Billionaire Backlash: John Caudwell Lobbies Labour to Scrap Landmark Workers’ Rights Protections

November 9, 2025March 7, 2026 admin Legislation

Phones 4U founder, worth £1.5bn, claims basic job security and sick pay would make Britain "less investable," exposing a stark divide between corporate interests and employee wellbeing.

In a move that has ignited fury among labour advocates, billionaire Tory-turned-Labour backer John Caudwell is publicly pressuring Sir Keir Starmer to abandon the party's flagship Employment Rights Bill. The Phones 4U founder, whose fortune is estimated at £1.5bn, has voiced alarm that granting fundamental protections to employees would make the UK “less investable.”

Unelected Lords Side with Bosses in Battle Over Workers’ Rights

November 2, 2025January 16, 2026 admin Legislation

In a stark display of where their loyalties lie, the House of Lords has launched an offensive against core pillars of the government's proposed Employment Rights Bill. Their opposition targets fundamental reforms designed to tip the scales back towards working people, including a ban on exploitative zero-hours contracts, fairer rules for industrial action, and protecting the right for unions to have a political voice.

The bill is now set for a tense "ping pong" between the Commons and the Lords, a political tug-of-war that will determine whether the promise of a fairer workplace becomes reality or is watered down into meaninglessness.

Holland & Barrett Named and Shamed for National Minimum Wage Underpayments

November 1, 2025November 22, 2025 admin Bad Companies

Holland & Barrett is one of the latest major high street retailers to be named by the UK government for failing to pay its staff the National Minimum Wage. The company was listed among nearly 500 employers who have been fined a total of over £10 million for similar breaches.

The list, published by the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), revealed that Holland & Barrett underpaid more than 2,551 workers a total of over £153,000. They were 9th in the list of worst offenders. The government's crackdown has ensured that 42,000 workers nationwide were repaid more than £6 million.

Employment Rights Bill: Commons Rejects Lords Amendments in Workers’ Rights Battle

September 21, 2025January 27, 2026 admin Legislation, Reforms

Earlier this week, the Employment Rights Bill returned to the House of Commons for MPs to review Lords amendments, in the stage known as parliamentary “ping-pong.”

Peers had previously introduced a series of non-government amendments that sought to weaken the Bill, removing core reforms such as the ban on exploitative zero-hours contracts and restrictions on the controversial practice of fire and rehire. If successful, these changes would also have undermined new protections around unfair dismissal.

Boss Fails Dismissal for Casual Online Shopping

September 20, 2025November 2, 2025 admin Unfair Dismissal

An administrator has had an unfair dismissal claim upheld after being dismissed for using work devices for online shopping during working hours. The case raises important questions about workers’ rights, proper disciplinary processes and employer surveillance.