WORKING hours should be slashed to improve safety standards and give workers time with their families, Richard Leonard said yesterday.

Speaking at the Morning Star’s An Industrial Strategy for People conference in Glasgow, the Scottish Labour leader said it was “absolutely right” to explore a “managed reduction in working time” for workers across Scotland amid the march to automation.

“The trade unions were not simply established to fight for a rise in the weekly wage — they were often established to fight for the eight-hour day,” he said.