inactivity, and the latest data shows waiting lists in these areas have reduced at almost double the rate of the rest of the country. 

The reformed system will be built on a straightforward guarantee: any disabled person or person with a long-term health condition who is claiming out of work benefits will be able to access high quality, tailored help into a job. It will also mean that those who cannot work will always get the support they need. In Scotland and Wales, we will work closely with the devolved governments as we develop this package of support.

The reforms are based on five key principles:

Protecting disabled people who can’t and won’t ever be able to work and supporting them to live with dignity by:

  • Income Protection: Those currently in receipt of UC health will benefit from the increased standard allowance and will not be affected by plans to reduce UC health in future. 
  • Extra Financial Support: For people who receive the new rate of UC health in the future system, we are proposing a new premium for individuals with severe, life-long health conditions who will never be able to work. The details, eligibility criteria and rate of this premium will be set out in due course.
  • Ending Reassessments: Reassessments for disabled people and people with life-long conditions who will never be able to work will be scrapped.
  • Improving Safeguarding Practices: The government will look at how safeguarding practices for the most vulnerable can be improved and improve experiences with the system, working with stakeholders to identify areas for improvement. 

Delivering better and more tailored employment support to get more people off welfare and into work. This includes: 

  • £1 Billion employment package to deliver tailored support for disabled people and those with long-term conditions.
  • New Support Conversations to provide earlier opportunities for people with health conditions to discuss work goals and available help.
  • Investing in the Youth Guarantee by delaying access to UC health element until age 22 and reinvesting savings into work support and training for young people.

Stopping people from falling into long-term economic inactivity through early intervention and support by:

  • Access to Work Scheme: We will consult on improvements to help people start and stay in work with reasonable adjustments including aids, appliances and assistive technology. These would be the first substantive changes to Access to Work since its introduction in 1994
  • Unemployment Insurance: We will reform contributory benefits (ESA and JSA) into a single, non-means tested, time-limited benefit for those who have paid into the system to ensure people get the support they need to find a new job that makes the most of their skills, contributing to a dynamic and productive economy.

Restoring trust and fairness in the system by fixing the broken assessment process that drives people into dependency on welfare by:

  • Scrapping the WCA to end the labelling of people as either ‘can or can’t work’ and consulting on a new single assessment. Under the new system, any extra financial support for health conditions (including PIP, ESA or UC health) will be assessed via a new single assessment which will be based on the PIP assessment – considering on the impact of disability on daily living, not on capacity to work.
  • Increasing Face-to-Face Assessments for PIP and the WCA to improve the quality of assessment decision while ensuring we continue to meet the needs of those with who may require a different method of assessment.
  • Longer term reform of the PIP Assessment – In the long term we will set out broader reforms to the PIP assessment, and intend first to carry out a review involving experts and stakeholders to adapt and improve it.
  • Right to Try Guarantee: which will ensure someone trying work or on a pathway towards employment will never lead to an immediate reassessment or award review.
  • Restarting Mandatory Reassessments: We will reintroduce reassessments for incapacity benefits, with exceptions for those who will never work and those under special rules for end-of-life care. Reassessments have largely been switched off since 2021, leaving people stuck on benefits when they could be helped into work and to improve their quality of life.

Ensuring the system is financially sustainable to keep providing for those who need it most by:

  • Changing PIP Eligibility:  PIP will be targeted more on those with higher needs by requiring a minimum of four points on one daily living activity, in addition to the existing eligibility criteria.. DWP will work with DHSC to ensure that existing people who claim PIP who may no longer be entitled to the benefit following an award review under new eligibility rules have their health and eligible care needs met. The government is consulting on how best to achieve this.
  • Rebalancing Universal Credit: by improving the Standard Allowance to provide more adequate support. The government plans to raise the Standard Allowance above inflation by 2029/30, adding £775 in cash terms annually. This aims to avoid people having to choose between employment or adequate financial support. This change addresses the current issue where the health element rate is double that of the standard allowance, creating an incentive for people to prove they are unfit to work to claim the health element and access greater financial support.

Helen Barnard, director of policy at Trussell, said: “We’re deeply concerned by the cuts announced to disability payments today.

People at food banks have told us they are terrified of how they might survive. We welcome the positive proposals from the Department for Work and Pensions to boost the basic rate to Universal Credit and invest in employment support. However, we fear these steps will be undermined by a Treasury drive to make short-term savings.

“Huge cuts risk pushing more disabled people to the doors of food banks, and will have devastating consequences for us all. The UK government was elected on manifesto pledges to end the need for emergency food parcels. This isn’t what people voted for. 

“Disabled people are already three times more likely to face hunger, and three quarters of people at food banks are disabled or live with someone who is. Our social security system should be rooted in justice and compassion, able to be there for us all, especially when we need it most. 

“This isn’t a done deal. With at least a year before any cuts come into force, there’s still time for the Prime Minister and Chancellor to rethink and make good on today’s promise to restore trust and fairness in the social security system.”

The TUC said: ’11 General Secretaries of our trade union affiliates have written to the government to raise “profound concerns” about today’s welfare cuts targeted at disabled people. The labour movement must stand together with campaigners, charities & carers to resist”

#disabilitybenefit

Responding to today’s statement by Liz Kendall MP, Poverty Alliance policy & campaigns manager Ruth Boyle said: “People in the UK are desperate for a government that delivers a just and compassionate country.

“They want to see an end to deepening poverty, debt, destitution, and hunger in their communities. Many will be distressed, disappointed, scared, and angry at today’s announcements.

“The plans to cut the health element of Universal Credit are wrong and unjust. Cutting vital financial support to disabled people won’t help them into paid work – but it is likely to move them towards poverty.

“Equally unjust is the idea of making it virtually impossible for under-23s to get Universal Credit health support. The Government is punishing young people who aren’t fit for work simply because of their age.

“These changes are driven by a desire for financial cost savings, rather than helping people access the support they need. Positive proposals like personalised support to help people into work and a Right-to-Try will be undermined by cuts which force people into further and deeper poverty.

“Personal Independence Payments are a vital part of the social security system, and even though we have a replacement Adult Disability Payment in Scotland, there are still many people here who are on PIP.

“These social security benefits support people’s basic freedom – whether they are in work or not. They help cover some of the extra living costs that are forced on disabled people. The Government now plans to make it harder for them to get that vital support, denying them a full place in society, and undoubtedly pushing many towards debt and destitution.

“We urge the Scottish Government to maintain its commitment to justice and compassion, and to make sure the Adult Disability Payment still supports the freedom and rights of disabled people.

“It is shameful to try to balance the books on the backs of disabled people and households that are already struggling to keep their heads above water. Instead, the Government should do the responsible thing and use their tax powers to unlock our country’s wealth for investment in a strong social foundation.

“And they can scrap their self-imposed fiscal rules with a plan to help everyone build a better life for their households, and a better future for our country.”

Commenting on the Green Paper’s plans for social security reform announced by the government today (Tuesday), TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “During 14 years of Tory failure, too many people were written off. Millions of workers have been left without proper support to move into work or progress in good jobs, and too many people with disabilities or ill health have not had access to the support they need. 

“But change must be done in the right way. While we welcome the decision not to freeze PIP, this package will still lead to significant cuts in entitlements for some disabled people. 

“As well as ensuring that those with the most severe disabilities are protected, we urge ministers to reconsider the scale of proposed cuts in disabled people’s incomes. 

“Disabled people who are unable to work must not be pushed further into hardship.”

Commenting on the Green Paper’s wider proposals, Paul added: “Action to boost access to quality employment programmes and ensure that Jobcentre work coaches can provide quality and meaningful support is welcome. As too are proposals to strengthen contributory benefits. 

“This needs to be accompanied by ongoing investment in the NHS, including mental health services. Better healthcare can transform lives. 

“The government’s plan to Make Work Pay is also crucial to driving up the quality of jobs in Britain and ensuring more people have access to decent work.”

Transport union, RMT has criticised Labour’s decision to cut welfare spending by up to £5bn by 2030.

Eddie Dempsey RMT general secretary said: “Welfare cuts target people who rely on support to survive, including disabled people, carers, the unemployed, and those in insecure work.

“For the past 40 years our economy has been marked by low investment, wage suppression and super-high profits.

“Our economy needs to be fundamentally restructured so we can invest in housing, infrastructure and services to create well paid jobs and provide an adequate safety net for those who fall on hard times.

“There is an enormous amount of wealth in this country and the Labour government should be using the economic levers at their disposal to capture it from the rich.

“Billions could be recouped by the treasury through levies on wealth, the closure of tax loopholes, and extracting excess corporate profits.

“RMT stands with all in our working-class communities, including the disabled and unemployed.”

OXFAM Scotland tweeted: ‘Just a reminder there’s no shortage of money in the UK, just a shortage of political will to go out & tax it.

‘While more people risk being locked into hardship/deeper poverty, the ballooning bank balances of the UK’s richest millionaires/billionaires get off virtually scot-free’

The Disability Policy Centre’s Interim Director of Research, Arun Veerappan, response to the Government’s release of the Green Paper this afternoon.

Green MSP slams Labour betrayal of disabled people and calls on MPs to fight back 

Scottish Green’s co-leader and MSP for Lothian region Lorna Slater is calling on Labour MPs to fight back on the inhumane cuts that the UK government are proposing to hit their fiscal targets. 

In the Westminster government’s latest controversial move, it has announced a package of changes expected to affect some of the UK’s most severely disabled people. The measures will deny benefits for thousands of people across the country. 

Lorna Slater MSP for Lothian region said:  “These cuts will make a cruel and dehumanising system even more brutal than it already is. They will spread pain and misery across every community.

“ This decision is immoral. You can’t cut £5 billion of support without causing real harm to disabled people.  

“ None of this is inevitable. Labour could choose to bring in a wealth tax that collects a fair and justified share from the richest people to invest in the services we all rely on.

“Labour are doubling down on the Tory idea that you can work your way out of disability. They are sending a cruel and dangerous message that only people who can boost our economy are worth supporting. They promised an end to austerity, but this goes even further than anything that the Tories ever dared.” 

“The fact that they are choosing to punish the people with the least tells us everything we need to know about Labour’s values. The millions of people who waited 14 long years to get rid of the Tories deserve so much better than this.” 

‘Cuts to benefits announced today have clearly been motivated by a desire to make short-term savings to meet arbitrary fiscal rules, says New Economics Foundation’s Head of Social Polict Tom Pollard.

‘They’re not going to help ill and disabled people, they’re only going to create more problems.’

Former Labour Party leader and now Independent MP Jeremy Corbyn said: “This is a seminal moment: a Labour government cutting disability benefits. Not just continuing Tory levels. Cutting.

“This comes after a week of speculation, itself an act of cruelty by a government toying with people’s dignity. These cuts are disgraceful – and will cost lives.”

Scope charity commented: “These plans will be catastrophic for disabled people’s living standards. Nearly half of families living in poverty already include someone who is disabled. Now the government is choosing to penalise some of the poorest people in our society.

“We welcome the investment in tailored, non-compulsory employment support. But ripping £5 billion out of the benefits system by 2030 will completely undermine this positive step.

“Countless disabled people, charities, MPs, and experts are urging the government to think again. And we’re not backing down. The consultation is likely to receive an overwhelming response. We urge the government to listen to disabled people and think again.

“Over the coming days, we’ll analyse all the details in the government’s plans. We’ll then share more information about what these changes mean and who could be affected as soon as we can. We’ll also share ways you can have your say in the consultation.

‘This is an especially worrying time for many disabled people. If you’re concerned about these changes, you can contact our helpline for advice and support.

Call us free on 0808 800 3333, or visit our website for more ways to get in touch:

https://scope.org.uk/helpline

‘If you need to talk to someone about how you’re feeling, day or night, Samaritans are here to help. Call 116 123 for free, or visit their website https://samaritans.org “

Money and Mental Health response to government welfare green paper

Today the government has published its welfare green paper, which outlines its proposals to reform the welfare system.

In particular, the green paper sets out plans to make it harder for people to qualify for Personal Independence Payments (PIP) — a benefit which people with disabilities and long-term ill-health can claim to help cover the extra costs associated with their disability, and which is not connected to work. In addition, people aged under 22 will not be able to qualify for the health top-up element of Universal Credit.

The government has also announced £1bn additional funding for personalised employment support to help people with disabilities move into work, and that people receiving benefits will be given a “right to try” work without losing their benefits entitlement.

Commenting on the proposals, Helen Undy, Chief Executive of the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, said: “PIP is an absolute lifeline for thousands of people with mental health problems.

“It can be the difference between being able to afford basic things like a phone to call your crisis team or help to clean your home, or living in disarray and increasing isolation. Making it harder to access will jeopardise people’s financial security and cause serious distress, which won’t set up people to go back into work and to thrive. 

“These changes will mean that needing help to wash or get dressed because of your mental health wouldn’t be enough to qualify for PIP. The government says it will ensure people with ‘genuine need’ aren’t affected, but we’re really concerned that these new reforms will take us further back to the days when people with mental health problems were treated as less worthy of help than those with physical health issues.

“The new ‘right to try’ a job without losing the benefits is welcome, as is the funding for personalised employment support for people with disabilities or health conditions. But introducing these measures alongside cuts to PIP and stopping young people from getting incapacity benefits will do more harm than good.

“It is a short sighted approach that will have a devastating impact on many people’s finances and mental health, and we urge the government to rethink these plans.”

Mikey Erhardt, Policy Officer at Disability Rights UK, said: “The minister stood up today and made clear that, after months of rumours, media speculation and spin, these reforms are not about supporting Disabled people into work, but making brutal and reckless cuts of £5 billion. That is up from £3 billion just a few weeks ago.

“The rise in claims is driven by the increase in the retirement age, record NHS waiting lists, inadequate education and mental health support for young Disabled people and a complete failure to tackle the disability employment and pay gaps. Yet  the government has decided to create a rhetorical smokescreen around the depth of cuts it’s going to make.

“The government intends to bar young Disabled people from receiving the Universal Credit health component until they are 22. That is alongside their promise to significantly increase assessments at scale without making the assessment process safer for those going through the system right now.

“These measures mark dangerous cuts for all Disabled people. Furthermore, altering the PIP award criteria will make it harder for those who need support to qualify.

“The minister’s assertion that 1000s more face-to-face assessments will be more accurate is laughable; we know that in-person assessment causes more stress and worry and often leads to inaccurate findings from assessors.

“Let’s be clear: there is nothing ambitious about cutting support from those who need it and that’s what today’s announcements were really about. Rising claims for personal independence payment reflect not a problem with Disabled people but rather reflect successive government’s failure to do even the bare minimum to create a more equitable society.”

Mental Health Foundation responded:

Responding to the Government’s proposed changes to welfare and work announced today, Carers Trust’s CEO, Kirsty McHugh, said: “In the midst of today’s announcements on welfare reform, we cannot lose sight of the nation’s carers. Two-thirds of carers have been forced to give up work or cut back on hours because of their caring role.

“Many would like to work if they were able to access flexible jobs and the right employment support – sadly this is rarely on offer. But for many carers, work isn’t an option – either because of the toll of their caring role or their own ill health.

“Proposals to tighten eligibility criteria for benefits will strike fear into the heart of many carers. Around half a million carers look after someone receiving Personal Independence Payments (PIP), and nearly 150,000 people rely on both PIP and Carer’s Allowance.

“Disabled people and their carers are already among the most vulnerable in our society and more likely to live in poverty. Reducing their access to a financial safety net could push them over the edge.

“Carers already prop up our ailing health and social care system and we cannot introduce welfare changes that leave carers again picking up the pieces. We therefore welcome the commitment in the Green Paper to consider the impact of these changes on carers.”

UNISON protest against catastrophic cuts to Lothian third sector

Largest health union protest against £4.5m cuts to Lothian’s third sector services

Activists from Scotland biggest health union, UNISON will gather outside Edinburgh City Chambers this morning to lobby against proposed £4.5m cuts to 64 third sector organisations in the city.

These cuts, including a £1 million reduction in welfare rights services, will strip vital support from low-income families, disabled people, carers and contradicting the Edinburgh Council’s anti-poverty strategy, says UNISON

Unions and community organisations are warning that the consequences could be catastrophic for service users and staff.

The removal of these preventative services will also increase pressure on NHS services, A&E, and crisis care, shifting costs rather than delivering real savings, says the union

UNISON is calling on the City of Edinburgh Council to allocate £4.5 million in next year’s budget to keep these essential services running.

UNISON Lothian health branch secretary Tracy-Anne Miller said: “Slashing funding to third sector organisations will devastate communities and cost more in the long run.

“These cuts will push more people into NHS services at a time when hospitals and GPs are already overstretched. We need investment in care, not a crisis. We are calling on the council to step up, protect these services, and prevent these cuts.”

UNISON activists will gather outside Edinburgh City Chambers from 8.30 am this morning (Thursday 20th February) to lobby the City of Edinburgh Council to protect funding for 64 third sector organisations facing cuts following the announcement by the Edinburgh Integrated Joint Board (which directs the health and social care partnership) to cut its £4.5million third sector grants programme from June 2025. 

UNITE City of Edinburgh Branch will also be making their voices heard in the quadrangle today. A demo will take place outside the City Chambers on the High Street from 8.30am to 9.30am,

The unions will send deputations to the meeting to speak on behalf of their members. In all, ELEVEN deputations will be heard today. Among them are Oaklands School Parents Council and LIFT Muirhouse Millennium Centre from North Edinburgh.

Labour nominally runs Edinburgh, propped up by Lib Dem and Tory support. Last year, under the leadership of now-suspended Cammy Day, the administration controversially adopted a Lib-Dem budget.

Labour, and the City of Edinburgh Council, is now under new leadership, but the perennial challenge of meeting an increasing demand for services with never quite enough financial resources remains as tough as ever.

As councils try to balance the books a painful Council Tax increase is inevitable.

Earlier this week COSLA’s Resource Spokesperson, Councillor Katie Hagmann, warned: “Councils are working hard to deliver every day for our communities. However, budget cuts, inflation, higher costs such as the increase to employers’ national insurance contributions, and the previous freezes on council tax mean councils have unfortunately had to make difficult decisions to avoid reducing or cutting essential services.

“Council tax is one of the few options councils have to raise money to invest in local improvements such as roads; community halls and leisure centres; and public transport. These are services that benefit us all, but especially the people in our communities who might need extra support – such as children and young people, parents with young children, elderly people, or those with disabilities. With this in mind, councils are carefully considering what increase is necessary and appropriate for them locally.

“Reform of council tax is overdue and COSLA wishes to see a Council Tax that is fair and proportionate for all householders.

“Councils have advice and support services in place to help people who are struggling to pay their council tax or having financial difficulties. We recommend speaking to the council tax and benefits department in your council to find out more.”

Today, National Leadership Day incidentally, we’ll hear the respective political parties put forward their vision for Scotland’s capital city. Just what kind of city does Edinburgh want to be?

Tough choices? Of course, but it’s also an opportunity to begin to restore Edinburgh’s battered reputation.

It’s time for real leadership.

Supplement Deputations 20022025 1000 City of Edinburgh CouncilDownload

The council budget debate starts at 10am and is also broadcast live on the City of Edinburgh Council webcast site

PAPERS for this morning’s budget meeting can be found on the council website.

Unite CEC branch: Budget Demo

The City of Edinburgh Council will decide its budget for financial year 2025 to 2026 at the Full Council Meeting next Thursday – 20th February 2025.

A demo will take place outside the City Chambers on the High Street from 8.30am to 9.30am on the day.

The council budget debate starts at 10am and is also broadcast live on the City of Edinburgh Council webcast site

Our branch will send a deputation to the meeting to speak on behalf of our branch members.

Look at the council budget papers on the council website for more details on what is being planned

TUC: ‘Huge support’ for Government’s plan to make work pay

The landmark Employment Rights Bill is ‘vote winner’

Voters in every constituency overwhelmingly support key measures to strengthen workers’ rights, according to new polling published by the TUC and Hope Not Hate today.

In recent months, there has been criticism of the Bill from Conservative and Reform politicians and parts of the business lobby.

But this polling decisively proves that those opponents are a world away from the views of the British public.

The public wants stronger worker protections

The poll of over 21,000 people reveals huge backing across the country and across the political spectrum –  including with Reform and Conservative voters – for key policies in the Bill. The poll shows:  

  • Banning zero hours contracts by giving workers a contract that reflects their regular hours: More than 7 in 10 (72%) of UK voters support a ban on zero hours contracts – including 2 in 3 Reform (65%) and Conservative (63%) voters from the 2024 general election support banning zero hours contracts. The figure is even higher with those saying they would vote Conservative (65%) and Reform (67%) if there was a general election held tomorrow. Just 15% oppose the policy.  
  • Giving all workers statutory sick pay from day one: 3 in 4 (74%) voters support giving all workers the right to statutory sick pay, and ensuring it is paid from the first day – including 2 in 3 Reform (64%) and Conservative (62%) voters from the 2024 general election. The figure is even higher with those saying they would vote Conservative (65%) and Reform (66%) if there was a general election held tomorrow. Just 14 % oppose the policy.
  • Giving all workers protection from unfair dismissal from day one: 3 in 4 (73%) voters support giving all workers protection from unfair dismissal from the first day in the job – including 2 in 3 Reform (62%) and Conservative (62%) voters from the 2024 general election. The figure is even higher with those saying they would vote Conservative (65%) and Reform (64%) if there was a general election held tomorrow. Just 14% oppose the policy.  
  • Making it easier for people to have flexibility in their patterns or hours of work: 3 in 4 (74%) voters support making it easier to work flexibly – including 2 in 3 Reform (63%) and Conservative (64%) voters from the 2024 general election. The figure is even higher with those saying they would vote Conservative (67%) and Reform (65%) if there was a general election held tomorrow. Just 12% oppose the policy. 

Break down by constituency level 

The poll breaks down to constituency level – and reveals that voters in every single constituency are behind the Bill’s flagship policies.

Click on the interactive map below to see how each constituency voted. Use the search field to find your constituency, and the drop-down menu at the top to view data for each policy.

https://flo.uri.sh/visualisation/21515919/embed?auto=1

A Flourish map

Reform is defying its own voters on workers’ rights

Interestingly, the new poll shows the measures the government is taking through Parliament are hugely popular with Reform voters from 2024 as well as Reform-leaning voters (those who would vote Reform if there was an election tomorrow).

In every Reform-held constituency, including in Reform leader Nigel Farage’s seat, there is significant support for banning zero hours contracts and giving sick pay to everyone from day one.  

And yet Reform MPs have voted against the Bill at every stage. The party are defying their own voters and constituents on workers’ rights. This proves beyond doubt that Nigel Farage and Reform aren’t on the side of working people – they’re on the side of bad bosses, zero hours contracts and fire and rehire.

Labour, Conservative, Green and Lib Dem voters also significantly back the policies. It’s clear that the Employment Rights Bill is that rare thing –  a policy which is genuinely popular across traditional party lines.

Time for change

After the failed Conservative era of a low-rights, low-pay, and low-growth economy, voters can see the importance of making work pay and ending the scourge of insecure work.

That’s why the government must ignore the noise and deliver the Employment Rights Bill in full.  

Improving job quality and putting more money into people’s pockets is an urgent national mission and a key plank of the government’s wider plan to grow the economy. Those who defend the broken status quo are simply putting their own vested interests above working people.

Voters across the political spectrum want work to pay and to feel secure and respected in their jobs. The government has a historic opportunity – and an electoral mandate – to make work pay. The plan to make work pay is hugely popular, and this poll should give ministers the confidence to deliver it in full.

Sick pay decision for two million low-paid workers could have huge impact on families’ living standards

How much should someone receive when they are off sick from work?

This is the question that ministers were considering over Christmas. And the answer they arrive at will have a huge impact on many households’ budgets (writes TUC’s TIM CLARK).

For the majority of workers today the answer to that question is straightforward: when they are ill they simply receive their normal salary for a period.

Others, particularly many low-paid workers get less-than-generous statutory sick pay (SSP), currently £116.75 a week, if they are ill. But this only kicks in from the fourth day of absence.

More than a million workers wouldn’t receive anything when absent because they earn too little to qualify under current rules. They are often part-time workers and are predominantly women.

This means many workers face hardship if they suffer illness or injury or risk spreading illness in their workplace by attending while sick.

This could change as ministers implement their promise that “no one should be forced to choose between their health and financial hardship”. 

Measures in the Employment Rights Bill being considered by MPs will scrap the qualifying earnings test and sick pay will be paid from the first day of absence in future.

The options on the table

But how effective these changes will be rest on the percentage rate to be paid to low earners. 

A government consultation on the rate closed earlier this month.

Among the options modelled was an SSP payment as low as 60 per cent of wages.

This would be the entitlement for the lowest paid 2.3 million workers,

Under the current proposals, this could lead to some 1.1 million workers who are currently entitled to full SSP eligible for less under the new system because they currently get full SSP, albeit at less than £117 a week.

The TUC is urging the government to ensure that workers receive the lower of their earnings or statutory sick pay. At the very least they should receive 95 per cent of pay to reflect the payments received by the lowest-earning workers who currently qualify for SSP. 

For this is not a cold exercise in abstract numbers. There is a risk that some low earners could miss out the equivalent of a family’s food budget if ministers opt for lower pay-outs. 

Scenarios set out below show the potential real-world impact of ministers’ decisions.

Scenario one

Rita works 10 hours a week (two hours a day) in an office canteen on the national minimum wage. Her partner is a sales assistant earning £25,000.    

One weekend, Rita sprains her foot and is unable to work that week.

She has no access to occupational sick pay and currently would be unable to claim SSP as she earns under the lower earnings limit of £123 required to qualify. This means that the household income is cut by £114.40 a week. 

She struggles to give her three children money for their daily school meals and out-of-school sports activities and has to use money set aside for the next energy bill.

Under the new system, if the rate is set on the basis of the lower amount of earnings or SSP she would receive £114.40. 

However, a 60 per cent rate, one of the options modelled by the government in its latest consultation would mean she only receives £68.64. This cut of £45.76 is close to what a family spends on school meals for three children every week. 

Scenario two  

Sam is a single parent earning the national minimum wage at a food factory – working part time for nine hours Monday to Wednesday and gets paid weekly. 

Sam catches a nasty cold and is unable to work Monday to Wednesday. She has no access to occupational sick pay, and, under the current system doesn’t earn enough to qualify for SSP.

She claims Universal Credit and by notifying the DWP about a drop in earnings in the next assessment period could receive a higher universal credit payment. But this wouldn’t be paid out for more than a month, leaving her immediate bills to pay.

But if payouts were the lowest of SSP and actual earnings Sam would have received £102.96 in wages.

A 60 per cent rate would mean getting only £61.78. This £41 drop is more than the typical £35.40 that a family in the lowest income decile spends on groceries and non-alcoholic drinks (families overall spent on average £63.50 a week according to the official figures from 2023). 

This means that Sam and her two children would struggle to buy food that week, although they would be better off than currently. 

Scenario three  

Raj works two jobs. On Monday to Tuesday he works part time at a retail store for three hours a day. He works at a florist on Wednesday and Thursday for two hours. 

This is to fit in with caring responsibilities for three children with his wife who works at the local biscuit factory from Monday to Friday (9-5pm). She earns slightly above the national minimum wage, and both Raj’s jobs are on the minimum wage. 

Due to a car accident, he is unable to work for three months – this causes immense pressure on the family finances as during this period Raj receives no earnings.

If he received SSP based on his actual earnings this would have been £114.40 a week.

But at a 60 per cent rate he would receive £68.64 a week. This would mean that over the course of 12 weeks he would receive£549.12 less than if he was getting his normal earnings.

This is equivalent to almost two years’ worth of spending on clothes and footwear for a family in the lowest income decile at £5.60 a week.

Conclusion 

The coronarvirus outbreak showed the dangers of an inadequate sick pay system.

Lots of frontline workers were forced to choose between falling into poverty because they got no or little sick pay, or continue to work and risk spreading the virus.

Four years on and many workers continue to face similar dilemmas every week.

The government is making the right choice in extending sick pay to all workers, without an income test.

But when ministers announce payouts for low-paid workers in the coming weeks, they should peg them to SSP or wages, whatever is the lower. And no-one should be entitled to less after the changes, than they are now.

Then the next stage will be ensuring that the headline rate of SSP is improved.

TUC: Workers’ rights reforms could benefit economy by over £13bn a year

  • New analysis shows how improving employment standards, employee well-being and modernising industrial relations will benefit the economy
  • TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak gave evidence to MPs as Employment Rights Bill enters committee stage
  • Making Work Pay agenda is an “urgent national mission” that is “good for workers and good for business”, says union body

New TUC analysis published yesterday (Tuesday) shows that even modest gains from the government’s workers’ rights reforms would benefit the UK economy by over £13bn a year.

The analysis models some of the key benefits of the Employment Rights Bill – identified by the government’s impact assessment of the Bill.

The research shows that even if the Bill just delivers small improvements in areas such as employee wellbeing, industrial relations and labour market participation the economic gains will outweigh any costs.

The analysis looks at the scale of the benefits implementing the Employment Rights Bill could bring across a range of workplace measures:

  • Workplace stress: Between £490 million and £974 million would be gained by reducing the number of working days lost to stress, depression or anxiety.
  • Staff well-being: Between £310 million and £930 million a year would be gained from improving staff well-being.
  • Minimum wage compliance: Between £42 million and £168 million a year would be gained through improving minimum wage compliance.
  • Strikes: Between £255 million and £510 million a year would be gained through resolving disputes that lead to workers taking action.
  • Industrial relations: Between £2.7bn and £8.1bn a year would be gained through reduced workplace conflict
  • Increased labour market participation: Between £1.3bn and £2.6bn a year would be gained through increasing employment for people currently looking after family or home.

The research shows that the cumulative impact of even modest improvements would be £13.3bn a year – and stronger outcomes could generate even greater gains.  

The TUC says the analysis confirms the view of the government’s impact assessment that there is “clear, evidence-based benefits of government action through the Bill.”

The impact assessment also warns that “not acting would enable poor working conditions, insecure work, inequalities and broken industrial relations to persist.”

Evidence to MPs

The findings were published as TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak prepared to give evidence to MPs as the Employment Rights Bill enters its committee stage.

Nowak told parliamentarians that improving the quality of work in Britain is an “urgent national mission” that will benefit workers and businesses alike.

Polling published in July revealed huge backing across the political spectrum for boosting workers’ rights.

And polling published in September revealed that an overwhelming majority (75%) of employers support the government’s measures, including nearly seven in 10 (69 per cent) of small businesses.  

TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “Far too many working people are trapped in jobs that offer them little or no security. We can’t carry on with this broken status quo.

“Improving the quality of work in this country is an urgent national mission that will bring real economic gains.

“Driving up employment standards, improving employee well-being and increasing labour market participation is good for staff and good for businesses.

“When workers are treated well they are happier, healthier and more productive.

“The Employment Rights Bill is a historic opportunity to make work pay – and to create a level playing field that stops good employers from being undercut by the bad.  

“It must be delivered in full.”

Commenting on the impact of the Bill on employers, Paul added: “The TUC stands ready to work with the government and employers. We recognise that businesses and unions will need advice to understand and implement these changes.

“But there is no case for delaying the reforms. People need jobs they can build a decent life on.

“Many of the arguments being used against this legislation are the same ones that were used against introducing the minimum wage – one of the great policy successes of the last 25 years.

“They were wrong then and they are wrong now. When working people thrive so do businesses and the wider economy.” 

STUC Disabled Workers’ Conference 2024: Usdaw seeks a social model understanding and action to end bullying and harassment

Retail trade union Usdaw has a delegation of members, reps and officials attending the Scottish Trade Union Congress (STUC) Disabled Workers’ Conference in Glasgow on 23 and 24 November.

Usdaw is calling for delegates to adopt a social model understanding of disability and to support action to end bullying and harassment of disabled people.

Paddy Lillis – Usdaw general secretary says: “We are deeply concerned that large numbers of disabled workers are exposed to bullying and harassment at work. Young workers, women, LGBT+ and Black disabled workers are disproportionately impacted because of their unique combination of protected characteristics.

“While bullying and harassment takes many forms and affects workers differently, it can have a profoundly damaging impact on mental and physical health, on an individual’s personal and working life and on workplace cultures. Stereotypes about disabled people fuel discrimination and less favourable treatment.

“They prevent disabled people getting into work, remaining in work and getting on in work. They also have broader implications and can limit how disabled workers behave in the workplace as they seek to avoid situations and people that might put them at further risk.

“Harassment and bullying at work are part of a larger pattern of discrimination experienced by disabled people. Disabled workers, disability organisations and trade unions need to be consulted about the design and implementation of effective and preventative workplace interventions.”

Usdaw is asking the STUC to lobby the Scottish and Westminster governments to:

  • Take positive action to change the way disabled people are viewed, valued and included in society.
  • Consult on extending the new preventative duty to sexual harassment to other forms of harassment including disability harassment.
  • Reinstate standalone protection from third-party harassment and enact Clause 14 of the Equality Act 2010 providing protection against discrimination that occurs for reasons related to a combination of protected characteristics.

Paddy Lillis continued: “The social model of disability is fundamental to eliminating discrimination and achieving equality and inclusion for disabled people. However, the medical model continues to dominate the law and the way in which employers understand and respond to disabled workers.

“This maintains and condones continued exclusion and inequality in the workplace. In Scotland, although the disability employment gap has reduced, disabled people still have a significantly lower employment rate than non-disabled people.

“Employers’ continued focus on ‘adjusting’ the worker – rarely the workplace – and removing barriers reinforces the widespread stereotype of disabled people as creating a ‘burden on business’.

“This shifts the onus onto the disabled worker to repeatedly demonstrate what they can’t do, rather than on employers to make workplaces accessible. Disabled workers are increasingly seeing adjustments removed, including adjustments to absence levels and performance targets, leading to disciplinary action and dismissal.

“Where this happens, the failure of employers to adopt a social model understanding ‘individualises’ disabled workers’ responses to discrimination and pushes them into seeking justice via internal grievance and legal procedures where the odds are stacked against them.”

Usdaw is asking the STUC, in consultation with the Disabled Workers’ Committee, to encourage unions to:

  • Make collective bargaining on disability equality a priority, including ensuring reps and officials are trained on the social model.
  • Regularly review employer policies, practices and publications, ensuring where possible that they are free of medical model approaches to disability.
  • Hold employers to account for failures in their duty to make reasonable adjustments.

Private warning as former Health Secretary appointed to ‘help government fix health and care’

Alarm Bells: Alan Milburn joins the Department of Health and Social Care’s board to ‘support the government’s ambitious plans for reform’

  • Alan Milburn has been appointed Lead Non-Executive Member to the board of the Department of Health and Social Care.
  • Mr Milburn ‘brings experience at the highest levels to help transform the health and care system‘
  • This (Labour) government is determined to work with experts who can provide the best advice to help rebuild an NHS fit for the future

Alan Milburn has been appointed Lead Non-Executive Member to the board of the Department of Health and Social Care.

The former New Labour Health Secretary has a ‘proven track record of reducing waiting lists and improving satisfaction in the NHS’.

Milburn is also a strong advocate of private healthcare involvement in the NHS. Back in 2015, Milburn intervened in the British election campaign to criticise Labour’s health plans, which would limit private sector involvement in the NHS. Milburn was criticised for doing so while having a personal financial interest in the private health sector.

The current Labour government says the NHS is broken and it is the mission of this government to fix it and make the health service fit for the future. As part of this national mission, experts are being brought in to help develop policy, and NHS staff and patients have been invited to share their experience and ideas to change the NHS at Change.NHS.gov.uk.

Members of the department board provide independent advice and expertise to inform the department’s strategy, performance and governance and the Lead Non-Executive Member provides additional support to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care in his role as Chair of the board.

The Labour government says that, as a former Secretary of State, Alan brings experience at the highest levels of helping transform the health and care system – but health trade unions will be very wary of Milburn’s appointment.

Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said: “As Secretary of State, Alan made the reforms which helped deliver the shortest waiting times and highest patient satisfaction in the history of the NHS.

“This government has inherited a broken health service with some of the longest waiting times and lowest patient satisfaction in history. I am delighted to welcome Alan to the department board, where he will offer advice on turning the NHS around once again.

“His unique expertise and experience will be invaluable and he has an outstanding track record of delivering better care for patients.”

Lead Non-Executive Director Alan Milburn said: “I am delighted to be appointed to this role.

“Having spent three decades working in health policy, I have never seen the NHS in a worse state. Big reforms will be needed to make it fit for the future.

“I am confident this government has the right plans in place to transform the health service and the health of the nation. I’m looking forward to working with them to achieve that mission.”

Due to ‘the requirements of the role and the unique expertise and experience Alan Milburn brings’, he was appointed directly by the Secretary of State on following consultation with the Commissioner for Public Appointments, and in compliance with the Governance Code on Public Appointments.

The Department of Health and Social Care would like to thank Samantha Jones for all her work and support as non-executive director since February 2023.

TRANSFORMATION THROUGH PRIVATISATION?

STUC Black Workers’ Conference 2024: Usdaw calls for action to tackle sexual harassment, structural racism, inequality and poverty

Retail trade union Usdaw has a delegation of members, reps and officials attending the Scottish Trade Union Congress (STUC) annual Black Workers’ Conference in Glasgow this weekend.

The union has submitted motions on tackling structural racism, inequality and poverty, along with addressing the combination of racism and sexual harassment Black women and girls experience.

Paddy Lillis – Usdaw general secretary says: “Black and minority ethnic people are disproportionately falling faster and further below the poverty line in the cost of living crisis in Scotland.

The labour market in Scotland – as elsewhere – remains stacked against Black workers. If you’re a Black worker in Scotland, you are more likely to be paid less and be in insecure work on the margins of the economy, and less likely to be covered by collective bargaining agreements and to not get the working hours you want.

“The data also shows that, in addition to inequality in the labour market, Black workers face higher housing costs and are less likely to be supported by social security. Black workers have less wealth, savings and income to absorb these additional costs.

“As a result, poverty levels for people in Black minority ethnic communities in Scotland are double the national average – and rising. A wide range of short- and longer-term measures need to be adopted to tackle structural racism and discrimination in Scotland’s economy and society.”

Usdaw is asking conference to call on the Scottish Government, as a minimum, to:

  • Stand by their commitment to reduce racial inequality, as set out in the Race Equality Framework for Scotland.
  • Bring far greater urgency to creating a labour market that offers equal opportunities for minority ethnic workers and offers a route out of poverty.
  • Collect appropriate, robust ethnicity data allowing a full understanding of the structural inequalities faced by minority ethnic communities in Scotland. 

Paddy Lillis continues: “Black women’s experiences of sexual harassment differ significantly as the combination of racism and sexism creates a specific form of sexual harassment.

“Black women and girls report how racism leads to their bodies being oversexualised which contributes to the assumption that they will put up with unwanted sexual conduct. Racialised objectification of Black women contributes to a particular view of Black women’s bodies.

“Women and girls who wear modest or religious clothing report that their religion or perceived ethnicity is used to insult or degrade them. When Black women object, they encounter racist abuse and when they seek support, services are often inaccessible and under-utilised. Institutional racism and sexism also means that incidents are under-reported to employers, criminal justice agencies and police.”

Usdaw is seeking the STUC Black Workers Committee to:

  • Support the work Unions are doing to create separate spaces for Black women to come together to share their experiences and build networks of Black women.
  • Encourage Unions to centre Black women’s voices in their campaigns to tackle and end sexual harassment. 

Edinburgh’s Social Care Crisis: Conference Agenda announced

SATURDAY 14 SEPTEMBER from 10am – 1pm

AUGUSTINE UNITED CHURCH, GEORGE IV BRIDGE

THE agenda for Saturday’s Edinburgh Social Care Crisis Conference has been announced.

The conference has been convened by Edinburgh Trade Union Council and is sponsored by UNITE Edinburgh Not For Profit Branch,  UNITE City of Edinburgh Council Branch, UNITE Lothian Retired Members Branch, Edinburgh EIS Branch and the Scottish Trades Union Congress.

The conference will be attended by three Edinburgh MSPs: Foysol Choudhury, Sarah Boyack and Daniel Johnson.

Des Loughney, Secretary, Edinburgh Trade Union Council says: “”The conference is open to the public, trade union and community health activists and social care users and paid and unpaid carers.

“There will be a discussion of the impact of the Edinburgh Integration Joint Board cuts that are being implemented in this financial year (£55 million).

“We are concerned that prevention services will be cut and that rising demand (mainly due to demographic reasons) will not be met.

“The conference will conclude by a discussion on the way forward in campaigning for more resources for IJBs and how can we lobby for more resources to prevent current damaging cuts.

“We will consider how we can seek to change Scottish Parliament policies in the run up to the 2026 elections.”

ConferenceagendaDownload