The Government's Minimum Service Standards Bill is due to go through its remaining stages in the House of Commons today. The legislation, which would enforce minimum service levels during strikes in certain areas of the public sector, has been condemned by workers and the union movement as "draconian" and a "revenge assaultโ on fundamental freedoms. Unions could be sued for not complying with the new law, while workers could lose their protection against unfair dismissal. Labor has filed an amendment to the bill aimed at safeguarding unfair dismissal protections. The party has also tabled amendments that would require the government to subject the legislation to greater parliamentary scrutiny, including forcing the publication of assessments of how the bill would affect individual workers, equality, employers and unions.
Angela Rayner argued in comments posted overnight that Conservative MPs "face a clear choice today as to whether they will vote to safeguard rights at work or break key worker protections against unfair dismissal." The deputy Labor leader said the government was trying to "rush" the legislation through parliament without proper scrutiny and had failed to consider the risk of it "worsening the recruitment and retention crisis, increasing the bureaucratic burden on employers or opening up the door to discrimination against key employees. workersโ. She stated: "Labor are looking to force them back to the drawing board with this dog dinner of a bill that will do nothing to resolve disputes and instead risks adding gasoline to the fire."
The TUC has strongly criticized the government for the lack of scrutiny the legislation has received. The union body has filed a freedom of information request to find out why the government published the bill without the required impact assessment, a decision that was denounced by the regulatory policy committee, the independent watchdog that scrutinizes the new bill. legislation. TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak accused ministers of trying to keep MPs "in the dark" about the "draconian nature" of the bill, stating: "It is shameful that MPs are being forced to vote for blind to such far-reaching new laws.
The TUC has He received a series of solidarity letters from unions around the world criticizing the UK government over the legislation, which have been shared exclusively with Labor List. Letters have been sent from unions in Algeria, Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, France, Guatemala, Norway, Peru, Romania and Spain. Perhaps one of the most powerful contributions came from Peru's Central Unitaria de Trabajadores (CUT), whose letter issued a stark warning about the broader implications of the bill, declaring that its passage will have โdire repercussions throughout the world and in Peru in particular. .
International unions have also sent letters to British ambassadors condemning the legislation. In its letter to the British ambassador to Spain, the Union Sindical Obrera (USO) expressed "deep concerns" about the bill, stating: "Contrary to the UK government's assertions, these measures would further alienate the UK from the international democratic norms. A key government defense of the legislation has been that it would bring the UK "in line" with many other European nations, including Spain.
Against the backdrop of the debate over the legislation is ongoing industrial action in numerous sectors, with the Firemen's Union due to announce the outcome of your strike ticket later today and widespread strikes scheduled for Wednesday across the education sector, civil service Y transport, among others. As Justin Madders writes for Labor List this morning: "Instead of listening to the concerns of these workers...the government has chosen legislation over bargaining." The shadow labor rights and protection minister argues that the Minimum Service Levels Bill "drives a carriage and horses through fundamental rights" and reiterates Labor's commitment to repeal the legislation in government.
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