Hall, Mark

Following the UK referendum Leave vote, employer and trade union organisations are calling for the government to negotiate the maximum possible access for UK businesses to the EU single market. They also want guarantees on the status of EU citizens currently working in the UK and on that of UK citizens working in the EU.

Ahead of the UK referendum on 23 June 2016 on the country’s membership of the European Union, the central social partner bodies, the Confederation of British Industry and the Trades Union Congress, both strongly support continued EU membership though not all employers and unions do so. The stance of key companies, employer groups and trade unions could prove significant in influencing the outcome of what looks likely to be a closely fought referendum.

Amid the extensive debate about the UK’s relatively poor productivity record, a recent report from Acas identifies seven key factors for improving workplace productivity: well-designed work; skilled managers; effective conflict management; clarity about rights and responsibilities; fairness; employee voice; and high trust. The report includes contributions from leading practitioner and policymaking bodies, including employer and trade union organisations.

In a survey, UK businesses reported that using migrant workers has led to better business performance and productivity. This government-sponsored research into the impact of migrant workers on UK businesses suggests that migrant workers alleviate skill shortages and contribute to innovation, while their connections support expansion into new markets.

In November 2014, a UK court ruled that non-guaranteed overtime should be taken into account when holiday pay is calculated. The Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition government established a taskforce of business representatives to look at the issue. Trade unions have criticised legislative changes that were then introduced by the government to limit the impact of the ruling.

The final report of an independent review commissioned by the Coalition Government of the law governing industrial disputes was published in October 2014, but made no recommendations for reform. The barrister appointed to head the review, Bruce Carr, indicated that its work had been hampered by its politicised context and a lack of practitioner engagement.

A survey of more than 15,000 school support staff by the trade union Unison has highlighted widespread concern over low pay and high workloads. The survey, published in November 2014, revealed that almost three-quarters of respondents regularly worked unpaid overtime. Unison is pursuing the issues raised by the survey with the Department for Education.

In August 2014, the British and Portuguese trade union confederations, the TUC and CGTP-IN, signed a cooperation protocol to ensure that Portuguese and Portuguese-speaking migrant workers in the UK can join unions and enforce their rights at work. The new agreement is intended to prevent exploitation of migrants and undercutting of existing workers’ wages.

A UK government report published in July 2014 reviews the balance of competences between the UK and EU governing formulation and implementation of social and employment policy. Trade unions support European-level intervention in this area while employers’ groups want to restrict the EU’s role. The report identifies a series of potential future reforms.

A wage trend analysis shows that UK employees starting work in the 1990s were in, real terms, 40% better paid by the age of 39 than those whose working lives began in the 1970s. The gender pay gap shrank after 1975 for the under-30s, while the introduction of the national minimum wage in 1998 boosted wage growth in lower-paid jobs.