Oral Answers to Questions

Ann McKechin Excerpts

Thursday 6th March 2014 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Hancock]

Yes, of course I will join my hon. Friend. I also join him in paying tribute to my hon. Friends the Member for Burnley and for Harrogate and Knaresborough (Andrew Jones), who are apprenticeship ambassadors and do enormous work, in this House and beyond, to promote apprenticeships.

[Ann McKechin (Glasgow North) (Lab)]

19. If his Department will make an assessment of the main causes of insecurity in the workplace.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (Jenny Willott)]

The 2011 workplace employment relations study measured insecurity. It showed that job insecurity is related to three factors: whether a workplace had been subject to recent redundancies; if managers felt that the recent recession affected the business; and the number of changes to working terms and conditions experienced by employees.

[Ann McKechin]

The Minister will be aware that research from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development shows that approximately 1 million people in this country are currently employed on zero-hours contracts. We know that many of these are exploitative, so will the Minister confirm whether the Government will use the opportunity of the forthcoming Queen’s Speech to legislate to end the misery that is suffered by so many in our communities?

[Jenny Willott]

The hon. Lady will know that the Government looked at zero-hours contracts last summer, and are currently consulting on related issues such as exclusivity clauses and so on, which are just some of the problems that people have highlighted. Following on from that consultation, we will look at what measures need to be taken to ensure that such contracts are used positively and not to cause problems for those who are being exploited by them.