Young people have been disproportionately affected by zero hours contracts and shifts in the nature of work in recent years, the Resolution Foundation said in a new report.
The Foundation said:
- more than half of people on zero-hours contracts are aged 16-34;
- there should be higher pay for working hours that are not guaranteed;
- job security should be increased by guaranteeing rights to a contract that reflects the hours people have worked;
- efforts to raise the UK’s lacklustre productivity growth should focus on three low-paying sectors in which the proportion of young people has risen significantly – retail, hospitality and social care;
- there should be financial support, such as help with housing costs, for those wanting to move to a better job; and
- funding should be provided for training those looking to progress within an industry, or those switching into more productive sectors.
Stephen Clarke, senior economic analyst at the Resolution Foundation, said: “Dole queues have been replaced by hidden insecurity and stagnant wages.”
It will be years before we can fully understand how deep the labour market scars are from millennials spending long periods in insecure and low paid work. This report argues that simply assuming that these problems will disappear would be a dangerous mistake, therefore we outline what action needs to be taken now.
You can read the Independent’s report here.