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It is now almost two years since the Northern Ireland Executive promised to deliver a ‘Good Jobs’ Employment Rights Act to improve the lives of workers across Northern Ireland.

This piece of work promised to tackle zero and short hours contracts, improve rights to request flexible working and introduce a right to carers leave. Despite significant engagement from Usdaw, along with other trade unions, the Executive continue to delay these provisions and workers are no closer to getting the rights they deserve.  

To ensure politicians understand the need to introduce these rights as quickly as possible, please email your MLAs.  

Enter your postcode to direct the petition to your own MLA.

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Dear MLA,

We are contacting you to seek your urgent efforts to ensure that the NI Executive releases the Good Jobs Bill (GJB) for passage through the Assembly’s legislative process.

Despite more than 8 in 10 voters here backing the Bill, it is clear that this blockage is at the behest of business lobby groups, who have consistently sought to delay, obfuscate and misrepresent key elements of this legislation.

It is the default position of business lobby organisations is  to oppose improvements in workers legal rights. We recall, for example, their opposition to the introduction of the National Minimum Wage and their claims that it would lead to jobs losses and damage the economy. This is how they always react.

Trade unions have been engaged in good faith discussion and consultation on this bill for over two years now. We met with businesses and their representatives repeatedly, sought common ground, and made clear from the outset that our ambition was bigger than any single piece of legislation. We wanted a new era of economic cooperation, where all stakeholders worked together to build something better for everyone by removing unnecessary friction from the workplace.

This is not a radical piece of legislation. The GJB simply affords vulnerable and precarious workers here basic protections, aims to improve work/life balance and strengthen worker voice through trade union representation for the benefit of workers, employers and the economy.

However, these legal rights will be ineffective without union access, as tribunals are too complex and burdensome for vulnerable and precarious workers. Unions help ensure access to rights in practice, and evidence shows unions benefit society, business, and the economy.

All of the rights in the Bill exist in some form for workers across these islands – Why are we being denied them?

Consultations on the GJB have been ongoing since 2024. No other employment rights Bill in NI has received such scrutiny. The policy contents of the Bill were published in April 2024.

The Employment Rights Act 2025 commenced six months after the GJB, was bigger than the GJB, and still became law in December.

We understand that the Executive had the Bill some weeks before they discussed it on 28th May. And yet, they have still not released it to the Assembly.

We are deeply troubled by the failure of the NI Executive to approve the GJB’s passage to the Assembly for democratic discussion and scrutiny.

We are acutely aware that any further delaying by the Executive may leave insufficient time for the GJB to complete the legislative process before the current Assembly term ends.

We call on you to publicly support the Good Jobs Bill and its urgent passage into the Assembly.

Yours sincerely,

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Email your MLA

Email your MLA

It is now almost two years since the Northern Ireland Executive promised to deliver a ‘Good Jobs’ Employment Rights Act to improve the lives of workers across Northern Ireland.