Latest news with #workers rights
The Independent
18 hours ago
- Business
- The Independent
Why zero-hours contracts could be here to stay in new blow to workers' rights
A proposed crack down on zero-hour contracts in the workplace have suffered a setback today. Flagship plans by the Government to halt zero-hour contracts in the workplace have been scuppered by peers in the House of Lords. The House of Lords backed by 264 to 158, majority 106, a move to change the legal requirement for an employer to offer guaranteed hours to an employee's right to request the arrangement. Peers went on to inflict a further blow on the Labour front bench in supporting by 267 votes to 153, majority 114, a measure to exempt employers from having to make a payment to a worker if a shift was cancelled with at least 48 hours' notice. The defeats came as the Employment Rights Bill, which has already been through the Commons, continued its passage through the upper chamber. The changes made by peers to the draft law paves the way for a parliamentary tussle, known as 'ping-pong', where the legislation is batted between the two Houses until agreement is reached. The proposed workers' rights reforms also introduce new restrictions on 'fire-and-rehire' processes when employees are let go and then re-employed on new contracts with worse pay or conditions. In addition, the Bill strengthens trade unions and gives workers certain 'day one' rights, such as sick pay, paternity leave and the right to request flexible working. Proposing his alternative to the proposed zero-hours provision, Liberal Democrat Lord Goddard of Stockport acknowledged the need to tackle the 'exploitative' use of the practice that left workers in 'precarious employment circumstances'. But he added: 'That said, our amendment reflects that shared objective, while offering a more practical and balanced view. 'The amendment changes legislation from an obligation to offer guaranteed hours to a right to request them. 'Furthermore, it maintains that when a such request is made, the employer must grant it.' He added: 'Our amendment seeks a fair balance, protecting workers from exploitation while preserving the flexibility which is crucial for many industries to function.' But opposing the move, Labour peer Baroness Carberry of Muswell Hill, a former assistant general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, warned: 'I very much fear that it undermines the purpose of the Bill, which is trying to deal with the problem of zero-hours contracts.' She said: 'What the amendment doesn't take account of is the imbalance of power in workplaces and the characteristics of employees who are working on zero-hours contracts.' Arguing those on zero-hours contracts were 'the least empowered workers', Lady Carberry added: 'So the right to request guaranteed hours in those circumstances is not a real right at all. 'And then how many of those workers, vulnerable as they are, might come under pressure not to press for guaranteed hours 'This formulation of the amendment leaves open the path to some of those worst employers to make sure that they don't end up offering guaranteed hours to workers on zero-hours contracts.' However, Tory shadow business minister Lord Sharpe of Epsom said: 'It makes no sense to require employers to offer guaranteed hours to employees who don't want them. 'The Government appears to misunderstand or simply disregard the autonomy of the individual worker. 'Imposing this administrative burden, especially on small employers, to calculate and offer guaranteed hours where they are neither wanted nor needed, is an unnecessary and unavoidable cost. 'We therefore strongly support the right to request amendment proposed by Lord Goddard which better respects worker choice and employer flexibility.' Responding, business minister Baroness Jones of Whitchurch said: 'We believe the duty to make a guaranteed offer should lie with the employer. 'This is the best way to ensure that all qualifying workers benefit from the right guaranteed hours when they want them. 'If a worker on an exploitative zero-hours contract had to request the guaranteed outcome, they may feel less able to assert their right to those guaranteed hours, and they would lose out as a result. 'It's quite right to highlight the imbalance of power in the workforce for these individuals, and this is particularly true when workers take up a new job.' She added: 'A right to request model could create undesirable barriers, making it especially difficult for vulnerable workers on exploitative zero-hours contracts to access their right to those guaranteed hours, especially as many workers are younger and often in their first job. 'As the Bill is currently drafted after receiving an offer from the employer, qualifying workers will be empowered to make a decision based on their individual circumstances. 'If a worker wants to retain their zero-hours contract, as many will, they can do so by rejecting the offer.'
Bloomberg
3 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Lawyers Warn UK NDA Ban May Reduce Misconduct Settlement Payouts
A landmark ban on the use of non-disclosure agreements in workplace misconduct cases - a longstanding practice of financial firms - may make it harder for victims to win compensation and discourage some from speaking up, lawyers say. Under reforms to workers' rights laws by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer's government due to come into effect later this year, any confidentiality agreements that seek to silence employees who say they faced harassment and discrimination would be null and void.
The Guardian
3 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Missouri's governor signs repeal of state's guaranteed paid sick leave law
Eight months after voters approved it, Missouri's governor, Mike Kehoe, signed the repeal of a law on Thursday that had guaranteed paid sick leave to workers and inflation-linked adjustments to the minimum wage. The move marked a major victory for the state's largest business group and a frustrating defeat for workers' rights advocates, who had spent years – and millions of dollars – building support for the successful ballot measure. The repeal will take effect on 28 August. Kehoe, who also signed a package of tax breaks on Thursday, described the paid sick leave law as an onerous mandate that imposed burdensome record-keeping. 'Today, we are protecting the people who make Missouri work – families, job creators and small business owners – by cutting taxes, rolling back overreach and eliminating costly mandates,' Kehoe, a Republican, said in a statement released after a private bill-signing ceremony. The new tax law excludes capital gains from individual state income taxes, expands tax breaks for seniors and disabled residents, and exempts diapers and feminine hygiene products from sales taxes. Richard von Glahn, who sponsored the worker benefit ballot initiative, said many parents felt forced to go to work instead of staying home to care for a sick child in order to pay for their rent or utilities. 'The governor signing this bill is an absolute betrayal to those families, and it hurts my heart,' said Von Glahn, policy director for Missouri Jobs With Justice. About one-third of states mandate paid sick leave, but many businesses voluntarily provide it. Nationwide, 79% of private-sector employees received paid sick leave last year, though part-time workers were significantly less likely to receive the benefit than full-time employees, according to US labor department data. Voters in Alaska, Missouri and Nebraska all approved paid sick leave measures last November. Only Alaska's, which kicked in on 1 July, has remained unchanged by state lawmakers. Before Nebraska's measure could take effect on 1 October, the state's Republican governor, Jim Pillen, signed a measure last month exempting businesses with 10 or fewer employees from the paid sick leave requirements. The revision also allows businesses to withhold paid sick leave from seasonal agricultural workers and 14- and 15-year-olds. Missouri's law allowed employees to earn one hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked, starting 1 May. By the time it's repealed, 17 weeks will have elapsed. That means someone working 40 hours a week could have earned 22 hours of paid sick leave. If workers don't use their paid sick leave before 28 August, there is no legal guarantee they can do so afterward. The Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry had made repealing the law its top legislative priority. The 'paid leave and minimum wage policies were a job killer', the chamber's president and chief executive officer, Kara Corches, said. But Missouri voters could get a second chance at mandating paid sick leave. Von Glahn has submitted a proposed ballot initiative to the secretary of state that would reinstate the repealed provisions. Because the new measure is a constitutional amendment, the state legislature would be unable to revise or repeal it without another vote of the people. Supporters have not decided whether to launch a petition drive to try to qualify the measure for the 2026 ballot.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Missourians voted for paid sick leave. Gov. Mike Kehoe just signed bill undoing it
Gov. Mike Kehoe on Thursday signed a bill into law repealing Missouri workers' paid sick leave protections that voters overwhelmingly supported in November. The rollback of Proposition A, which nearly 58% of voters favored, is the latest example of Missouri officials relitigating and undermining seemingly progressive policies enacted at the ballot box. The right to an abortion, also enshrined by voters in 2024, will be back on the ballot next year in the form of a proposed ban. In a statement accompanying the signing of the sick leave overhaul and a separate tax cuts bill, Kehoe couched the new law as 'pro-business legislation.' 'Today, we are protecting the people who make Missouri work — families, job creators, and small business owners — by cutting taxes, rolling back overreach, and eliminating costly mandates,' Kehoe said. The sick leave protections requiring employers with 15 or more workers to provide one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked will officially be repealed on Aug. 28. Proposition A's other key provision, a $15 minimum wage, will remain in place. But the bill signed by Kehoe repeals future minimum wage increases based on inflation. 'The governor's action today demonstrates the absolute disdain Republicans have for working Missourians,' said House Minority Leader Ashley Aune, a Kansas City Democrat, in a Thursday statement. She suggested the move to dismantle worker protections could prompt a move to shield future ballot measures from legislative interference. 'But in stripping workers of their legal right to earned sick leave, the governor and his allies have probably guaranteed this issue will be back on the ballot next year as a constitutional amendment that will place worker protections beyond their reach,' Aune said. Since Proposition A changed state law but not the state constitution, lawmakers had the authority to rewrite it. To get HB 567 across the finish line, Republican senators resorted to extraordinary procedural measures, breaking a Democratic filibuster to force a vote on the bill in the final hectic days of the legislative session. Despite the Missouri Supreme Court upholding Proposition A election results, the business community pressured lawmakers to forestall its implementation. The Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry suggested that rewriting the sick leave provisions would give employers flexibility to 'tailor workplace policies' to meet the needs of their workforce. Kara Corches, president and CEO of the Missouri Chamber, celebrated the rewritten measure in a news release Thursday, calling mandatory paid sick leave a 'job killer.' 'Missouri employers value their employees and recognize the importance of offering competitive wages and benefits, but one-size-fits-all mandates threaten growth,' Corches said. As approved by voters, the earned sick leave provision did not apply to government employees, retail or service workers whose employers make less than $500,000 a year, people who are incarcerated, golf caddies, and babysitters, among others.
The Guardian
4 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Missouri's governor signs repeal of state's guaranteed paid sick leave law
Eight months after voters approved it, Missouri's governor, Mike Kehoe, signed the repeal of a law on Thursday that had guaranteed paid sick leave to workers and inflationary adjustments to the minimum wage. The move marked a major victory for the state's largest business group and a frustrating defeat for workers' rights advocates, who had spent years – and millions of dollars – building support for the successful ballot measure. The repeal will take effect on 28 August. Kehoe, who also signed a package of tax breaks on Thursday, described the paid sick leave law as an onerous mandate that imposed burdensome record-keeping. 'Today, we are protecting the people who make Missouri work – families, job creators and small business owners – by cutting taxes, rolling back overreach and eliminating costly mandates,' Kehoe, a Republican, said in a statement released after a private bill-signing ceremony. The new tax law excludes capital gains from individual state income taxes, expands tax breaks for seniors and disabled residents, and exempts diapers and feminine hygiene products from sales taxes. Richard von Glahn, who sponsored the worker benefit ballot initiative, said many parents felt forced to go to work instead of staying home to care for a sick child in order to pay for their rent or utilities. 'The governor signing this bill is an absolute betrayal to those families, and it hurts my heart,' said von Glahn, policy director for Missouri Jobs With Justice. About one-third of states mandate paid sick leave, but many businesses voluntarily provide it. Nationwide, 79% of private-sector employees received paid sick leave last year, though part-time workers were significantly less likely to receive the benefit than full-time employees, according to US labor department data. Voters in Alaska, Missouri and Nebraska all approved paid sick leave measures last November. Only Alaska's, which kicked in on 1 July, has remained unchanged by state lawmakers. Before Nebraska's measure could take effect on 1 October, the state's Republican governor, Jim Pillen, signed a measure last month exempting businesses with 10 or fewer employees from the paid sick leave requirements. The revision also allows businesses to withhold paid sick leave from seasonal agricultural workers and 14- and 15-year-olds. Missouri's law allowed employees to earn one hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked, starting 1 May. By the time it's repealed, 17 weeks will have elapsed. That means someone working 40 hours a week could have earned 22 hours of paid sick leave. If workers don't use their paid sick leave before 28 August, there's no legal guarantee they can do so afterward. The Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry had made repealing the law its top legislative priority. The 'paid leave and minimum wage policies were a job killer', the chamber's president and chief executive officer, Kara Corches, said. But Missouri voters could get a second chance at mandating paid sick leave. Von Glahn has submitted a proposed ballot initiative to the secretary of state that would reinstate the repealed provisions. Because the new measure is a constitutional amendment, the state legislature would be unable to revise or repeal it without another vote of the people. Supporters haven't decided whether to launch a petition drive to try to qualify the measure for the 2026 ballot.
