Latest news with #TUC
Daily Mirror
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
Disabled staff face 'pervasive' abuse as poll shows offensive jokes and bullying
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) said disabled people are facing 'pervasive' mistreatment at work, including being the butt of offensive jokes and subjected to intrusive questioning Nearly four in ten (39%) disabled workers have experienced bullying, discrimination and harassment at work, grim polling shows today(TUE). The Trades Union Congress (TUC) warned disabled people are facing 'pervasive' mistreatment at work. This includes being the butt of offensive jokes or 'banter' and being subjected to intrusive questioning about their disability. Of those who had faced mistreatment at work, more than one in ten (15%) left their job and employer altogether. Another three in ten (28%) said that it made them want to leave their job but they were unable to due to financial or other reasons. Some 42% said the most recent incident had a negative impact on their mental health, while one in five (20%) had to take time off. According to the poll, commissioned by the TUC, some 15% of those who have been mistreated faced intrusive or offensive questioning about their disability. Some 14% have been made to feel uncomfortable at work due to their disability, including through stereotypes or assumptions about their disability, or had seen or heard offensive jokes or "banter" about disabled people. And 12% said that they had experienced bullying, including sustained patterns of intimidating or abusive behaviour, clearly linked to their disability. The TUC said Labour's Employment Rights Bill will introduce key protections for disabled workers to help tackle this 'shockingly high' mistreatment. The legislation, currently passing through the House of Lords, includes a clause requiring employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent harassment of staff by third parties, such as customers and patients. Recent TUC polling shows that protecting workers from harassment is one of the most popular policies in the Bill – with almost eight in ten UK voters (78%) supporting it. The TUC has criticised the Tories and Reform UK, who it said 'have both mischaracterised the government's plans to protect workers from third-party harassment as an end to pub banter'. TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: 'No one should face bullying, harassment or discrimination at work. But the number of disabled workers reporting that this is their everyday experience is shockingly high. It's time to stamp out this pervasive mistreatment. Disabled workers deserve dignity and respect at work like every other worker does.' ::: Opinium surveyed 1,000 disabled workers online between January 22 and February 4.
The Independent
3 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Union boss warns Starmer over ‘echoing the right' on immigration
Britain's top union boss has issued a warning to Keir Starmer and the entire left of politics that they need to reclaim the narrative on the immigration debate in the face of the threat from Nigel Farage and Reform. Writing in the Independent, Paul Nowak, the secretary general of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), appears to both chide Sir Keir for his controversial speech on migration earlier this month, warning that the left 'should not be echoing the right'. In a week where the gloves have come off in the fight between Reform and Labour, Mr Nowak has urged the prime minister to confront the 'dangerous and false' claims of Farage. But, crucially, with chancellor Rachel Reeves trying to squeeze public finances in her spending review set to be published on 11 June, the union boss demanded that she finds the cash to properly fund the Fair Pay Agreement in social care and the Fair Work Agency which he believes are at the heart of part of the problems with immigration. His piece comes just days after Mr Farage gave a speech overtly targeting Labour and leftwing voters, claiming Reform is 'the party of the workers'. That speech was followed two days later by one from Sir Keir, accusing Reform of having economic plans which would cause 'a Liz Truss-style economic meltdown'. With battlelines drawn Mr Nowak, whose unions are Labour's biggest donors, has decided that the TUC needs to make its first intervention on the migration debate at the heart of Mr Farage's message to working class people. But in the piece the TUC official pointedly refers to care workers three times, a category that the prime minister has banned from getting work visas. But he also noted that the left should 'not compromise its values' and 'should treat everyone with dignity', saying the left 'should not be echoing the right'. It comes after the prime minister faced criticism for quoting the late rightwing Tory MP Enoch Powell's infamous 'rivers of blood' speech when he referred to ' an island of strangers'. An ally close to Mr Nowak insisted that his words were more aimed at 'offering leadership' rather than attacking the government. But the TUC secretary general's fiercest criticism for Mr Farage and Reform while not naming them directly. He said: 'The populist right has wasted no time in exploiting frustration —spreading baseless myths that blame migrant workers and asylum seekers for everything from cuts to the winter fuel allowance and disability support to the cost of living crisis. 'These claims are dangerous and false. But if the left doesn't offer serious, workable solutions, those lies will continue to fill the vacuum.' Mr Farage himself claimed that the attacks on him and his party were because they took a nine point lead in the polls this week and appeared to be on course to winning potentially the next general election. He said: 'They are in a state of blind panic. They don't know what to do.' However, Mr Nowak insisted that the British people 'are not anti-immigration, they are anti-chaos.' 'The British public hasn't turned its back on friends, co-workers, and neighbours from overseas— or on our proud tradition of offering sanctuary to people fleeing war and persecution,' he wrote. 'What they're rejecting is a system that often feels chaotic, unfair, and out of control. 'A system where those seeking asylum wait years in limbo while hotel costs spiral. Where rogue employers exploit migrant workers with impunity. And where local services—schools, hospitals, housing—have been so underinvested in that communities feel abandoned.' Instead the TUC secretary general wants to see proper funding for the Fair Work Agency which can end exploitative companies taking advantage of migrant labour. He said: 'Ministers must fully fund and properly empower the new Fair Work Agency. This body must have the teeth necessary to hold exploitative employers to account—particularly those who undercut wages and erode national labour standards by mistreating migrant workers.' He also called for a more 'humane' asylum system and said that those waiting to have their cases considered 'should be allowed to work and contribute to the economy.' He said: 'Keeping people trapped in poverty helps no one. Letting people work would allow them to contribute, pay taxes, and start to rebuild their lives. It would reduce pressure on public services and allow us too to benefit from the skills that those fleeing persecution can bring. 'A fair system doesn't mean gimmicks or cruel policies like the failed Rwanda plan. 'It means serious solutions like trialling humanitarian visas which would allow people to apply for asylum legally from abroad.'
The Guardian
5 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
UK-Gulf trade deal worth £1.6bn lacks human rights provisions, groups warn
The UK is on the brink of signing a £1.6bn trade agreement with Gulf states, amid warnings from rights groups that the deal makes no concrete provisions on human rights, modern slavery or the environment. The deal with the Gulf Cooperation Council – which includes the countries Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – is within touching distance, making it a fourth trading agreement by Keir Starmer after pacts were struck with the US, India and the EU. The UK has said it hopes the deal will eventually add an extra £8.6bn a year to trade between the UK and GCC countries by 2035. Sources close to the negotiations in the oil-rich region said the deal was now at its final stages and they expected UK agreement imminently. The deal is likely to be particularly beneficial for the car industry and financial services, though estimates suggest that a free trade agreement would be worth less than 0.1% of GDP over the next decade. The TUC is among those who have urged caution over the deal and has raised concerns with ministers, the Guardian understands. Human rights groups have previously said the UK should not finalise a free trade agreement without legal commitments on human rights improvements, especially for migrant workers. They said that the UK and GCC should have strong human rights conditions in any future agreement and the UK should provide its own independent impact assessment transparently on the potential consequences of deepening trade ties. Another source close to the talks suggested that though there were likely to be some language around human rights as part of the commitments, there were no legal obligations involved. A spokesperson for the Department of Business and Trade said: 'Negotiations on a trade deal with the GCC are ongoing. Our priority is to get the right deal, and we're not setting a deadline.' A departmental source said there was a possibility a pause would be needed for Eid al-Adha, which begins on 6 June. The UK-GCC trade agreement is also likely to have an impact on the UK's net zero ambitions, with all six GCC countries ranking in the top 10 per capita for carbon emissions. The TUC's general secretary, Paul Nowak, said: 'The TUC has raised concerns directly with ministers about a trade deal with the Gulf states and we will continue to do so. 'Our view on trade deals is consistent – the government should not agree deals with countries that abuse humans rights and workers' rights, and violate international law. It was right for the government to suspend trade talks with Israel. 'We will continue to make the case with ministers for a trade agenda with workers at its heart – and to press the issue of labour standards and human rights in the Gulf states and other countries.' Tom Wills, the director of the Trade Justice Movement, said: 'The UK-GCC trade deal is a values-free agreement that will offer minimal benefit to the UK economy while signalling that human rights and environmental protections are not a priority in UK trade policy. 'The government has chosen to finalise this deal without publishing a human rights impact assessment, securing binding commitments on labour rights or environmental standards, or allowing parliament any meaningful scrutiny. It's a continuation of a secretive, short-term approach to trade that puts corporate access above public values.' Wills said that warm words around rights in the deal would still mean it fell short of comparable standards. 'When we see progressive language in a trade deal - around supporting workers or the environment – we always ask the same question: is it binding? Will there be consequences for failing to uphold standards. If not, these warm words aren't worth the paper they're written on,' he said. Negotiations have been led by trade minister Douglas Alexander who is set to conclude work started under the Conservatives, which was once seen as a more concrete prospect than the India deal, signed a fortnight ago. Alexander is expected to meet his counterpart for final signoff. The previous trade minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan had promised in parliament that the deal 'will not come at the expense of human rights'. MPs have pointed out that there is precedent for including rights concerns in trade deal, such as the chapter on Indigenous peoples in the New Zealand deal which makes commitments on their part in their nation's future progress. Nick Thomas-Symonds, who was then shadow trade secretary, said in opposition that it was 'crucial that human rights, women's rights and workers' rights are embedded in UK trade negotiations'. But in the most recent exchanges under the Labour government, Lords trade minister Baroness Jones said that although the UK was a 'leading advocate for human rights around the world … this work takes place separately to negotiations on free trade agreements. 'While aspects of trade policy can provide the opportunity to address other issues in a bilateral relationship, free trade agreements are not generally the most effective or targeted tool to advance human rights issues,' she told the Lords last year. The UAE trade minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed al-Zeyoudi told Politico in 2023 that the UK and other western countries must 'tone down' standard human and workers' rights provisions in trade deals 'if they want more market access and more business opportunities'. Trade with the six-member bloc is worth about £59bn a year, according to government estimates, as the UK's seventh-largest export market, with a trade deal expected to increase trade by about 16%. Individual Gulf states could also pursue their own deeper partnerships with the UK and sovereign wealth funds in Gulf nations including Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been some of the biggest foreign investors in the UK. The trade secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, and Alexander chose the Gulf for their first joint international visit after the election. Starmer visited Saudi Arabia in December. The UK has previously pledged that the deal will not compromise environmental, public health, animal welfare and food standards, made all the more pressing because of the agrifoods deal the UK hopes to seal with the EU in the coming months. The NHS and health services are excluded from the deal. Technology, innovation and financial services will form a key part of the deal which is also likely to have some work and visa provisions for businesspeople from both the UK and the Gulf states – another area that could provoke attack from the Conservatives and Reform, though most of the deal was negotiated under the Tories. Joey Shea, a Saudi Arabia and UAE researcher at Human Rights Watch, said: 'Finalising a UK-GCC trade agreement without concrete rights protections would be a grave mistake with grim consequences for migrant workers across the Gulf.' Polling conducted by the Trades Justice Movement in November 2024 suggested there was public opposition to the deal, with just 21% of people in favour. The TUC previously submitted evidence during the Conservative negotiations over the deal, saying that the 'kafala' system – which involves binding migrant workers to a specific employer – had entrenched modern slavery and exploited millions of migrant workers.
The Independent
14-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Forget Farage – Keir Starmer can't waste this chance to go big on the EU
Keir Starmer has allowed Nigel Farage to set the government's agenda on immigration. But he must not dance to Farage's tune on the EU. The prime minister must be bold at a crucial summit in London on Monday to agree a reset with the EU. But Brussels officials tell me they're worried Starmer's "three no's" – to rejoining the single market and customs union and restoring free movement – are limiting the scope of the deal. 'Flexibility cannot be for one side only,' one said. The tough immigration measures announced by Starmer this week already risk harming UK growth. He shouldn't make the same mistake twice. The trade unions want Starmer to cross one of his red lines.'We're wanting the government to look at every option on the table, up to and including the customs union," said Paul Novak, the TUC 's general secretary. That's not going to happen – at least until Labour drafts its manifesto for the next election. But Starmer can and should go further by pushing the boundaries of last year's manifesto pledges to the limits, for example by forging a closer customs arrangement to reduce trade friction. This offers the government its best shot at securing economic growth and reducing Brexit 's four per cent hit to GDP. An ambitious reset could hand Rachel Reeves some precious headroom against her fiscal rules as the Office for Budget Responsibility might raise its growth forecasts. There are tense last-minute negotiations ahead of the summit. I'm told the French want a longer extension of the existing deal giving their fishing fleets access to British waters than the UK has offered. France is threatening to impose the same time limit on an agreement to streamline rules for trade in agrifoods. The UK wants an open-ended deal to provide certainty for the food and agricultural sectors in the hope of lowering food prices. In theory, France could veto the centrepiece of the reset: a security and defence pact. UK ministers are tiptoeing nervously towards accepting a youth mobility scheme for under-30s, a key EU demand, though the details will not be settled until later this year. The same applies to cooperation on the energy market and carbon border taxes. Starmer will try to overcome the outstanding differences in the margins of a meeting of the wider European Political Community in Albania on Friday. There will probably be a deal on Monday; the UK and EU can't afford a failed summit that would delight Vladimir Putin and suggest Europe can't get its act together on defending the continent. Even if Starmer stormed out of the talks screaming that he would never talk to the EU again, Farage would cry "Brexit betrayal." So would the Conservatives. Kemi Badenoch has warned the EU her party will reverse some of Starmer's proposals if it regains power – the definition of an empty threat when the Tories are in third place and 11 percentage points behind Reform UK in the opinion polls. The two Eurosceptic parties will direct their fire at the PM for agreeing to align with future EU regulations on agrifoods and allowing the European Court of Justice to police the agreement. It suits the Tories and Reform to live in the past on the EU, but the world has moved on since the 2016 referendum. The reset is about a better, more prosperous future. Although Starmer can claim he is acting in line with public opinion on immigration, most voters now think Brexit was a mistake and are more open to closer EU ties than Farage and Badenoch would have us believe. People prioritise EU trade links over those with the US. Ministers agree – in private. One told me: 'The media will spotlight the US deal because it's with Trump but the EU is a more important market.' True: the UK exports almost twice as much to the continent as to the US. However, some Labour strategists are getting cold feet about the scale of the EU reset following Reform's sweeping gains in this month's local elections. Starmer should ignore their advice. He might never win his battle with Farage over immigration since the Reform leader will always outbid him. But the EU fight is one the PM can win. To do so, he will have to make the case for closer ties. It is a strong one, based not on starry-eyed pro-Europeanism but a clear-eyed national economic interest. Ministers describe Starmer's EU strategy as "ruthlessly pragmatic." There's nothing wrong in that but it shouldn't translate into caution. Starmer cannot afford to waste this opportunity to go big on the EU.
Yahoo
11-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Employment rights bill ‘improves Labour's favourability among voters'
Labour's employment rights bill could substantially increase the party's plunging popularity with Reform and former Conservative voters, but few are aware of the changes, new data by a pollster has suggested. Among the most popular policies is on workers' prevention from harassment, which has an extremely high favourability rating – despite significant criticism from Nigel Farage, Reform UK politicians and the Conservatives, who have sought to portray it as a 'banter ban'. Related: Labour's employment rights bill: what key changes will it bring? The polling suggests the government's low favourability could increase by up to 13 points – and by even more among Tory-to-Labour switchers and former Labour voters now likely to vote Reform. The poll of 5,000 adults, commissioned by the TUC union, found only about a quarter of voters were aware of the reforms such as banning zero-hours contracts, ending fire-and-rehire, and introducing 'day one' protections from unfair dismissal. Prevention of harassment – which makes that a legal duty for employers – is the second most popular policy after the ban on fire-and-rehire. The reforms in the bill – which will come to the House of Lords on Tuesday – are also popular with Labour voters who have moved towards the Green party or independent MPs, increasing favourability by 11 points. Peter McLeod, who ran polling for Labour in opposition, conducted the polling with his firm Hold Sway. He said: 'There's a huge number of voters out there that still know little to nothing about this legislation. The good news for the government is that as people learn about the employment rights bill, their views toward the government get more positive.' Those polled were shown arguments in favour of the bill – including that protections were tipping the balance back towards workers – but also arguments against the changes, such as treating business as a 'cash cow' and Farage's argument that it would 'ban banter'. 'It's important to note that this was a balanced exercise,' McLeod said. 'To simulate the actual debate around the bill, we showed tough arguments against it as well as the changes that it will bring in and the arguments in favour. After that robust debate, favourability to the government goes up. 'When we isolate the views of those crucial swing voters who picked the Tories in 2019 and Labour in 2024, we find a similar positive shift in the government's reputation. This goes for 2024 Labour voters who would now vote Reform and Green as well.' The bill has been the subject of intensive lobbying from business groups and criticism in the national media, and linked to low growth forecasts. Critics have suggested the increased protection for workers is an additional burden for businesses who have also seen national insurance for employees increase. There has been a perceived reluctance from ministers, including the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, to robustly defend or promote the bill given the need to preserve relations with business, though fears that the bill would be watered down at its final reading in the Commons did not come about. Related: Nigel Farage is a political fraud 'cosplaying' as working-class champion, TUC chief says The TUC has done its own extensive promotion of the bill, including in Farage's Clacton seat. The TUC general secretary, Paul Nowak, said: 'The employment rights bill is a vote winner, and demonstrably improves the government's standing with working people. 'Commonsense policies like banning zero-hours contracts, ending fire-and-rehire and protecting workers from harassment are all hugely popular with voters across the political spectrum, from Green to Reform. The likes of Reform are defying their supporters by voting against improvements to workers' rights at every stage. 'Boosting awareness of the employment rights bill will help expose Nigel Farage as a phoney who is on the side of bad bosses – not working people.'
