Council backing for union campaign

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is seeking backing for its Great Jobs Agenda and has approached South Tyneside Council for backing.

South Tyneside Council’s Human Resources Committee have agreed to commission a detailed report on the scheme before agreeing to support it.

According to a report prepared for councillors, 10 per cent of workers ‘are in insecure jobs where their basic rights are denied or are ignored’.

The TUC is seeking to combat this by proposing banning zero hours’ contracts and promoting apprenticeships.

Committee chair, Coun Joan Atkinson, said: “Like any campaign or movement or approach to improving conditions in any setting, it’s about how that’s done.

“You can’t do it in one fell swoop, but we can all understand this document and how it applies to our own department.”

James Harrison

James Harrison , Local Democracy Reporting Service