Encouraging the employer to think long-term

With the winding-down of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) — and in some cases even before this stage was reached — many employers have responded to the crisis by cutting jobs and terms and conditions and turning to more insecure employment models, shifting the burden of economic unpredictability onto workers. For the first time, over a million workers now have zero hours contracts, according to the Office for National Statistics. Recognised unions can encourage employers to avoid short-term thinking, which is likely to cause long-term organisational harm, including:

• inability to provide high quality services;

• loss of investment in training leading to lost expertise and organisational knowhow;

• reduced ability to innovate and to respond flexibly;

• higher turnover, leading to increased recruitment and training costs;

• loss of confidence in workplace safety and security;

• higher sickness absence, resulting from the anxiety of insecure employment or overwork;

• long-term reputational harm leading to impaired recruitment and retention of high-quality staff;

• lower job satisfaction leading to lower productivity;

• increased need for electronic monitoring due to decline in trust;

• increased risk of accidents;

• reduction in the continuity and quality of services provided; and

• fewer workers daring to speak out about poor practice (such as lax safety practices or the condoning of harassment).