Harry Cohen
RIGHTS AT WORK
Before I became an MP I worked as a solicitor and part of my job involved advising people on their rights at work, as well as dealing with cases involving industrial injuries and diseases. What still surprises me is the number of people who don’t know about the rights they already have or the benefits available to them.
Looking back over the past six years I’m pleased to that much has been done by government to improve the position of people at work. Many people in my constituency had seen their jobs disappearing, and many had been out of work for a long time. When people could get jobs they were often low-paid and insecure.
A lot has been done to tackle that problem. We have seen a genuine rise in employment with the number of people in Warrington North claiming the dole falling by a third. In addition, legislation has improved conditions for those at work including the national minimum wage which has lifted more than a million people out of poverty, the right to four weeks paid holiday a year and a fair deal for part-time workers, including equal pro-rata pay and holiday entitlement. Child Benefit has been increased and the introduction of Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit has made sure people are better off in work than on benefit. New mums and dads have been helped by the introduction of 26 weeks maternity leave for all women and two weeks for new dads.
In addition I have lobbied ministers on behalf of people who have raised concerns about the rights of agency workers. I’m pleased that some new rights have been introduced in this area including restrictions on working time and regulations tightening the conduct of employment agencies.
Former miners and their families, in parts of my constituency, have also benefited from compensation schemes for respiratory disease and Vibration White Finger.
Yes, of course, there is more which needs to be done. I dealt with some horrific injuries which people had received at work so I am always keen to see better health and safety laws and I want to see a Corporate Manslaughter bill which will make companies liable for deaths caused by their negligence. A draft bill has already been published and I hope we will see such a law passed in the coming year.
In this column I can only give a brief outline of the rights people have at work. If you want further information or wish to raise an issue with me on this subject please contact me: by letter to Gilbert Wakefield House, 67 Bewsey Street, WA2 7JQ; by phone on 01925 232 480; by fax on 01925 232 239; or by e-mail jonesh@parliament.uk
