The OECD today accomplished a miracle, hailing the long-term plan, making departures from the plan seem natural, all with the illusion of delivery. “What a difference effective economic policies can make”, Mr Gurria (the secretary-general) gushed at the press conference, making his own…Read more…
How unions help their members win better pay
Joining together to win a better deal for members is the cornerstone of a trade union’s work. For Fair Pay Fortnight, we’ve rounded up some recent stories of how unions are making a real…Read more…
minimum wage cheats – why not name all of them?
The government has named a further 70 employees caught underpaying the minimum wage*. This is welcome news, which brings the total named in the past year up to 162. However, they should now go on and name the other 490 employers caught cheating last year. In addition, they should take some of the…Read more…
It’s not just Britain that needs that pay rise
During Fair Pay Fortnight, the TUC has been sending out a clear message about Britain’s shrinking pay packet, but how do things compare with the rest of Europe? Well according to the latest analysis by the Labour Research Department (LRD), the UK is close to the bottom of the pile. LRD’s Workplace…Read more…
Web links for 23rd February 2015
‘In Conversation’ with Frances O’Grady at SPERI Frances O’Grady talks about inequality at Sheffield UNI SPERI. Discussing her time in Davos this year, she makes the case that “you cannot redistribute wealth unless you are prepared to redistribute power”. Whether…Read more…
Fiona Bruce’s abortion amendment: an attack on women’s rights
This evening Parliament will debate an amendment to the Serious Crime Bill which represents a significant and retrograde step in UK legislation on abortion. The amendment concerns abortions on the grounds of foetal sex – a practice which is commonplace in many countries but for which there is no…Read more…
Is a new consensus emerging on how we pay pensions?
It is not often that someone from the TUC is invited to write a foreword for a pamphlet published by the Centre for Policy Studies – a think-tank whose website is headed by an approving quotation from Margaret Thatcher. But then it is something of a surprise – and to their credit…Read more…
Britain’s Living Wage Blackspots
One in five jobs pay less than the living wage. But you won’t find them evenly distributed across the UK. In some constituencies, over half of full-time workers get less than living wages. We’ve mapped almost every constituency in England, Wales, and Scotland below: Source: House of…Read more…
Channel 4 concedes from six episodes to one – Time to cancel all of Immigration Street!
Last week the campaign of unions, residents and activists in and around Southampton to put pressure on Channel 4 to cancel a controversial six part series of a show titled ‘Immigration Street’,…Read more…
Trade union members accused after losing leader in bomb blast
A deadly terrorist attack rocked Mogadishu in Somalia yesterday when a female suicide bomber working as a receptionist blew herself up at the Central Hotel during Friday prayers. 25 people were…Read more…
Ofsted has become a weapon of fear and terror – it’s time for a different approach
In private, and off the record, politicians of all political persuasions will admit that Ofsted is no longer, if it ever was, the key to raising educational standards. It is now widely acknowledged…Read more…
Fair pay starts at home: report reveals widespread low pay in Leicester garment industry
It’s Fairpay Fortnight at the TUC. One of the sectors we know workers particularly face low pay is the garment industry. Usually it is the very low rates of pay workers are given in countries like Cambodia and Bangladesh that we hear about. A new report produced for the Ethical Trading…Read more…
Ofsted must re-think the way it collects and uses evidence during inspection
By Terry Pearson Mary Bousted blogged well last year about the inadequacies of Ofsted quality assurance systems. I’d like to look at one of the fundamental problems with Ofsted’s methodology…Read more…
Speak up for Justice – Not the Global Law Summit
The Speak up for Justice campaign calls for an integrated, publicly owned, accessible and accountable justice system that protects our right to justice. We also campaign against cuts to jobs and services and for a properly funded justice system. The ca…Read more…
The Value of Ethical Trade
Pamela L’Intelligent will be attending the Fairtrade Fortnight event at the STUC centre on the 23rd February. To register for this free event email Helen Martin on hmartin@stuc.org.uk
Pamela is a 44…Read more…
Saving Our Safety Net Fact of the Week: “not statistically different from zero”
The big social security news of this week has been the Prime Minister’s announcement of major benefit cuts for young people if his party wins the election. On Tuesday he promised to end the “well worn path from the school gate and onto a life on benefits”, with “no more something for nothing”. As…Read more…
House-building picked up in 2014 – but what will happen this year?
Is house building really recovering, as the government asserts, or is this just a good spin? Housing Minister Brandon Lewis welcomed new figures* showing a rise in the numbers of homes being built across the country, saying “Today’s figures show we’re on track and turning this around….Read more…
It’s not my hobby, it’s my profession: Fair pay for musicians
Spare a thought for freelance musicians this Fair Pay Fortnight, and what it must be like to fight for fair pay every day that you work. Working musicians are frequently being asked to work for…Read more…
Legal moves to protect migrant domestic workers
The much anticipated Modern Slavery Bill is entering its final phases, with Report Stage in the Lords scheduled for next Wednesday, 25 February. However, unless the Amendment tabled by crossbencher Lord Hylton, Labour’s Baroness Royall, Conservative Baroness Hanham and the Bishop of Carlisle…Read more…
The Great Brain Robbery
At the elementary level of price data aggregation a consumer price index can utilise the ratio of averages or the average of relatives … blah, blah, blah … everyone’s stopped listening. There’s no getting away from the fact that debates on inflation measurement can be a fiendishly…Read more…