The last few years have put the work rights of ordinary people in the UK under real threat. We’ve seen cuts in maternity leave rights, slashed protection from unfair dismissals, and new up…Read more…
Shared Parental Leave: baby steps towards more flexible childcare
Shared parental leave rules designed to help new parents and adopters balance work and caring responsibilities came into effect on Sunday (5 April). But how much difference will they really make?…Read more…
Give me a break! Annual leave in a nutshell
Now the clocks have gone forward, and we’re officially in British Summer Time, you might be starting to think about booking a well-earned holiday. Read on to help ensure your plans for a getaway fly….Read more…
Don’t let social media cost you your job
Posting ill-judged comments about your company or colleagues online could easily cost you your job – whether it’s during work hours or not. Here’s some advice on how to stay on happy terms with your…Read more…
Join the fight for fairer care
Poorly paid careworkers are routinely faced with a choice they shouldn’t have to make: work overtime for free or leave vulnerable clients without the basic care they need and deserve. The UK care…Read more…
Because you’re worth it: how to ask for a pay rise
As well as more money in your pocket, a pay rise can also give you confidence, and an increased sense of pride and enjoyment in your work. But getting one is easier said than done. Here are five tips…Read more…
Seven habits of highly successful jobhunters
Seven handy hints to improve your chances of preparing a successful job application and impressing at interview. Under pressure, kept late after work, probably not in the best of moods: welcome to…Read more…
Changing the world, one green workplace at a time
2015 could be a crunch year in the fight against global warming. One of the most effective ways you can play a part is to start (or get behind existing efforts) to ‘green your workplace’. This year,…Read more…
Is remote working right for you?
The rise and rise of fast and ubiquitous internet connectivity already helps over seven million British ‘teleworkers’ do their job away from the office for some or all of the time. But is working…Read more…
Part-time work: Women get the raw end of a raw deal
Behind the ‘good news’ of falling unemployment, new TUC analysis points to a worrying trend of more and more women moving, without choice, into low-paid, part-time jobs that don’t pay a living wage….Read more…
Fair Pay Fortnight: Work Your Proper Hours Day
Last year, over five million British workers put in more than two billion hours of unpaid overtime – that’s a staggering £32 billion of unpaid work! So we think they should be celebrating the final…Read more…
Are you getting cheated on minimum pay?
Not all employers are playing by the rules when it comes to pay. Is yours one of them? This Fair Pay Fortnight (16 February to 1 March), the TUC is calling for the government to publicly name and…Read more…
Fair Pay Fortnight: Getting beyond poverty pay
Fair Pay Fortnight (16 February to 1 March) is a campaign from Britain’s unions, calling for a fairer approach to wages across the board, from the poverty pay that’s rife in many sectors,…Read more…
Fair Pay Fortnight: A real plan to fix Britain’s pay crisis
Last week, Prime Minister David Cameron made told the British Chambers of Commerce conference that he believed ‘Britain needs a payrise’. This despite the fact he has presided over the longest…Read more…
Fresh start or same old story? Three resolutions for a wage-led recovery in 2015
George Osborne’s Autumn Statement [has] opened up a “huge choice in British politics,” according to the TUC’s Frances O’Grady, “between radical cuts and pay freezes versus investment for the…Read more…
Double whammy for the underpaid and underemployed
Despite talk of economic recovery, more people than ever are looking for extra hours to make ends meet, and the trend towards underemployment shows little sign of slowing. To make matters worse, the…Read more…
Decent Jobs Week: one to watch, two to do
Millions of people in the UK are trapped in low-paid, insecure work. Right now, Decent Jobs Week (15-21 December) is coming to the end of 7 days of shining a light on our growing jobs crisis. If…Read more…
‘Flexible’ employment: the winners and the losers
Government and industry often argue that the flexibility of casualised ‘zero hours’ jobs benefits both employers and workers. The advantages for employers are abundantly clear. But what’s in it for…Read more…
Zero hours and the changing face of employment
A new TUC report to mark Decent Jobs Week (15-21 December) reveals that, far from limited to low paid, low skilled jobs, ‘zero hours contracts’ and other insecure forms of employment are on the rise…Read more…