LabourList has seen a letter addressed to MPs from Usdaw general secretary Joanne Thomas raising concerns about the implementation of Guaranteed Hours Contracts and urging them to intervene with ministers.
In the letter Thomas outlines the union’s position on the government’s proposals linked to Labour’s “Make Work Pay” agenda, warning that elements under consideration could undermine commitments made in the party’s 2024 general election manifesto.
She writes in her capacity as head of the retail and distribution workers’ union, highlighting the prevalence of short-hours contracts among its membership and the impact on workers’ financial security. The letter states that many workers regularly work beyond their contracted hours, but without guarantees those additional hours will continue.
Thomas writes that these contracts “are as exploitative as zero-hours contracts and leave workers exposed to income insecurity week to week,” adding that they disproportionately affect “young workers, women, and workers from minority communities.”
The correspondence references Labour’s manifesto pledge to end “one-sided flexibility” and to ensure workers have contracts reflecting the hours they typically work, based on a twelve-week reference period.
In her letter Thomas raises concerns about proposals within the Employment Rights Bill, published in October 2024, particularly the potential introduction of an hours threshold for eligibility. She argues that setting a threshold below full-time hours could exclude significant numbers of workers and risk undermining the policy’s intent.
She states that the issue has been raised repeatedly with MPs and ministers, including directly with the Prime Minister who she wrote to about this issue recently. The union leader also specifies voices within the Treasury looking to water down commitments in favour of business pressure. Thomas describes this issue as central to whether the government’s commitments are delivered in practice.
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The letter also indicates that Usdaw may take further steps depending on the outcome of the consultation process.
Thomas writes: “This is a key political priority for our union. If the outcome of the consultation breaks the commitment made in Labour’s 2024 manifesto, Usdaw will write to you again to ask that you oppose the delegated legislation on the grounds that it will make working people worse off.”
She further notes that the union would consider “all available options to challenge it, including legal action” if the final policy has a disproportionate negative impact on marginalised groups.
Thomas calls on MPs to raise this directly with the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer to raise the union’s concerns.
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Full letter text of USDAW letter:
Dear Member of Parliament
Guaranteed Hours Contracts
I am writing to you in my capacity as General Secretary of Usdaw, the Union for retail and distribution workers.
Many of our members are employed on short-hours contracts, routinely working significantly more hours than they are contracted. Those additional hours can be removed at the discretion of the employer, leaving workers without stability or security. These contracts are as exploitative as zero-hours contracts and leave workers exposed to income insecurity week to week. They disproportionately affect young workers, women, and workers from minority communities.
That is why Usdaw welcomed Labour’s Plan to Make Work Pay, set out in the 2024 General Election manifesto, which included a clear and unambiguous commitment to give workers the right to a contract that reflects the hours they actually work:
“Labour will end one-sided flexibility and ensure all jobs provide a baseline level of security and predictability, banning exploitative zero-hours contracts and ensuring everyone has the right to a contract that reflects the number of hours they regularly work, based on a twelve-week reference period.”
Since the publication of the Employment Rights Bill in October 2024, we have raised serious and repeated concerns with Members of Parliament and Ministers about proposals to introduce an hours threshold for this new right. If that threshold is set at anything less than full time, it will exclude large numbers of workers and directly undermine the manifesto commitment. It would create unintended consequences that leave many workers worse off than before, with women and workers from minority communities most affected.
I have raised this issue repeatedly with Labour MPs, spoken directly with many of you at parliamentary events, and wrote to the Prime Minister several weeks ago to set out our concerns in full. This is not a technical issue of implementation. It goes to the heart of the Government’s Make Work Pay agenda and whether a central manifesto commitment is honoured in practice.
When I raised this matter directly with the Prime Minister, I felt assured that he understood the importance of this issue. However, I understand that there are voices within Government, including within HM Treasury, pressing for a retreat in the face of business pressure.
I want to be absolutely clear. This is a key political priority for our union. If the outcome of the consultation breaks the commitment made in Labour’s 2024 manifesto, Usdaw will write to you again to ask that you oppose the delegated legislation on the grounds that it will make working people worse off. If the final outcome has a disproportionate and negative impact on marginalised groups, Usdaw will consider all available options to challenge it, including legal action.
I would be grateful if you could write urgently to the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer to raise these concerns.
Yours sincerely
JOANNE THOMAS
General Secretary
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