A Breakthrough In Protection For Zero Hours Workers In The UK

In the UK we have seen a steady rise in the use of zero hours contracts, a development which has generated political controversy. Under a zero hours contract, the employer does not guarantee to provide the worker with any work and pays the worker only for work actually carried out. The worker is expected to be available for work if and when called on by the employer.

Zero hours contracts are used in many industries, but particularly in the retail sector. Proponents of these types of contracts point to their flexibility, noting that they are particularly useful in the case of employers whose needs for workers fluctuate from time to time.

The most up-to-date Office for National Statistics report on zero hours contracts, published in September 2015, stated that, between April and June 2015, around 744,000 people in the UK, or 2.4 percent of the country's workforce, were employed under zero hours contracts for their main employment.