Usdaw has submitted motions on family friendly workplace rights and tackling retail crime. Usdaw has also tabled amendments to motions on neurodiversity and employment policies, along with artificial intelligence at work.
Usdaw representatives will also be seeking to speak on the floor of Congress about tackling the far right and the weaponisation of women’s and girls’ safety.
On the fringe, Usdaw representatives are speaking at meetings about: a second Employment Rights Bill - restoring trade union rights; the trade union and Labour Party link; War on want; facilities for drivers, and skills training.
Joanne Thomas - Usdaw general secretary says: “After two years of Labour in Government, we can see significant improvements for our members. The change they voted for is happening, with a lot done and much more to do. Not least to ensure that their manifesto commitments to a new deal for workers are delivered in full. The Employment Rights Act is the biggest uplift in workers’ rights in a generation, but much of the detailed implementation is still being resolved. It’s essential that there are no loopholes for unscrupulous employers to exploit, and that all workers benefit from these new rights. While we are focussed on that, we are also considering the next set of reforms that are needed to help make work pay and jobs more secure.
“Labour has made progress on family friendly rights at work by delivering day one rights to paternity and parental leave, extending protection from dismissal for pregnant and new mothers, strengthening flexible working rights and introducing a right to bereavement leave for bereaved partners. We also welcome the wider review of the current statutory framework of parental leave which is failing working families and holding back the economy. The Government must deliver a framework that reflects the realities of family life and today’s labour market, supports meaningful choices around combining paid work with care, reduces pregnancy and maternity discrimination and advances gender equality to close the gender pay gap. The experiences of working families must be at the heart of government decision making.
“Another major step forward has been the Government’s efforts to tackle retail crime including: a specific offence of assaulting a shop worker, ending the indefensible £200 threshold for prosecuting shop theft, which had effectively become an open invitation to retail criminals, and criminal behaviour orders for retail crime. Far too many retail workers live in fear of being abused, threatened and assaulted and that includes home delivery drivers. We are looking for additional protections for these important workers and early implementation of the Crime and Policing Act to help protect staff in an epidemic of retail crime.”
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 with around 370,000 members. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union also represents many workers in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemical industry and other trades www.usdaw.org.uk
TUC Congress 2026: www.tuc.org.uk/congress2026
For Usdaw press releases visit: www.usdaw.org.uk/news and you can follow us on Bluesky @usdawunion.bsky.social and Twitter/X @UsdawUnion