The majority of zero-hours workers — those with no guarantee of work from week to week — are just as satisfied with their working arrangements as their full-time colleagues, claims a new survey.
In fact, says the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) research, just over half of the zero-hours workers it questioned did not want more hours. Most were “happy” with the combination of their work and private lives.
The study confirmed previous institute estimates that around a million UK workers were employed on zero-hours contracts, the majority in the catering, leisure, retail and public sectors.
“The use of zero-hours contracts in the British economy has been underestimated, oversimplified and in some cases, unfairly demonised,” said CIPD chief executive, Peter Cheese.
Of the 2,500 workers questioned, on regular and zero-hours contracts, researchers found that 38 per cent of those on week-to-week — sometimes day-to-day — contracts wanted more hours, but were just as satisfied with their job when compared to the average employee. Asked about their work-life balance, 65 per cent of those on zero-hours contracts said they were happy, compared to 58 per cent on traditional contracts.
The problem is not a matter of short-hour working, added Cheese, but more to do with employers not understanding or appreciating the rights of their zero-hours staff. There was considerable poor practice, especially when cancelling work or changing shifts.
Only about a third of the 1,000 employers questioned had a contract or formal policy covering the arranging and cancelling of shifts for zero-hours workers. Of the employees surveyed, 40 per cent said they had shifts cancelled without notice. Four out of five, however, said they were never penalised if they were unavailable for work.
Steve Radley, of the manufacturers’ organisation EEF, said the debate on zero-hours contracts has become “unbalanced” and needed greater focus on the benefits for both workers and employers. “With skills in scarce supply, zero hours help employers to tap into specialist skills when they are needed and to draw on the experience of older workers,” he said.
The Government is shortly to launch a consultation paper on the use of zero-hours contracts but, the CIPD urges, it should concentrate on improving the understanding of such contracts under the present law rather than attempting to restrict their use through new regulations.
The TUC does not agree. “The real problems lie with bosses who aren’t interested in good practice and are more concerned with squeezing staff to boost their profit margins,” claimed general secretary Frances O’Grady.
“Whilst not every employee on a zero-hours contract is exploited, this survey shows that job insecurity and low pay are concerns for a significant number of workers, including white collar staff,” he added. “That’s why we need legislative action to stamp out the growing abuse of workers on zero-hours contracts and other forms of insecure work.”
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