Meeting of the Parliament 12 March 2019
People should be treated fairly in the workplace. Our laws recognise that, in taking up a job, employees have certain rights that are inalienable and which cannot be waived or simply signed away in an agreement that has been brought about by unfair or unequal bargaining positions.
We have long recognised the need to enforce employment rights, and they have often reflected some of the most fundamental rights that individuals have in our society. In the past, those battles were often fought about indentured servitude, conditions in the factories, equal pay and disability discrimination. For some, the question was about the most basic right of all: the right to come home safely from work at the end of the day. Across many areas, there are still examples of bad practice to be found. There is still progress to be made.
As the labour market and working practices have changed, there are new challenges for building fairness in the workplace. We must translate the principles behind our employment rights into circumstances that are quite different from the circumstances when those principles were first envisaged.
Members will be aware that the UK Government has been looking into that area and that, at the end of last year, it published the similarly named “Good Work Plan”. I hope that ministers in the Scottish Parliament will have had discussions with the UK Government on the potential for co-operation. As the Scottish Government’s action plan acknowledges, “collaboration, engagement ... and ... influence” will be key to furthering its objectives. It is also important to build solid links with business and for the Scottish Government to use its influence to persuade employers of the benefits that fair working conditions provide.
As we recently marked international women’s day, it is worth reflecting on issues that persist in relation to gender in the workplace. Across the UK, the gender pay gap is at its lowest level in decades. However, despite achievements, the present position is simply and straightforwardly not good enough. It is important for Governments at all levels to continue to encourage employers to look at pay differentials and take action against gender-based disadvantage.
However, we still see occupational segregation in too many occupations, including highly paid science, technology, engineering and mathematics jobs. Unfortunately, gender segregation in employment begins at an early age. We see stark contrasts in subject choices that continue through education. In colleges, apprenticeships and universities, and even in new schemes such as foundation apprenticeships, the old gendered subject choices have been allowed to filter through.
Another area that we must tackle is barriers to returning to work following a pregnancy. As the fair work action plan recognises, the Scottish Government has introduced its women returners programme. On that programme, as with others, evidence and data gathering will be vital. We should be able to say clearly what impact Government interventions are having on the labour market and to see as clearly as possible where those interventions are working.
In publishing the “Fair Work Action Plan”, the Scottish Government acknowledged that it will form part of a suite of labour market action plans that include the disability employment delivery plan, the gender pay gap action plan and the future skills action plan. I have spoken a little about the gender pay gap, but it is worth considering the other areas, too.
As our economy changes more rapidly, a proper focus on reskilling and lifelong learning will be essential. For some years, there has been good progress across the UK on employment for people with disabilities, but our ambition should be nothing short of transformative. For far too long, far too many people with disabilities have found themselves excluded from the labour market and from fulfilling their ambitions.
There is certainly a large body of strategic direction, but we must be sure that we can judge its effectiveness. The fair work action plan suggests that a set of indicators will be crafted and that annual reports on progress will be provided from March 2020. That is all positive, but the indicators must be carefully crafted, thorough and useful to determine the success or failure of individual interventions.