The ETI has just produced two really useful new films that set out the business case for ethical trade, for suppliers and retailers.  We all know that pictures, preferably moving pictures, are crucial in getting people to relate to workers and their lives and we welcome these new films as a useful resource for communicating this vital message.

The retailer film aims to raise awareness of buyers, Board members and technologists to the issues of ethical trade. It sets out:

• What is ethical trade?
• Why consumers care?
• Other business benefits of ethical trade

The case is bolstered through insights from representatives from:

• Companies including: The Gap, Next Plc, and Tesco
• Trade Unions such as the TUC
• NGOs such as Women Working Worldwide and Labour behind the Label

The supplier film sets out the key business benefits for suppliers (i.e. owners and managers of factories and farms) of taking labour codes seriously and improving working conditions. It is based on interviews carried out earlier this year with seven garment and food suppliers in China, Kenya and the UK, as well as major global brands and retailers in the UK and US. The supplier film is subtitled in Spanish and Chinese as well as English.

Both films are stylish and professional, setting out their cases in a compelling and effective manner. Impactt would like to congratulate the ETI on producing two useful and informative resources.

Please call 0207 841 5182 or email eti@eti.org.uk if you would like to receive a copy (each DVD contains both films on the same disk).

Minimum wage rates for over 21s will rise from £5.52 to £5.73 per hour, whilst the minimum wage for 18 to 22 year olds increases from £4.60 to £4.77, and from £3.40 to £3.53 for those aged 16 and 17.

This latest change represents a total increase of 59% since 1998, compared to a 44% rise in average pay over the same period.  The TUC has stated that more than one million workers will benefit from this rise.

Whilst Impactt applauds the commitment of the government to increase the minimum wage, research indicates that there is still confusion and lack of awareness  amongst small businesses about NMW levels. In addition, workers in particular industries such as hospitality, care and domestic service are often being denied these minimum rates.  A TUC report from December last year indicated that around 150,000 workers were not being paid the legal minimum.  Recent reports of ‘scrooge’ employers also highlighted the widespread use of tips in the restaurant trade to ‘top up’ workers’ wages to NMW levels. 

The minimum wage has undoubtedly benefitted a significant number of low-wage workers in its 10 years of existence.  However, inadequate enforcement of the minimum wage requirements continues to thwart the realisation of the regulation’s full potential.

 The government have this week revealed a new deal between businesses and trade unions which is to give agency and temporary workers employment parity with permanent workers after 12 weeks at work.

The measures should come in to force during the next session of Parliament, provided the government is able to ensure that agency workers are able to opt out of the Working Time Directive. This requires action in Europe to ensure that any EU directive includes the provision of an opt out.

The agreement comes after months of debate in Parliament and between businesses and trade unions in order to thrash out a deal which would prevent workers from being exploited, but also allow UK businesses to benefit from a flexible workforce. The business secretary, John Hutton, claimed that the measures would “give people a fair deal at work without putting their jobs at risk or cutting off a valuable route into employment”. The Confederation of British Industry, which was at the negotiating table with other employers’ groups, described the agreement as the “least worst option”.

In an effort to ensure that agency and temporary workers are still an attractive option for employers, the deal does not provide them with Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) or pension benefits after the 12 week mark. Such workers would have to work as long as permanent workers in order to benefit from full maternity rights, but it is not clear when such workers would be able to claim SSP.

Impactt welcomes this new deal, and hopes that the implementation of the measures will be timely and effective. It remains to be seen how the government will prevent employers from evading the regulations, although the agreement includes ‘anti-avoidance measures’. The risk that labour users will simply dismiss agency workers after 11 weeks and 6 days remains a concern. Perhaps the model of the Gangmasters Licensing Authority could be used to empower the Employment Agencies Inspectorate, in order to license and prosecute employment agencies who breach any new and existing rules, and regulate the conditions of workers when they are working.

The Guardian has speculated that the measures have been forced through a scared and meek Labour government, eager to gain approval from voters who are edging away from them in the polls, in a similar way to the implementation of equal pay legislation whilst Harold Wilson’s government was ‘on the ropes’.

We believe that it is a troubling thing when the rights of workers are only defended by a Labour government during times when they are desperate for political approval.  However, as a pragmatic bunch, we also commend the trade unions for standing their ground and utilising the weakness of the government in order to protect the rights of an under-represented group of workers, which has for many years supported many industries in the UK such as agriculture, hospitality and construction.

Here at Impactt, we believe that the issues facing these workers have been anything but overlooked in the past years. There has been a steady increase in the number of reports of the issues faced by migrant workers in the UK. The British public may rightfully feel bombarded with news reports, articles and commentaries about the suffering of our considerable migrant workforce.

What causes the greatest concern is the number of industries that fall outside of the remit of the increasingly successful Gangmasters Licensing Agency (GLA). Recent BBC productions have shown that migrant workers are not travelling to the UK merely to work in fields and pack houses. The Open University and BBC series ‘Meet the Immigrants‘ illustrates the breadth of industries which utilise the influx of migrant workers; from pizza delivery companies to taxi ranks and hotels; migrant workers are contributing to the UK economy in more ways than just agriculture.

Asked to comment on the murky world of Britain’s low wage migrant workers, Paul Whitehouse, explained how his agency was powerless to stop gangmasters in sectors outside of agriculture, food-processing, fishing and shell-fishing. Mr Whitehouse stated: “I have absolutely no doubt the Government passed this law because it believes it is wrong for people to be exploited…. I cannot see why if you work in one area you should be protected, but not in another.”

This intervention was a contribution to a continuing debate which has been raging over what sectors the Gangmasters Licensing Act should cover. Recently, the TUC General Council called for the Act to cover other industries such as construction, after research by Sheffield University estimated that there are over 10,000 gangmasters in operation in unlicensed sectors of the British economy.

We at Impactt believe that regulation and continued debate about the rights of migrant workers will only serve to increase pressure on those groups capable of changing the lot of vulnerable workers such as migrants and long term agency workers. The media, trade unions, NGOs and social enterprises such as Impactt need to maintain the pressure on stakeholders to ensure that all workers are treated fairly whilst at home, and abroad.