Employment: Zero-hour Contracts

Baroness Donaghy Excerpts

Wednesday 23rd October 2013 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Royall of Blaisdon]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they will deal with the abuse of zero-hour contracts.

[Baroness Donaghy (Lab)]

On behalf of my noble friend Lady Royall, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in her name on the Order Paper.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Viscount Younger of Leckie) (Con)]

Zero-hours contracts are not new, but since 2005 there has been an increase in their use. More recently, government has been made aware of anecdotal evidence that has highlighted instances of abuse. As a result, the Business Secretary of State announced that his officials would undertake a fact-finding exercise to explore how these contracts work and what the issues are. This was undertaken over the summer. On 16 September, the Business Secretary said that he would publish a consultation seeking views on zero-hours contracts and on how to address the concerns raised in the summer fact-finding exercise. The consultation will be published in mid-November.

[Baroness Donaghy]

I thank the Minister for his reply. He has confirmed the very belated inquiry into this subject. Will he confirm that it will cover cases where employees work regular hours but have zero-hours contracts, their pay levels and a code of conduct? How wide will the scope of the inquiry be?

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

Certainly, the noble Baroness has hit on a number of the issues that will be covered. They will include exclusivity; a lack of transparency within the contracts; a lack of information, advice and guidance; and a lack of certainty of earnings. However, any response that comes through as a result of the consultation needs to be proportionate and well considered.