Stop the rot on redundancy pay
Join the campaign
to increase redundancy pay
Unite is calling on the government to improve the terms of
statutory redundancy payments available to the many thousands of
workers threatened with losing their jobs in the current
recession.
The union welcomed a parliamentary victory when Labour MP
Lindsay Hoyle secured a 68-vote majority on March 13 for a second
reading of his Statutory Redundancy Pay Amendment bill, which was
strongly supported by Unite and other unions.
The measure would increase to £500 a week the amount of pay used
to calculate compensation for workers made redundant.
Unite joint general secretary Tony Woodley said: “This is a
long-overdue measure to bring statutory redundancy pay up to date.
It was an important element of Labour’s election manifesto, and we
are pleased that it secured the support of so many MPs.
“The provisions to improve statutory redundancy pay must be
implemented urgently, while so many workers face a threat to their
jobs. They need to have that new limit for redundancy pay in place
to help ease hardship.
“The quickest way for this to be done is for the chancellor and
the government to introduce the measure through the forthcoming
budget.”
Unite joint general secretary Derek Simpson added: “Now that
we’ve had the debate, it is time for action. Our research shows
that in virtually every constituency in Britain, workers are
dependent on statutory redundancy pay if they lose their jobs. The
146 Labour MPs who have backed this measure today are clearly aware
of their obligation to those constituents
“The basis for calculating that pay is years out of date. By
introducing a more just and realistic system in the budget, the
government would be offering hope of a fair deal in hard
times.”
The chancellor announced an increase in redundancy pay of £30 to
£380 in the recent budget, although no date has been given from
when the increase will take effect.
The current statutory redundancy pay scheme limits calculations
to pay of just £350 a week. That represents 56 per cent of average
weekly earnings. But when the scheme was introduced more than 40
years ago, the cap on payments was worth 203 per cent of weekly
earnings. Campaigners sought an increase in the cap to £500 a
week
The current law means that UK workers are among the cheapest to
sack in Europe. In these hard times, workers deserve a fair deal
for years of loyal service. It is time that redundancy pay caught
up with the real cost of living.
Lindsay Hoyle MP's Statutory Redundancy (Amendment) bill is
seeking do just that. Urge your MP to back the bill and
encourage the government to bring in changes through the
Budget.
Lindsay Hoyle MP said: “State redundancy pay is so out of step
with average earnings it acts as a ceiling for workers, not a floor
to protect them.
“It is time to stop this forty-year rot so that when workers are
laid off they receive what they're rightfully owed, and to end the
national shame of our workers being among the cheapest to sack in
Europe.”
The bill is supported by Unite, GMB, Unison, CWU, USDAW, Ucatt,
Community, TSSA, Aslef, the Trade Union Liaison Organisation and
the TUC.
Supporting information
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