For UK workers the financial crisis has morphed into a real earnings crisis. OECD forecasts suggest that there will be very little respite in the next parliament. Over 2017 and 2018 UK real wages are expected to decline by -0.5%. Only Greece, Italy and…Read more…
Worker Voice: the missing element of the Government’s Industrial Strategy
How important is the voice of workers to the success of industry? Needless to say, industrial success is a collaborative process: the best companies enjoy the benefits of excellent management, engaged shareholders (or a visionary owner) and a talented,…Read more…
Most of us will end up voting for an active industrial strategy. So what will we get?
General election campaigns are an opportunity for competing political parties to set out their visions of the economic and social future of the country. Those visions can be markedly different, but going into this campaign we are in the happy position …Read more…
Devo Manc: unions will be hitting the ground running with the new Mayor
As expected, Andy Burnham has been elected as the new Mayor for Greater Manchester. Whilst the result may not be a great surprise, it is nonetheless important. With a population of 2.7million, Greater Manchester has the biggest set of devolved responsi…Read more…
“UK manufacturing deserves no less.” Why employers & unions are calling for strong trade remedies
As the UK leaves the European Union, it will need to develop its own independent trade policy that fits with a wider industrial strategy. This includes developing a system of trade remedies, the instruments that are used to combat market distortions (s…Read more…
The strength of the economy matters for the public finances
Summary: It makes no sense to think about the deficit without thinking about the size and strength of the economy. A Newsnight report on the public finances last night was illustrated with a chart seemingly showing high spending causing the deficit. It…Read more…
The rail franchise needs more than just a reboot
The current system of rail franchising leaves much to be desired. Passenger satisfaction is very uneven, and the system is not well aligned with the needs of the economy. Today, Campaign for Better Transport (CfBT) published a report on the state of Rail Franchising in the UK. Since 1998 range of…Read more…
Too little too late on teacher retention
Yesterday saw the last minute publication of the government response to the inquiry into teacher recruitment and retention undertaken by the House of Commons education select committee earlier this year. The committee’s original report, published in February, highlighted a number of key issues,…Read more…
Why insecurity at work doesn’t need to be the new normal
New research we’ve published today, commissioned from the National Institute for Economic and Social Research, shows that insecure work isn’t inevitable. The rise and rise of insecure work in the UK is sometimes treated as a natural consequence of technological and social change. The development of…Read more…
We need to stop the financialisation of justice
The campaigns against TTIP and CETA – EU trade deals with the US and Canada – have raised public awareness of the dangers of the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) system. ISDS is a corporate court system contained in trade deals which allows international companies to sue governments for…Read more…
How the tax system is driving people into insecure work in unexpected ways
I work for the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group, a group of tax and welfare rights specialists with expertise in the tax and related welfare issues of the low-paid. Often, people contact us describing their problems with tax, National Insurance, tax credit…Read more…
Rights at work – this May Day, it’s all happening at once
You wait for years for the needs of working people to become the focus of political attention and then suddenly everybody’s interested. The onset of the General Election campaign has coincided with the beginning of Brexit negotiations and the long overdue dawning of understanding at the…Read more…
Global trade deals can’t substitute for a good Brexit deal
This week the think tank OpenEurope published a report with recommendations for Britain’s future trade after it leaves the EU. It suggests that Britain may be able to make up much of its shortfall in trade resulting from leaving the EU by strengthening its trade, particularly in services, with…Read more…
Weaker GDP growth symptomatic of failure of the London-centric model
The economy grew by 0.3% in the first quarter of 2017, down on 0.7% in the final quarter of 2017. More than 80% of the first quarter growth was driven by business services and finance. As the chart shows, the increased contribution here (in light grey)…Read more…
A quarter of a million more in insecure work by end of next Parliament?
New analysis by the TUC shows that if current trends continue, 290,000 more people could be trapped in insecure work by 2022. The figures show that by the start of 2022, 3.5 million people could be in insecure work such as zero-hours contracts, tempora…Read more…
What we want from the Busses Bill wash up
The Bus Services Bill is due to complete its passage through parliament this week, because of the election it will be agreed through wash up. It was initially due to enter Ping Pong on April 26 following its third reading in the Commons. The snap election called last week means that the bill has…Read more…
Too early to call time on the consumer spending boom
Retail sales have seen their worst decline since 2010. But rising consumer credit figures suggest we’re not at the end of the consumer spending boom just yet. Retail sales volumes declined by -1.4% in the first quarter of 2017, the worse quarterly decline since the first quarter of 2010 (itself…Read more…
Election fever or fatigue? Why the mayoral elections on 4 May really matter
The rubber has hardly hit the road on the June General Election. But important elections are also happening closer to home. Local and metro mayoral elections are happening on 4 May, and there are some big opportunities for parts of the country to make …Read more…
Putting the foxes in charge of the migration hen house
The Financial Times has a story today (behind the paywall) suggesting that the government’s new visa system for EU migrants will have to be enforced not by the Home Office or the Borders Agency but by employers, landlords and universities, because of cuts to the civil service. That would,…Read more…
Devolution and Metro Mayors should prioritise a ‘truly’ inclusive society
In three weeks’ time, six regions across the UK will be electing their new Metro Mayors. Devolution has the potential to radically empower local communities. But several quarters have voiced the same message that on its current track devolution will only serve to further entrench power in the hands…Read more…