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Category: Equality

The House of Commons logo.

House of Commons Library briefing paper: Workers Underpaid the Minimum Wage

26 February 2018

The true extent of underpayment is very difficult to estimate, but a range of 1 to 2 million underpaid workers is likely, or between 4% and 9% of employees aged 25 and above.

This is according to the February 2018 briefing paper (pdf) from the House of Commons Library, which looks at what is known about workers paid less than the minimum wage. 

The paper finds:

HMRC found 98,150 underpaid workers in 2016/17. This was an increase of 69% from 2015/16, and the largest annual total on record
Data from the LFS indicates that 77% of those who usually do one or more hours of unpaid work per week are not paid a fixed hourly rate. In other words, most unpaid time is done by employees on a salary
For the same reason, ASHE does not capture the informal economy, for example, work paid cash in hand. Informal work is likely to have a higher rate of non-compliance with the minimum wage.

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Business in the Community

YouGov and Business in the Community survey: Race at Work 2018

23 February 2018

Business in the Community have launched a February 2018 survey to build further on the findings of their 2015 survey, Race at Work. 

They are keen to hear from all ethnicities – everyone aged 16 and over, employed or self-employed in the UK (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland). 

The survey questions examine the following workplace issues:

How to talk about race
Pay gap monitoring and reporting 
Progression
Recruitment 
Workplace bullying and harassment 
The survey takes approximately 13 minutes to complete.

Complete the survey.

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The Scottish Human Rights Commission logo.

Scottish Human Rights Commission report: Building a Human Rights Culture in Scotland

21 February 2018

Human rights belong to everyone. We all have rights regardless of sex, race, disability, sexual orientation, religion, age, income, gender, country of birth or belief.

This is from the February 2018 report from the Scottish Human Rights Commission on building a human rights culture in Scotland.

The research tested and identified the impact of different types of messages on people’s attitudes towards human rights

The report finds:

Demographic groups of women and 16-24 year olds were most likely to become more supportive and engaged with human rights when exposed to key human rights messages
When talking about human rights, organisations involved in human rights secured the greatest levels of trust amongst all those surveyed, with 58% of participants saying they would trust them a great deal or fair amount.
This compares to 17% for a famous singer, actor, sportsperson or musician who is well known for caring about human rights
Different spokespeople affected the impact of messages. For example across all those surveyed, a disability rights campaigner has more impact than the Chair of the National Human Rights Institution when discussing disability rights.
Read the full report (pdf).

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European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA)

European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights report: Migration to the European Union – Five Persistent Challenges

21 February 2018

‘Asylum-seeking children in several EU Member States had no or limited access to education’, says a February 2019 report (pdf) from the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA).

Building on the findings of their October 2016 report (pdf), this report presents the most pressing fundamental rights concerns between October 2016 and December 2017.

The report finds:

Legal and practical obstacles to accessing legal aid, information and interpretation existed in all EU Member States covered
Sexual and gender-based violence in reception centres remains an issue in some EU Member States
Police and border guards reportedly ill-treated migrants, particularly on the Western Balkan route, and in Spain in certain locations.
Read the full report (pdf).

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logo for Institute For Fiscal Studies

Institute for Fiscal Studies report: Wage Progression and the Gender Wage Gap – the Causal Impact of Hours of Work

20 February 2018

The hourly wages of female employees are currently about 20% lower than men’s on average, having been 23% lower in 2003 and 28% lower in 1993.

This is from the February 2018 report (pdf) from the Institute for Fiscal Studies on the gender wage gap.

The report finds: 

The gender wage gap widens gradually but significantly from the late 20s and early 30s
Gender differences in rates of part-time and full-time paid work account for approximately half of the widening of the gender wage gap over the 20 years after the first child in a family is born
There is, on average, a wage gap of around 10% even shortly before the arrival of the first child.
Read the full report (pdf).

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Public Law for Everyone: Human Rights Post-Brexit, the Need for Legislation?

15 February 2018

‘There are no quick fix solutions. The enactment of new legislation to protect human rights post Brexit is probably best left for after Brexit, allowing for broader consultation and reflection’.

This is according to Professor Mark Elliott who published a February 2019 article exploring how human rights should be protected in the future post Brexit. 

Read the full article. 

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age uk logo

Age UK survey: The Big Social Care

15 February 2018

Age UK have published a survey to hear the experiences of people and their families who have needed adult care and support. 

The Government have promised to change the adult social care system in England to make it fit for the future. And Age UK have produced a February 2018 survey to hear about your experiences. 

The Care and Support Alliance will use these results as part of Age UK’s campaigning work.

Responses will not be used in a way to that identifies any individual or family publicly.

Find out more and complete the complete the survey. 

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