The ‘We demand better’ march will assemble from 10.30am in Portland Place, start at 12 noon and gather for a rally in Parliament Square at 1pm https://www.tuc.org.uk/DemandBetter
 
Paddy Lillis – Usdaw General Secretary says: “Trade unionists will be coming together on Saturday to demand a new deal for working people in the midst of the worst cost of living crisis for over 40 years. Now is a crucial time for working people to make their voices heard, because the Government is not listening.
 
“Boris Johnson has unjustifiably joined calls for wage restraint, yet real incomes remain lower than in 2008 and it is absolutely clear that today’s cost of living crisis has not been caused by wage increases. Britain has for many years desperately needed a pay rise. Now, with inflation raging beyond 11%, many workers are reaching breaking point.
 
“Usdaw’s survey of members found that two-thirds have relied on borrowing to pay their everyday bills and around half of them are struggling with repayments. 82% of working parents feel worse off now than they did last year, more than a quarter of all parents have missed meals in the last year to pay bills. Two-thirds are significantly cutting down on heating. Shockingly, a quarter will no longer use the heating at all.
 
“These are the very real experiences of essential workers who were clapped during the pandemic and now seem to be forgotten. The Government has offered only sticking plasters that go nowhere near covering rising prices and bills, so there needs to be significant increases in minimum wage rates and fundamental reforms to end insecure work.
 
“Usdaw calls for a minimum wage of at least £12 per hour as a step towards £15 for all workers, ending rip-off youth rates. The pandemic clearly demonstrated just how reliant the country is on the lowest paid workers, so if we are to truly ‘build back better’ surely these essential workers deserve the dignity of decent pay.
 
“This march demands better than a PM who appears to be more concerned with his own job security than anybody else’s and a Chancellor who has done too little too late to tackle the cost of living crisis. It’s time for change. We, as the trade union movement, stand up for millions of working people all over the UK and together we demand a new deal for working people.”

Usdaw’s New Deal for Workers calls for:

• Minimum wage of at least £12 per hour as a step towards £15 for all workers, ending rip-off youth rates.
• Minimum contract of 16 hours per week, for everyone who wants it, that reflects normal hours worked and a ban on zero-hour contracts.
• Better sick pay for all workers, from day one, at average earnings.
• Protection at work, respect for shopworkers, abuse is not a part of the job.
• Proper social security system, Universal Credit does not provide an effective safety net.
• Job security, with day one employment rights for unfair dismissal and significant improvements to redundancy protections.
• Fair treatment and equality for all workers, including equal pay.
• Voice at work, stop rogue employers refusing to engage with trade unions and end ‘fire and rehire’. 

Notes for editors:
 
Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is the UK's fifth biggest trade union with around 360,000 members. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union also has many members in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemical industry and other trades.
 
For Usdaw press releases visit: http://www.usdaw.org.uk/news and you can follow us on Twitter @UsdawUnion