Paddy Lillis – Usdaw General Secretary says: “The Government’s failure to address the crisis in workers’ pay and employment rights is making the ongoing cost of living crisis much worse. Skyrocketing prices, particularly on food items, leave too many workers struggling to make ends meet. Food inflation remains very high at 18.3%, despite the rate of price increases slowing a little, that has a severe impact on low-paid workers struggling to make ends meet.
 
“Housing costs are also shooting up, with average rents seeing double-digit increases across the country and mortgage interest rates reaching new highs. The impact of higher rents is not uniform, with those on low incomes bearing the brunt. As the Bank of England looks set to continue to increase base rates, these cost pressures are not likely to reduce anytime soon. This is the penalty people are paying for Tory mismanagement of the economy.
 
“Short-term support with ongoing cost of living pressures is not enough and the Government needs to deliver lasting solutions with a new deal for workers. A new deal that makes work pay with an immediate increase in the minimum wage to at least £12 per hour for all workers, regardless of age, as a step towards £15. Alongside this, we need an end to insecure employment and one-sided flexibility, through contracts that reflect normal hours of work.
 
“The Government is not offering the change our members need, with Rishi Sunak set to fail on his paltry target of halving inflation by the end of the year. After 13 years of Tory economic failure, it’s time for a General Election. Labour is pledged to deliver a new deal for workers within 100 days of coming into government. Only Labour has the policies and ideas that can put the country back on track.”
 
Notes for editors:
 
Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is the UK's fifth biggest trade union with over 350,000 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 www.usdaw.org.uk
 
Labour’s New Deal for Workers: www.usdaw.org.uk/LaboursNDW
 
RPI v CPI: Usdaw argues that the Retail Prices Index (RPI) is a better measure of inflationary pressure on low-paid workers because it includes housing costs, like mortgage interest and buildings insurance, along with essentials such as Council Tax, Road Tax and TV Licence.
 
For Usdaw press releases visit: http://www.usdaw.org.uk/news and you can follow us on Twitter @UsdawUnion