Zero-hours contracts: Workers react to the ban

Young people working in insecure jobs have been promised a “new deal” by the government.

A law announced last week includes a ban on “exploitative” zero-hours contracts which allow employers to only pay staff when they need them.

The Employment Rights Bill will give workers the right to a contract reflecting the number of hours they regularly work.

It also requires bosses to give “reasonable notice” and compensation if shifts are changed or cancelled.

The government’s claimed the new rules will provide more security and less instability for workers.

But people who want to opt in to zero-hours contracts because of the flexibility they offer can still do so.

BBC Newsbeat spoke to young workers to find out what they think about the new legislation.

About one million UK workers are currently on zero-hours contracts.

Figures from thinktank the Work Foundation suggest under-25s are five times more likely to be on zero-hours contracts than older workers.

Fraser McGuire, 20, from Derby, works two zero-hours jobs, one at a pub and one at a hotel bar.

Fraser says he’d prefer contracted hours but “as a young worker, zero-hours contracts always tend to be the standard”.

“It can be really difficult mentally as well as obviously financially.

“One month, I might be able to get easily enough to make my rent and make ends meet but then the next month, I might not be able to at all.”

Fraser does think the changes could mean young workers feel more empowered at when it comes to standing up for their rights.

“If your boss sets your hours on a weekly basis you will be much less likely to stand up and challenge them than if you had a guaranteed hours contract because you don’t want to lose your income,” he says.

He says the new law is “a step in the right direction” but wants to know how it will be enforced.

“I really do wonder how they’re going to define and enforce the term ‘exploitation’,” he says.

“But at least even identifying those really bad employers or those really precarious situations is definitely a massive step in the right direction.”

Tamara Beattie has been on a zero-hours contract for more than two years since having her daughter.

She works for a healthcare agency and says while the flexibility helps her balance childcare, she has “no security” when it comes to paying her bills.

Tamara says there are weeks when she can’t pick up any shifts and has to rely on Universal Credit to supplement her income.

“I can’t financially support myself just on the amount of hours that I get,” Tamara says, adding that it’s had an impact on her mental health.

“I like being able to provide for myself and for my daughter and I can’t do that because a lot of workplaces don’t offer the hours that I need around my little girl.”

Tamara, who lives in Fife, welcomes the new legislation but says people will still need options like zero-hours contracts unless more is done to support working parents.

“It’s only good if they’re going to implement other things in workplaces like making sure employers are family friendly,” she says.

“Unless I can find something that’s a lot more flexible, I’m gonna find it really difficult to find more hours.”

Major unions Unite and Unison have welcomed the bill, with the GMB union saying it will “make a big difference to the lives of working people”.

But the Independent Workers’ union of Great Britain (IWGB), says their members have been overlooked.

It represents some gig economy workers, such as Uber and Deliveroo drivers, who aren’t explicitly mentioned in the new bill.

Because they are seen as self-employed, they aren’t entitled to benefits such as holiday and sick pay.

General secretary Henry Chango Lopez says this makes them “some of the most precarious and exploited in society, lacking the most basic rights and remaining unsupported by legislation”.

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) estimates more than 4m people in England and Wales work in the gig economy.

Tim Sharp, the TUC’s senior employment rights officer, tells BBC Newsbeat because it’s a “disparate workforce” working across so many areas, they can be “hard to reach”.

But there are some workers in the sector, including Uber drivers, who have been able to gain some of those rights after taking their cases to court.

Henry, from the IWGB, says this puts the responsibility on people working in the gig economy to get better conditions rather than the government.

But the TUC says some of the measures set to be introduced by the new government, such as the right to organise, could help “all precarious workers”.

“There’s a clear intention to help them develop a collective voice,” says Tim, adding: “There are still huge barriers to trade unions organising.

“What we hope and expect is that some barriers will be lowered.”

Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays – or listen back here.