UNIONS and equality campaigners have urged Labour to reject the “witch hunt” against flexible working as the government prepares to publish its Employment Rights Bill.
The TUC, Age UK, Fawcett Society and Pregnant Then Screwed issued a joint statement warning that there have been escalating attacks against employees being able to work more flexibly.
It said: “It’s time to stop the witch-hunt against flexible working.
“In recent weeks, we have seen relentless scaremongering about how new legislation on flexible working will harm UK businesses and productivity.
“These warnings couldn’t be further from the truth.
“Flexible working can bring more people back into the labour market and keep them there.”
The Bill will cover issues including zero-hours contracts, hire and rehire, and rights to flexible working.
Last month, Amazon announced it was ordering its staff back to the office five days a week as ministers linked flexibility to better performance and a more productive, loyal workforce.
Goldman Sachs chief executive David Solomon famously described working from home as an “aberration.”
Other US banks JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley, and Elon Musk’s Tesla have also backed workers returning to the office.
TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said: “Improving access to flexible working will benefit workers and businesses, whether it’s through increasing staff productivity or higher retention, and the same is true of improving workers’ rights across the piece.
“When people feel secure and respected at work, they have happier, healthier lives and perform better in their jobs.”
Fawcett Society chief executive Jemima Olchawski said: “We have to ask who benefits from parroting the fallacy that flexible working and flexible workers are bad for business — it’s just nonsense.
“What really holds growth back is rigid, outdated work practices that exclude women, older workers, and those managing health conditions.”
Victoria Benson, chief executive of single-parent families charity Gingerbread, said: “Too many single parents are locked out of the workforce or stuck in jobs beneath their skill level because of old-fashioned, inflexible working patterns.
“We need to see single parents supported to thrive at work — not just because it’s good for them and their children but because it’s good for employers and our economy too.”
