New Deal for Workers
Enough is enough. Time for a New Deal for Workers.
The New Deal for Workers is a campaign led by trade unions and their members. It calls for a new social settlement for working people of Britain and to develop rights and provision for those same workers.
It is a national shame that despite being one of the richest countries in the world, inequality between the wealthy and the workers has never been this bad.
The pandemic exposed the cost of electing the Tories. Key workers, including CWU members, sacrificed everything during the COVID-19 crisis, to protect ordinary people and their families. While those on the frontline risked their lives by simply going to work, the Tories sipped champagne and partied without a care. Their callousness cost lives.
And now, we are now facing the worst cost-of-living crisis in over 30 years. Rather than help support working people, this government is forcing families to choose between heating and eating. We have seen people forced to turn down pasta at foodbanks because they can’t afford the gas or electricity to cook it. Bankers bonuses have been restored and energy companies make billions in profit, while food insecurity has risen 57% since January. To top it all off, when faced with attacks on workers like the shameful P&O sackings, the government offers nothing but meaningless words.
Millions of families are sliding into poverty, despite being in work, while the government simply shrugs their shoulders.
We need a New Deal now more than ever.
One that makes the bosses and the wealthy pay their fair share, instead of letting the public pick up the tab. One that offers universal, publicly-owned services and not skyrocketing bills. One that will protect and extend the rights of workers, instead of offering them scraps from the table.
Alongside other trade unions and the TUC, the CWU is calling for the New Deal to be at the front of the fight against the Tories and their austerity politics.
So what does a New Deal actually mean?
- Higher wages for working people across the country and a minimum wage that can actually feed families and keep a roof over your head.
- Securing workers rights against insidious practices like fire and rehire and strengthening the rights of trade unions to improve conditions in the workplace.
- Agreeing a common bargaining agenda for individual sectors to tackle insecure employment, including zero-hour contracts, bogus self-employment without holiday pay or sick pay
- Fighting back against energy bills doubling while companies make billions in profit.
Most importantly, it means putting workers rights back on the table. For our members, the CWU has made it clear to employers that there can be no excuses for not putting proper pay rises on the table. Companies such as Royal Mail Group and BT Group have made huge profits from the pandemic and our members have made huge personal sacrifices in delivering these profits and keeping the country connected. The New Deal for Workers is a key part of securing victories in our upcoming industrial action and ensuring that our members never face insecurity and insufficient wages.
We simply cannot afford to sit around waiting and hoping for political change. It has never been more important for trade unions to come together and fight for a radical, transformative agenda for working people.
Political Lead Chloe Koffman explains the Labour Government’s new Employment Rights Bill: