Vulnerable worker enforcement forum
Background to the previous government's strategy to help support and protect vulnerable workers in the workplace
Since 1997, a fair framework of basic workplace rights has been put in place, which includes the right to:
- a minimum wage
- paid leave
- not to have to work more than 48 hours a week on average.
The key challenge is to ensure that all workers – particularly vulnerable workers – benefit from these rights.
The employment strategy paper, Success at Work, published in March 2006 committed government to protecting vulnerable workers and tackling non-compliant employers.
As part of this work, a Vulnerable Worker Enforcement Forum was established in June 2007. Chaired by the Employment Relations Minister it brought together front line unions, workplace enforcement agencies, business groups and advice bodies to look at evidence about the nature and extent of abuse of workplace rights. It also considered whether abuses are being tackled effectively through existing enforcement and support mechanisms and whether improvements or new approaches were needed to raise compliance without increasing burdens for good employers.
Final Report & Government Conclusions
The Forum’s final report was published on 5th August 2008. The key elements of the previous government’s response to the findings were:
- the creation of a single helpline number to transfer the burden of navigating the enforcement system away from vulnerable workers
- a sustained, three year, government-led campaign to raise vulnerable worker awareness of basic employment rights and encourage the reporting of workplace abuses
- the creation of a Fair Employment Enforcement Board to drive forward improvements in the enforcement system
- taking action to tackle the legal information-sharing barriers that, for some of the enforcement bodies, prevented inspectors passing information to each other to enable better targeting of the worst employers
- significantly more face to face contact with advice bodies, community groups and local authorities to raise awareness of the national minimum wage, employment agency standards and other basic rights, and build local contacts for intelligence about non-compliant employers.
Vulnerable worker enforcement forum: final report and Government conclusions (PDF, 384KB)
Fair Employment Enforcement Board
To ensure closer working between the enforcement bodies so that the worst employers can be targeted, awareness-raising work made more cohesive, and business plans aligned, government established a Fair Employment Enforcement Board (FEEB). Chaired by the Minister for Employment Relations, the Board brings together the workplace enforcement bodies and a small number of independent members to drive effective co-ordination and collaboration. The CBI, TUC, Citizens Advice, Unite and FSB are independent members on the Board, which meets 3-4 times a year.
