COLUMN: Labour is making work pay

This week marks #HeartUnionsWeek, celebrated annually to recognise how important trade unions are for everyone at work and to encourage people to join a union.

Our trade unions fight for fair pay, job security and better rights at work every single day. Trade unions won the workplace rights we rely on now, from sick pay to the two-day weekend. Indeed, the Labour Party was formed by our trade union movement and is the party of fairness and workers rights at work.

Our Employment Rights Bill represents the biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation. It will update the UK’s outdated employment laws and improve workplace rights to deliver a stronger, fairer, and brighter future for workers across the country.

The Employment Rights Bill brings forward over thirty reforms, including: banning exploitative zero-hour exploitative contracts and extending employment rights to start from day one, including protection from unfair dismissal, entitlement to paternity leave and unpaid parental leave.

The Bill will also improve and strengthen statutory sick pay and increase protections for women in the workplace, introducing Equality Menopause Action Plans and strengthening rights for pregnant workers.

This is just the first step in our plans to Make Work Pay. We are focused on putting pounds in people’s pockets and at the budget in October, the Chancellor announced a 6.7% increase to the National Living Wage. This means that from April 2025, there will be a new National Living Wage of £12.21, and a new National Minimum Wage of £10 per hour.

The Tories oversaw the biggest squeeze in living standards in 200 years and I know for many working people across Luton South and South Bedfordshire, this pay boost is badly needed. This will help with the cost of living and ensure a healthy workforce.

Economic growth only matters if working people are feeling the benefits, and Labour’s proposals to improve workers’ rights and pay will ensure those who need it the most will feel the benefits of our New Deal for Working People.