TUC calls for a ban on zero-hour contracts at the start of HeartUnions Week

WORKERS IN Yorkshire are calling for a ban on zero-hour contracts following new TUC analysis showing that zero-hour workers do double the night shifts and are paid on average £4 an hour less than other workers.

Today marks the start of HeartUnions Week 2019, when trade union members in Yorkshire will be promoting what they do to help working people in the region.

This year HeartUnions Week will also campaign for a ban on zero-hours contracts. Union leaders will commit to negotiate an end to zero-hour contracts in workplaces where they have recognition. The TUC said an online petition will build public support for a ban.

The most recent official figures show that in Yorkshire and the Humber there are 68,000 people whose main job is a zero-hour contract.

However, the union claimed this is not by choice as a TUC poll found that two-thirds of zerohour workers prefer to be on permanent, secure contracts.

New TUC analysis published today shows that zero-hour

workers are having a tougher time than those in secure employment on a range of measures.

Nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of zero-hour contracts workers regularly do night shifts, compared with one in 10 of the rest of the workforce. The TUC said night-working has been linked to heart disease, shortened life expectancy and higher risk of cancer.

Zero-hours contract workers are on average paid around a third (£4.10) less an hour than other workers. This is despite 12 per cent of zero-hours workers being supervisors and managers.

TUC secretary for Yorkshire and Humberside Bill Adams said: “The vast majority of people on zero-hour contracts in our region want out. The only flexibility offered to them is what’s good for employers.

“Zero-hours workers regularly work through the night for low pay, putting their health at risk.”