In the annual budget set by Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA), MPs are to receive an above-inflation pay increase of 2.7% while MPs staffing budgets rise by 1.5% - below the level of inflation. This equates to a real-terms cut in staffing budgets and a below inflation pay rise for staff if their employer chooses to pass this on in wages. IPSA have justified the 2.7% pay-rise for MPs by stating that it is based on the average increase in public sector earnings published by the Office of National Statistics (ONS). In contrast, the increase for MPs’ staffing budgets falls significantly below the public sector average. Not only this, it also fails to keep pace with the rising cost of living. By its own admission, IPSA sees any potential for a real-terms increase in the pay of MPs staff as counter to “value for money to the tax payer”. It is clear that the IPSA view staff as little more than additional office costs, rather than workers who have to live on the wage paid to them through the staffing budgets afforded to their employers. It’s also clear that little to no consideration has been given to the challenging nature of our role and the ever-increasing complexity and volume of the work we are faced with. Aside from the lower levels of pay afforded to MPs staff, it’s well known that we are offered limited options for career progression within their chosen role and until recently have had extremely low levels of employment protections within our workplace. This is against the backdrop of the bullying and sexual harassment that has been widely reported recently and evidenced in the Dame Laura Cox inquiry. Staff of MPs deserve better. We deserve to be paid properly for the work that we do and the vital role we play in the day-to-day workings of our employers and the lives of the constituents they were elected to serve. We are extremely disappointed at the apathy displayed by IPSA towards MPs staff, and the dismissive attitude it has taken toward our repeated calls for fair pay.

We are the workers from Honda Swindon. We urgently need your support. Honda has said that in 2021 it will close the plant in which we work. 3500 direct jobs and possibly 12,000 jobs or more across the country will be lost as a result. The fallout will be felt in jobs and communities across the south west and the UK. But we believe that this economic and social catastrophe can be averted. Our workforce at Honda are skilled, dedicated and efficient and together with the supply chain we are dedicated to making this company succeed. Yes, these are challenging times for this industry but with vision and commitment, the UK can be the world leader in the new technology car manufacturing needs to thrive. Honda is well positioned to benefit. So we are urging Honda to think again. Honda, do not turn your back on a world-class, loyal workforce determined to bring you continued success. We have dedicated our working lives to Honda Swindon. Through our hard work this company has thrived - all we ask now is the chance to make our case for the future we deserve. Please help us fight for - and win - a brighter future.

Only 6% of Britain's airline pilots are women. And almost every UK airline offers the absolute statutory minimum maternity pay provision. This is despite the fact that pilots have to repay their training loans – amounting to over £100,000 in many cases – even when on maternity leave. That means that women pilots on maternity leave lose up to 90% of their earnings and end up spending more money on their training loan repayments than they bring in in maternity pay – let alone anything left over for living costs. We need to make the piloting job more family friendly and attractive to women if we want to increase the number of women applying to become pilots. Many of the hardships associated with an 80-90% reduction in pay are obvious, particularly those which coincide with the extra expenditure involved in preparing for a new baby. Many women pilots are the highest earners within their families – the traditional ‘breadwinner’ role. Some are single parent families. Increasingly, women pilots are also servicing debt from the costs of higher education and flight training, along with saving for the costs of buying a first house. Women pilots have told us : “The current maternity package does not encourage women into aviation and in my case is stopping me from having the freedom to start a family when I am ready.” “The statutory maternity provision is less than half my loan repayment.” “Ultimately we found ourselves debating whether it would be better to keep the baby and move out of the home we have just settled in to, or have an abortion and spend a few years figuring out a financial plan”

Japhet Moyo, General Secretary of Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) has been arrested. The trade union leader’s arrest follows the violent repression of protests, which saw police open live-round fire on civilians, resulting in the death of 12 people and the reported imprisonment of over 200. After opening fire on its own people, the police are now targeting trade unionists with arrests, intimidation and violence. The world is watching, and President Emmerson Mnangagwa needs to take immediate steps to restore a climate free of violence and fear. The protests – centred on a three day ‘stay away’ from work called by the ZCTU - were a response to massive price hikes for essential goods and services after the government unilaterally imposed a 150% increase in the cost of fuel. Read the ITUC’s letter to President Mnangagwa: www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/20190121_ituc_protest_letter_following_arrest_zctu_gs_en.pdf

The Major Motion Picture Agreement (MMPA) between PACT and BECTU came into effect in April 2018. This agreement holds many benefits for our members, however since its implementation, many junior grades are now finding themselves significantly financially worse off as a result. Previously the trainees, assistants and runners were paid a customary £35 (non-camera) and £50 (camera) for their overtime. Under the new agreement, these thresholds have been stripped back reducing annual income for many. The long-term consequences threaten a reduction in the diversity of the industry, and a loss of skilled people coming into the industry. Talks between BECTU and PACT will reopen later this month and we hope to reinstate the overtime floor. For clarity: anything we negotiate on behalf of our junior grade members will not be to the detriment of the wider membership. By signing this petition, you are supporting BECTU by demonstrating to PACT that this is a widely felt issue. Please sign and share with your colleagues of all departments and grades For more information on the issue read the news story https://www.bectu.org.uk/news/2875 For the full Major Motion Picture Agreement visit https://www.bectu.org.uk/advice-resources/agreements/pact-major-motion-picture

Every worker should have the right to a contract that guarantees the hours they work and the conditions they need for a decent working life. Too often zero-hours contracts are being used to exploit workers. Hours are never guaranteed, making financial planning impossible and anxiety inevitable. Workers' on zero-hours contracts are denied sick and holiday pay. If something goes wrong, there is no safety net. And there needs to be action to reduce other forms of insecure work that makes workers' lives a misery. And zero-hours contracts are only one part of the problem of insecure work in the UK. From bogus self-employment to underpaying agency workers, TUC research shows that 1 in 9 workers – at least 3.8 million – are now trapped in some form of insecure work. If ministers are serious about building a country that works for everyone, they must act now to ensure every worker gets fair pay, decent rights and a voice at work.

Quality journalism is at the heart of a healthy democracy. It helps to keep people informed, combat fake news and holds those in power to account. Yet the local media industry is in crisis. Newsquest is the second largest owner of regional and local newspapers in the UK and the company dominates the media industry in Cumbria. Newsquest bought a series of newspaper titles in Cumbria earlier this year and since then the effect on local newsrooms has been detrimental and dramatic. The company has driven away experienced local journalists, whose professionalism, ethics and local standing has benefited the company - and the local community - enormously. Collectively, their departure represents a catastrophic loss of experience and knowledge. NUJ members working for the Carlisle News and Star, the Cumberland News, the Workington Times and Star and the Whitehaven News newspapers took strike action on Thursday 20 December and need your support in their continuing campaign. Please support the staff at Newsquest's Cumbrian papers and send a message to Managing Director Johnathan Lee.

Ministers across the government are fighting for their public sector workers. It’s time for the civil service to have its own champion. The Government has officially lifted the public sector 1% pay cap, yet FDA members have been left barely better off. In other areas, we have seen action and results. Ministers have fought for better departmental staff pay rises, and won. However, civil servants have been left behind with employers adopting civil service pay remit guidelines and awarding below-inflation 1.5% raises. Cabinet Secretary Mark Sedwill has described the civil service as “brilliant.” But what is this brilliance worth? Recent discoveries show that the SCS’s pay gap is widening. When can these employees expect fair and equal reward? Join our call, and ask David Lidington to speak up for hardworking civil servants.

Premium pay rates offer a small compensation for employees spending Christmas Eve, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day at work. Two years ago staff at TGI Friday’s restaurants across the U.K. were forced into signing contracts that took away their right to be paid time-and-a-half for working over the Christmas and New Year period. While many people spend this time at home with family and friends, workers at restaurants like TGI Friday's have to work. Workers were told there was no option but to sign the updated contract and that they would not be allowed to work again until they had. Some reported being told to sign the new contract halfway through a busy shift without being informed what it was they were signing away. TGI Friday's workers are often made to survive on minimum wage. Compensation for the time spent away from our family and friends over the festive season is the least a big profitable company like TGI Friday's can do.