House of Commons · Westminster Hall
19 November 2020 · 8 other contributors · 14,180 words
Opened by Kirsten Oswald SNP East Renfrewshire
Responding minister: Not recorded
Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.
Kirsten Oswald raised concerns about the future of work in Westminster Hall. Response awaited from government.
Key points
Key requests to Government
Ms Oswald calls on the Government to redirect funding towards skills development promoting social mobility and to support changes such as a universal basic income to recognise and support individuals during transitions between jobs, firms, or sectors. She also asks for a commitment from the Minister regarding backing her colleague's Employment Bill, which aims to protect workers' rights.
MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said.
Opened the debate
Ms Oswald is concerned about the impact of technological change and structural inequality on the quality of jobs and access to them. She highlights issues such as remote working disparities, mass unemployment affecting disadvantaged groups, and the need for conscious mitigation measures against economic impacts exacerbated by the pandemic. The MP also points out that previous Conservative Governments have left deep-rooted deprivation in many areas of the UK.
He discussed the impact of automation on jobs, noting that while past technological advancements created new jobs, this time it is different as cognitive tasks are being taken over by machines. He highlighted the importance of care and creativity in human work and suggested a shift towards these roles. Kruger also praised the Government's Kickstart programme but called for more employer engagement to reduce dropout rates.
Grahame Morris argued that there is no inevitability about the future of work and highlighted the importance of not offshoring highly-skilled engineering jobs, such as those at Rolls-Royce in Derby. Mr Morris expressed concern about the job cuts at Rolls-Royce's Barnoldswick factory, highlighting the impact of 350 highly skilled jobs being moved offshore to Singapore. He criticized the Government for not intervening and preventing such actions, despite Rolls-Royce receiving £50 million in taxpayer support. Mr Morris also pointed out that workers are on strike until Christmas Eve, and he urged the Government to refuse to extend the deadline for Rolls-Royce's new component project, thereby forcing negotiations without job cuts. Will the Minister give way?
Jim Shannon expressed concern over the job crisis for those with limited qualifications, long-term unemployment among young people, and the rise in unemployment claims due to covid-19. He noted that up to 1 million furloughed workers may lose their jobs permanently, affecting around 380,000 without a level-2 qualification and another 250,000 without a level-3 qualification. Indications are that about 1 million people will lose their jobs after covid comes to its end, with those generally being people with low educational achievement—about 400,000 of them have two GCSEs or equivalent and another portion do not even have a level 3 education. He asks if the Minister can look at these individuals who need extra help.
Mr Cruddas emphasised the need for caution regarding narratives about technological disruption in employment, highlighting that technology is not an inevitable destiny and human decisions will determine the future of work. He questioned the reliability of data suggesting large-scale job displacement due to automation and noted significant increases in atypical work patterns like gig economy jobs before the pandemic.
Mr MacAskill highlighted the challenges and opportunities presented by changes in the job market. He discussed past industrial jobs, noting that while they were difficult, dangerous, and dirty, some changes brought about by automation have been beneficial. Post-covid, he emphasized the need to address unemployment vigorously due to its societal impact. He advocated for upskilling people, delivering a green new deal, and ensuring access for all, especially disabled and young individuals. Mr MacAskill also stressed the importance of tightening employment legislation to protect workers' rights and addressing issues related to the gig economy and workplace exploitation.
Discussed the impact of insecure jobs and potential job losses in York, highlighting the need for sectoral councils to bring together employers, workers, trade unions, academics, and industrial leaders. Emphasised the importance of education in shaping local economies, mentioned underemployment in retail, tourism, and hospitality sectors. Called for more resilience and collective support in business models moving forward. Will the Minister specifically look at the BioYorkshire project, which has been driven by the University of York and others to kickstart York's economy in light of the crisis, and look to bring it forward?
The hon. Member for Feltham and Heston discussed the need to embrace technological changes while avoiding past mistakes that led to social division. She highlighted job losses during the pandemic, noting over 1 million jobs were lost with unemployment forecasted to remain high. Malhotra emphasised the importance of fair work, a resilient social security system, and urgent assessment of financial barriers to self-isolation. She called for reconsideration of benefit sanctions and implementation of co-operative strategies in recovery efforts.
Asked speakers to consider an informal time limit of seven minutes for the debate.