Campaigners highlighted the difficulties faces by grafters who cannot rely on regular shifts amid the economic struggle facing Britain
Six million workers are grappling with the cost-of-living crisis while toiling in “insecure” jobs, research reveals today.
Analysts said grafters on zero-hours contracts, the low-paid self-employed, employees getting less than 16 hours a week and people in casual, seasonal, fixed-term and agency roles were worse placed as they battled through the hardship. A Survation study for the Living Wage Foundation found 19% of UK workers are in insecure jobs, while 10% are in insecure jobs that also pay below the Real Living Wage. The figures represent 6.1m and 3.4m people respectively.
Some 59% of all shift workers have received less than a week’s notice of working hours, with 13% being given less than 24 hours’ notice. Critics say it makes life difficult for people to arrange other employment and plan paying bills and – with some even driven to foodbanks.
A quarter of shift workers have had stints cancelled unexpectedly by their boss – with 90% not given their full rate of pay and 22% plunging deeper into debt or turning to credit cards. The Foundation said “workers who are most affected by insecurity are those least well placed to manage its financial burdens”.