The Minister met Usdaw members who work in retail and distribution to hear of their experiences in accessing childcare, dealing with Universal Credit and the need for improved workplace rights.
The role of the taskforce is to oversee the development and publication of an ambitious cross-government child poverty strategy to reduce and alleviate child poverty. The aim is to improve children’s lives and life chances now and address the root causes of child poverty in the long term.
Based on a survey of nearly 3,000 members, Usdaw’s childcare evidence includes:
• Difficulties in accessing childcare mean that women are twice as likely to reduce their hours and 1 in 10 parents of under-fives left work altogether.
• Grandparents, relatives, friends and neighbours provide childcare for many low-paid parents. Other couples work opposite shifts, giving them little time together.
• Many Usdaw members are unaware of the free childcare available. Of those who are aware, only 55% have been able to access and use their hours.
Improving employment rights for working parents will unlock more secure pay and prosperity for families. Usdaw will present evidence that the Employment Rights Bill will provide crucial support for working parents, once it has been implemented. Usdaw will continue to advocate for further improvements to employment rights for working parents as well as the completion of the parental leave review.
On Universal Credit, Usdaw would like to see reforms that include:
• Scrapping the two-child limit and the benefit cap.
• Removing the five-week wait.
• Providing both parents with a work allowance and lowering the taper rate.
• Changing the scheme to take account of those who are not paid monthly.
• Lowering the Administrative Earnings Threshold to include those on 16-hour contracts.
Usdaw member and supermarket worker says: “Universal Credit is paid monthly and I’m paid four-weekly, that has a big impact when there are two pay days in a calendar month.”
Usdaw member and convenience store worker says: “Cost of living crisis and childcare costs really affect us and we’re looking to the Government for help.”
Usdaw member and warehouse worker says: “We need to find the balance between work and private life, it’s difficult.”
Paddy Lillis – Usdaw general secretary says: “We very much welcome the Minister taking time to meet our members and hear their first-hand experiences of trying to balance work and home duties, while trying to make ends meet. The last Government made life much harder for working parents, but never once asked to hear their issues and concerns, so it is a great step forward to have a Minister sitting down with our members and hearing their views when looking at developing this strategy that will support low-income families.”
Notes for editors:
Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is one of the fastest growing unions in the TUC and 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 www.usdaw.org.uk
Child poverty taskforce: www.gov.uk/government/groups/child-poverty-taskforce
For Usdaw press releases visit: www.usdaw.org.uk/news and you can follow us on Bluesky @usdawunion.bsky.social and Twitter/X @UsdawUnion