The government has announced a drive to crack down on rogue employers abusing vulnerable workers.
The 'Fair Employment Enforcement Board' will be set up to co-ordinate the work of the government enforcement agencies covering minimum wage, health and safety, employment agencies and gangmasters and headed by the Employment Relations Minister. It will include representatives from business, trade unions and the enforcement agencies.
There will be a single telephone helpline for vulnerable workers to report abuses to the Government's workplace enforcement agencies allowing them to share information to catch rogue employers.
BERR is introducing stronger penalties for agency offences and increasing the investigative powers of the Inspectorate. Measures to strengthen the penalties and investigative powers for the National Minimum Wage are also included in the Employment Bill currently going through Parliament.
The government has agreed to implement laws giving agency workers equal treatment with permanent colleagues after 12 weeks in a job.
Brendan Barber of the TUC regretted that the government will not widen the scope of the act to new sectors. UCATT (construction union) is similarly baffled by the decision not to extend its remit in light of endemic abuse of vulnerable workers in the building industry.
There has also been criticism for not expanding the Gangmasters' Licensing Authority. Unions wanted its remit to be extended to care workers, and the construction and hospitality sectors.
The Government has trumpeted its having recently given agency workers a 'right' to withdraw from pay deductions for transport or accommodation (in practise such 'rights' are all but useless to workers. E.g. the Working Time Directive 'right' to opt out or the 'right of workers to be consulted' by their employer before retirement).
The government press release can be found:
Here
© Workrep 05 / 08 / 2008