👉 @rmtunion.bsky.social calls for insourcing of all railway staff following GTR nationalisation Rail union demands all Govia Thameslink Railway staff be brought into direct employment: www.ier.org.uk/news/rmt-cal...

@pcsunion.bsky.social calls on the NI Executive to move forward with the #GoodJobs Bill. At the power-sharing Executive meeting on last Thurs, the DUP blocked the bill, preventing it from going to the floor of the NI Assembly as an agreed Executive Bill, for debate: www.ier.org.uk/news/pcs-cal...

UK trade union membership rises to 6.6m - an increase of 192,000 in 2025. Although a far cry from 1979, when membership peaked at 13.2m, this modest increase will be seen as a sign of renewed interest in trade unions in difficult economic times. www.ier.org.uk/news/uk-trad...

The Zero Hours Provisions of the Employment Rights Act: Diversionary Tactics? The provisions do not - and do not even purport to - guarantee workers a reasonable working schedule argues Zoe Adams of King's College, Cambridge: www.ier.org.uk/comments/the...

Unfair dismissal claims face five-year delay as tribunal backlog grows: Unprecedented employment tribunal service delays in England and Wales mean people bringing unfair dismissal claims are waiting up to five years for their case to be heard: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Back in Brighton exhibiting with PCS and already having some brilliant conversations with delegates about employment rights. Come and say hello, have a chat, and pick up our latest work.

🚨 Breaking: 76 civil society orgs have written to the UK Gov calling for economic, social & cultural rights to be recognised. 50 years ago today, the UK ratified #ICESCR50 and promised rights including housing, food & health. That promise remains unfulfilled. Read 👇 justfair.org.uk/wp-content/u...

50 years on from the UK committing to economic, social & cultural rights, too many people still don't get the basics. We are proud to back #ICESCR50. A safe home, enough to eat, decent work, and healthcare should be guaranteed in law and policy. unsn.uk/4dqqS6U

We can overcome obstacles’ – PCS General Secretary Fran Heathcote Fran Heathcote addresses opening of @pcsunion.bsky.social conference with reasons for optimism despite the issues facing our members and the country: www.ier.org.uk/news/we-can-...

‘Employment Tribunals in crisis: the blind spot in the New Deal for Working People’, by the Work Rights Centre finds that there are over 65k open cases awaiting resolution, the highest backlog since records began & a staggering 43% increase in just 12 months: www.workrightscentre.org/publications...

One in seven UK workers have experienced a ‘clear violation’ of their basic employment rights. “Widespread & pervasive rights violations” have harmed workers across all employment sectors, a UCL report commissioned by the Fair Work Agency, has stated: www.ier.org.uk/news/one-in-...

📖 @ieruk.bsky.social has published Labour Law Highlights 2025 & 2026. The booklet is an overview of some the most important developments in case law over the last two years. ✍ Members of OSC were involved in writing and editing the booklet. 🔗 Read the full article here: shorturl.at/ROzIp

Labour Law Highlights 2025-26 is now out. The IER’s regular team of barristers from @oldsquarechambers.bsky.social guides readers through recent key court decisions. This bumper edition, edited by Nicola Newbegin and Madeline Stanley charts a dynamic two years: www.ier.org.uk/product/labo...

Ban on justice worker strikes contributing to ‘dangerous erosion’ of workplace conditions, unions warn. Ban has directly contributed to a deterioration in prison officer pay, conditions, morale, and retention say the POA & GMB: www.ier.org.uk/news/ban-on-...

Towards a 2nd Employment Rights Bill. POA general secretary Steve Gillan argues that while Labour’s 2025 Act was a step forward, a second wave of legislation is vital to restore the fundamental right to strike & end the exploitation of prison officers: www.morningstaronline.co.uk/article/towa...

On the website: RCA cleaners fired after protesting sexual harassment and workplace abuse. Two cleaners at the Royal College of Art have been dismissed after protesting over alleged workplace abuse and sexual harassment: www.ier.org.uk/news/rca-cle...

Great to have been at @equityuk.bsky.social annual conference up in Durham over the last three days. Lively policy debates, key speakers from around the movement & lots of interest in employment rights & our publications. Redhills & the Pitmans Parliament are magnificent too.

Important motion passed at Equity annual conference this weekend in Durham, asking the govt to consult on how the rights on e.g. bereavement leave, maternity pay & discrimination contained in the Employment Rights Act 2025 could apply in the creative industries for freelancers.

POA office renamed in tribute to former deputy general secretary Joe Simpson. The Prison Officers' Association has renamed its northern regional office in Leeds as Joe Simpson House: www.ier.org.uk/news/poa-off...

170 Heathrow catering workers left without jobs after contract dispute. Around 70 per cent of the workforce are women. Many have over 30 years of service: www.ier.org.uk/news/170-hea...

‘I hope you all get Hebdo’d’: @nujofficial.bsky.social calls for government and social media companies to act on increasing abuse against journalists. Shocking accounts of abuse and serious online threats: www.ier.org.uk/news/i-hope-...

Happy International Workers’ Day - or May Day. May Day is a chance for the labour movement across the world to celebrate the core values that trade unionists stand for: www.ier.org.uk/news/interna... #MayDay2026

Collective Rights & the Employment Rights Act 2025: Continuity and Change in the British Labour Constitution - an important article by Prof Ruth Dukes, asking whether the Act lives up to the policy commitments made by the Labour government. Read it here: www.ier.org.uk/news/collect...

The end of the gig economy? The case of Spanish riders. What made food delivery platform Uber Eats Spain change their business model & take on full responsibilities as employers under Spanish labour law? New blog by Dr Antonio Garcia-Munoz, Glasgow Univ: www.ier.org.uk/comments/the...

The Orgreave Inquiry Call for Evidence is now live. Those directly impacted by the events in Orgreave on the 18th June 1984 and any other interested organisations and individuals who have information relevant to the Inquiry can respond until 22nd May 2026: www.ier.org.uk/news/the-org...

#IWMD26 | Fighting psychosocial hazards at work - the theme of this year’s International Workers Memorial Day. Download the @ituc guide here: 28april.org?p=7645

Today is Workers Memorial Day #IWMD. Around the world, the union movement unites to remember workers who lost their lives because of their job. Visit the Memorial Wall to leave a tribute or read others here: www.tuc.org.uk/workers-memo...

Thank you to all who stopped by our stall and attended our fringe event at this year's #STUC26 in Dundee! For more info on our research and publications visit our website: www.ier.org.uk

Unions, blacklisted workers and parliamentarians have sent an open letter to Sir John Mitting, chair of the undercover policing inquiry, calling for a more thorough investigation into the role of the police in blacklisting. www.ier.org.uk/news/unions-...

Millions of workers are still denied rights Parliament intended employees to have. In a new IER briefing, Lord John Hendy KC proposes a Single Employment Status to extend protections and prevent a race to the bottom - a must read for trade unionists. ier.org.uk/publications...

At #STUC26? Don’t miss the Scottish Morning Star fringe meeting this lunchtime - ‘Wages, Welfare & Workers Rights’ with Lillian Macer, Susan Fitzgerald, Ben Chacko, James Harrison & Brian Leishman - at Malmaison, 44 Whitehall Cres. 12.40 start. Buffet provided by Unite Scotland.

Thanks to everyone who came to a packed fringe event at #STUC26 yesterday. Hugely important & wide-ranging discussion on the right to strike, worker status, bogus self-employment & trade union access. Visit our website for more info on all these issues: www.ier.org.uk

Reminder: if you’re at #STUC26 in Dundee today, please do come along to our fringe meeting at lunchtime today. Jointly with the Trade Union Coordinating Group, we are examining the gaps in the Employment Rights Act & asking what needs to come next. 12.30 - Dundee Quaker Meeting House DD1 4AR.

Tomorrow at 12.30: Our joint #STUC26 fringe with the Trade Union Co-ordinating Group (TUCG) Finishing the job - the case for an Employment Rights Act #2. With Steve Gillan (POA), Sarah Woolley, (BFAWU), Eddie Dempsey (RMT), Fran Heathcote (PCS), Maria Chondrogianni (UCU) & Prof Ruth Dukes.

The Campaign's Joint Asst Secretaries making the case that however much the recent Employment Rights Act gives rights to workers what is needed is a second Bill that will give rights to unions. labourhub.org.uk/2026/04/07/f... @ieruk.bsky.social @pcsunion.bsky.social @nasuwt-official.bsky.social

Important @ieruk.bsky.social briefing by Prof. Ruth Dukes and Prof. David Whyte setting out key recommendations on what is needed for the Fair Work Agency to ensure workers rights are protected in practice and not just on paper: www.ier.org.uk/publications...

Professor Ruth Dukes @uofglaw.bsky.social has contributed to a joint @ieruk.bsky.social briefing that warns the Government's new Fair Work Agency risks being a ‘toothless watchdog’ unless urgent changes are made. More: www.gla.ac.uk/news/headlin...

Briefing: Single Employment Status. Employment status & the categorisation of workers isn’t merely of academic interest - it’s the difference between having full employment rights or not for millions of workers. Read our new briefing by Lord John Hendy KC here. www.ier.org.uk/publications...

Our Briefing on the Government’s new ‘Fair Work Agency’ authored by Prof David Whyte & Prof Ruth Dukes, warns that the new agency risks becoming a ‘toothless watchdog’ unless urgent changes are made. Read it here, ahead of the launch of the FWA tomorrow: www.ier.org.uk/publications...

Fair Work Agency’s priorities criticised days before its launch. Cornerstone of the UK’s Employment Rights Act ‘in danger of becoming a dead duck’, says @unitetheunion.bsky.social General Secretary. Look out for our detailed Briefing on the FWA tomorrow. www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Thanks to everyone who came & contributed to our joint @neunion.bsky.social fringe meeting in Brighton yesterday, led by Prof Alan Bogg. It was a great discussion, getting into the detail of the Govt’s Employment Rights Act & what it is going to mean for workplace organising in the UK. #NEU2026

Reminder, if you’re at #NEU2026 - this is at 5.45pm today: Using our rights: what the Employment Rights Act means for workplace organising - with Prof Alan Bogg. Sign up here 👉 bit.ly/3NH76eA Organised by the Institute of Employment Rights & @neunion.bsky.social

If you’re at @neunion.bsky.social conference in Brighton, make sure you pop over to the IER stall on a break, at lunchtime or at the end of a session. As usual, we have a range of publications, briefings & materials discussing employment law related issues & labour law updates. #NEU2026

At #NEU2026? Join Alan Bogg, IER Vice President & Professor of Labour Law at Bristol University, on the most important new law affecting trade unions for decades & what this means for workplace power. Date: Wed 1st April | Time: 5.45pm - 6.45pm Register here 👉 forms.office.com/pages/respon...

UK Government is in breach of Prison Officers’ rights says European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR). Although the ECSR recommendations are non-binding conclusions regarding Charter compliance, they still carry significant weight. Via the @POAUnion: www.ier.org.uk/news/uk-gove...

Hundreds of employers handed penalties for illegally underpaying workers. 389 employers from across the UK named for failing to pay workers the minimum wage to tens of thousands of workers: www.ier.org.uk/uncategorise...

For a new Employment Rights Bill: experts and union leaders demand better. The Morning Star reports from a Campaign for Trade Union Freedom - @strikemap.org rally at the weekend which called for a more radical sequel to the Employment Rights Act 2025: www.morningstaronline.co.uk/article/new-...

This Saturday! Stand up for workers’ rights & build the campaign for an Employment Rights Bill 2. National Education Union HQ on March 21 at 11:00am. Sponsored by @thompsons.law. This campaign is organised by CTUF & @strikemap.org. Sign up here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/campaignin...

🚩RMT protest outside Transport for the North board meeting at the treatment of outsourced workers this morning. Northern trains currently outsources station staff, cleaners and security guards to companies like Carlisle & ISS www.ier.org.uk/news/rmt-pro...