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The Weekly paper of the New Communist Party of Britain

Zero Hours Zero Pay

by New Worker correspondent

On Tuesday the Trades Union Congress published a report showing that zero-hour contracts, that is when workers only get paid for the irregular hours they work, are becoming increasingly the norm. They are not just a temporary situation, but are increasingly the long term fate for many.

About two thirds have been in unrewarding and uncertain jobs for over a year, with nearly half being in that position for two years “with bad employers “parking workers on zero-hours contracts for years on end”.

Even worse 12 per cent zero-hours contract workers have been with their current employer for over a decade.

In contrast only a tiny minority of zero hours contract workers, seven per cent to be precise have been on such jobs for less than three months. This is not a matter of choice, but because they are often the only jobs on the market.

TUC polling in 2021 showed that by far the most important reason that people take zero-hours contract work is because that is the only work available.

Needless to say ethnic minorities and women with child caring responsibilities are mostly to be stuck in such jobs. The TUC adds that a ban on zero-hours contracts is “long overdue” - and is calling for all workers to have a right to a contract that reflects their regular hours.

It’s the same at the London taxi firm Addison Lee where drivers supported by GMB are going to the Employment Tribunal to secure long overdue compensation after a 2017 ruling that they too were “workers” rather “self-employed”. The case involves only three specific individuals but it is a test case for hundreds more.

The 2017 Court of Appeal ruling entitled drivers to essential employment rights, including minimum wage, holiday pay, and protection from unfair deductions, but in ‘Jarndyce & Jarndyce’ tradition Addison Lee has refused to compensate drivers for lost wages and benefits.

GMB organiser Steve Garelick said “For seven years, Addison Lee has dragged its feet, denying our members the basic rights they deserve”. The claimants include a terminally ill former driver Mark Morahan who said “I worked long hours for Addison Lee and now have a terminal illness and the continued attempts to delay this case by Addison Lee have not helped my declining health”.