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Belfast Telegraph
28-04-2025
- Business
- Belfast Telegraph
Employment law plans most significant since Good Friday Argreement
Caoimhe Archibald said the 'ambitious' proposals in the Good Jobs Bill included tackling zero-hour contracts, improvements to family-related leave and strengthened rights for trade unions. The proposals also aimed to enhance protections for agency workers, ensure tips were passed on to workers in full and easier access to flexible working arrangements. The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) welcomed the proposals and said it provided an opportunity for the Executive to create 'a meaningful legacy for every working family in Northern Ireland'. Retail NI said it was important the legislation did not overburden small businesses, while People Before Profit said the Bill was 'underwhelming'. Ms Archibald outlined the proposals in her employment legislation to the Assembly on Monday, and said it marked 'a significant milestone'. It follows on from a public consultation carried out last year which sought views on updating employment law. 'It is the start of a process which will see the biggest upgrade to our employment legislation since the Good Friday Agreement,' she said. 'The proposals that I am bringing forward today are ambitious but I believe they are balanced in terms of being effective for both workers and for businesses. 'We had a consultation period and over 190 responses and that gave us a really good insight into the views of both employers and workers and students and beyond. 'The proposals we have brought forward have been shaped by what we have been told. 'They are wide ranging, they include the banning of exploitative zero-hours contracts, enhanced access to family-related leave, increased flexibility for workers, increased and strengthened rights for trade unions. 'I believe that this is an ambitious programme of work.' ICTU assistant general secretary Gerry Murphy said: 'The NI Executive has the opportunity to create a meaningful legacy for every working family in Northern Ireland by approving a new employment bill for the NI Assembly and its Economy Committee to debate its proposals and amend as necessary, all the way from first reading to royal assent.' He added: 'Much of what is proposed isn't radical — it represents basic, long-overdue modernisation to bring Northern Ireland's employment rights in line with standards already in place in Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland. 'It's important to be clear that this is not the final Bill. The real test will come in whether these proposals lead to strong, enforceable rights that deliver for working people.' Retail NI chief executive Glyn Roberts said it was 'important' that the Bill 'works for businesses and employees alike'. 'Many of our members have had concerns with new employment laws in the past that created more bureaucracy and paperwork,' he said. 'It is vital that this is not the case with this proposed legislation. 'Given that many small businesses and independent retailers are struggling with the 'cost-of-doing-business crisis', we will be working to ensure that that the Good Jobs Bill does not add to that burden.' People Before Profit MLA Gerry Carroll called the Bill 'underwhelming' and 'a modest step in the right direction'. 'However, this can fairly be characterised as a 'catch-up' Bill, rather than an effort to genuinely end exploitation and oppression in the workplace,' he said. 'A majority of the proposals are designed to make sure workers in the north benefit from the same basic protections recently introduced – or soon to come into force – in Britain. 'The minister has refused to implement an outright ban on zero-hours contracts, as promised in New Decade, New Approach. 'Carers will be let down by the proposal for just one week of unpaid leave per year, and left out of pocket for caring for a loved one. 'The mislabelled 'right to disconnect' will be established through a code of practice, rather than enshrined in law.' He added: 'This is a missed opportunity to shift the balance of power away from bosses and towards workers, and establish the conditions for sectoral collective bargaining.'
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Yahoo
Staff held at gunpoint in spate of armed robberies
A number of shop workers have been held at gunpoint in three armed robberies across Mid Ulster. Two masked men armed with a handgun entered a store on the Ballinderry Bridge Road of Coagh at about 06:50 GMT on Thursday. They placed a gun to a man's head forcing him to open a till, before making off with cash in a car driven by a third man. The second robbery, which was reported to police after 07:00, was at a supermarket on the Shore Road in Ballyronan when two men pointed a gun at a staff member's head before making off with cash and cigarettes. A third armed robbery was then reported at a filling station shop in the Moor Road in Clonoe, County Tyrone, where cash was stolen. Police said the vehicle used by the robbers, a blue Audi A6, was stolen early on Thursday morning from outside an address in Portadown. It was found on fire at about 08:40 at Drumcree Community Centre in the town. Police said the staff had suffered no serious injuries but were "shocked by the ordeal they experienced". Sinn Féin assembly member Linda Dillon condemned the incidents and said staff in Clonoe were left incredibly frightened . "It was a very, very frightening experience for the staff, they really are traumatised. I'm just glad that nobody was seriously hurt," she told BBC News NI. "These were people were coming in early to do a day's work and they didn't deserve this. "This shop really is the beating heart of this community in Clonoe and a lot of the staff are from the locality. "Armed robbery is a very serious offence and I sincerely hope the people that carried out this attack are caught, because these are dangerous people. " Dillon appealed for anybody with information about the robberies to come forward. Glyn Roberts, chief executive of Retail NI also urged anyone with information about the "utterly disgraceful" robberies to speak to police. "We shouldn't forget these are independent retailers that go above and beyond to serve their local community. "Our thoughts are with the staff who have traumatised by these despicable attacks," he said. Mr Roberts said assaults on staff, shoplifting and robberies are at "record levels. "It is crucially important that the Department of Justice include the assault of shop staff is specified in the forthcoming Sentencing Bill," he said.
