The flagship legislation to make work more secure and better paid includes a measure to protect workers from unfair dismissal from day one of employment, which opposition Peers are seeking to undermine. Usdaw is calling on MPs to reject the amendment when the Bill comes back to the House of Commons tomorrow.
Joanne Thomas – Usdaw general secretary says: “It is staggering that opposition Peers want to allow workers to be unfairly dismissed without any recourse to an employment tribunal. Labour had rightly proposed to end the two-year service qualification for challenging an unfair dismissal and make sure that employers have to act fairly from day one. Under the Government’s proposal, employers would still be able to dismiss a worker if it is done fairly and through a proper process.
“We urge the Government to defend the Bill from this unwarranted attack by rejecting the Lords’ amendments. Making work more secure was clearly a key part of Labour’s manifesto, which was widely supported by voters in last year’s landslide general election win. It ill becomes unelected Tories and Lib Dems to go against the expressed will of the people.”
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
Employment Rights Bill: https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3737
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