National Poetry Day

It's National Poetry day next Thursday October 5th. The theme is games. If any of my members can make a contribution which they'd like displayed on this blog then email them to lroy@cwu.org.

I'm Tweeting

I'm now on Twitter . You can follow me by clicking on the link on the right.

New minimum wage rates from October 1st

The minimum wage increases from this Saturday October 1st. The rates are as follows.

	Current rate	Oct 2011
Adults	£5.93	£6.08
18 to 20-year-olds	£4.92	£4.98
16 and 17-year-olds	£3.64	£3.68
Apprentice rate (under the age of 19 plus older apprentices in the first year of their course)	£2.50	£2.60

If you know of an employer who is not paying these rates or have any queries contact the Pay and Work Rights Helpline on 0800 917 2368 or visit http://payandworkrightscampaign.direct.gov.uk/index.html

ConDem proposals to reform Employment Law

From Daniel Barnett's Employment Bulletin.

Government Proposals for Employment Law Reform

The Government has published on the internet (but not yet in any sort of press release) proposals to deregulate business. They cover all sorts of things, from planning to procurement. Of interest to employment law practitioners, the proposals are:-

• increase the unfair qualifying dismissal period from one year to two years
• introduce fees for bringing tribunal claims
• consult on removing Equality Act provisions imposing liability on employers for third party harassment which they do not take reasonable steps to prevent

All these were the subject of consultation some time ago, but no Response to the Consultation has yet been published. This new document, 'One-In, One-Out, Second statement of new Regulation', suggests that the government has already decided what steps it intends to take. See page 14 (Appendix D) of the document.

The question does arise whether these proposals are genuine, or whether they are little more than political grandstanding and cannot be implemented due to EU law issues. Watch this space...

New rights for agency workers from October 1st

The CWU has been at the forefront of the camapign to gain fairer treatment for agency workers. From this Saturday October 1st hundreds of thousands will benefit from improved working conditions when the new equal treatment rights for temps come into effect. For more information visit http://www.tuc.org.uk/workplace/tuc-20079-f0.cfm

Same Sex Civil Marriage consultation.

Lynne Featherstone announced on 17 September that a public consultation to consider how to make civil marriage available to same-sex couples will begin in March 2012. This would allow any legislative changes to be made before the end of this parliament. The consultation will cover civil marriage for same-sex couples only - not religious marriage or opposite-sex civil partnerships. As and when we receive details of the proposed consultation I'll let you know.

Please support the Hardest Hit!

In October disabled people, their families and friends will be taking to the streets in cities across the UK protesting against Government cuts to disability benefits and services. For a full list of events happening in your region go to http://thehardesthit.wordpress.com/ where you can also download publicity materials.like this poster.