Big retailers want you to believe that giving workers stable, predictable schedules will destroy jobs. Don't believe a word of it.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) is ramping up its scare campaign against upcoming employment reforms, claiming that guaranteed hours for workers on zero-hours and low-hours contracts could put retail jobs at risk. Their argument? That flexibility will disappear, part-time roles will vanish, and young people, parents, and students will suffer.
It's a lie. And it's one that protects profits, not people.
Let's look at what the reforms actually propose: the right to guaranteed hours for those currently trapped on zero or low-hours contracts, flexible working arrangements, payment for shifts cancelled at the last minute, and a ban on fire-and-rehire practices. These are basic decencies. These are the foundations of a fair workplace. And yet the BRC is fighting tooth and nail to limit protections to contracts of just eight hours a week or fewer, with a reference period of up to a full year — meaning employers could keep workers in limbo for months before offering any stability.
Why? Because true flexibility should never mean that workers bear all the risk. Right now, "flexibility" is a one-way street. Employers can cancel your shift hours before it starts, leaving you with no pay and no recourse. They can keep you on a zero-hours contract for years, never knowing from one week to the next whether you'll earn enough to pay rent. That's not flexibility — that's exploitation.
The BRC claims that 55% of retail roles are part-time, and that workers value flexibility. Of course they do — on their own terms. But a survey that asks whether people want to fit work around their lives misses the point entirely. The question is: who controls that flexibility? Under the current system, it's the employer. They decide when you work, how much you work, and whether you get any notice at all. That's not a choice — it's a power imbalance.
The shop workers' union Usdaw knows the reality. As Joanne Thomas, Usdaw's general secretary, put it: "Retail employment is notoriously dogged by precarious employment practices." She's right. And these reforms are essential to protect decent employers from being undercut by the worst actors who treat workers as disposable.
Paul Nowak of the TUC hit the nail on the head: "Working people need security and predictability to plan their lives, manage their finances and care for their children." That's not a radical demand. It's the bare minimum.
So when big retailers warn that guaranteed hours will put jobs at risk, ask yourself: whose risk are they really worried about? Not the worker struggling to pay bills on a zero-hours contract. Not the parent unable to arrange childcare because next week's schedule doesn't exist yet. They're worried about their own bottom line. They're worried about losing the power to squeeze more out of workers while offering nothing in return.
The truth is simple: stable hours mean stable lives. Stable lives mean healthier, more productive workers. Healthier workers mean stronger communities and a stronger economy. The only thing at risk here is the exploitative business model that treats people as convenient, disposable labour.
The government must stand firm. Deliver these reforms in full. Don't let the retailers' lies win.
Source: The Guardian