Labour MP for Wolverhampton North East, Emma Reynolds, has called on the Government to address the abuse of zero hour contracts.Zero hours contracts leave employees without guaranteed hours, and without a minimum income.

Official figures show the use of zero hours contracts in the UK has increased by 70,000 since 2006, to over 200,000 in 2012, a figure which is thought to underestimate the true number of people employed on these terms. A debate was held in Parliament on Tuesday to expose the rise of zero hours contracts, and to examine what can be done to assist people on such contracts.

Emma Reynolds MP highlighted the problem of zero hour contracts and called for the Government to investigate their use.  During the debate, Emma said:

“The worker is left waiting for a call and is on call, not knowing from one day to the next, or from one week to the next, whether they will get any hours at all…These contracts seem extremely exploitative and make the lives of some of the poorest in society even harder.”

Will the review that the Government are conducting look at exploitative practices by employers? Will the review consider how many of the workers who have had those contracts are low paid, and will it consider banning the contracts?”

Speaking after the debate, Emma said:

“I am extremely concerned about the rising number of people employed on zero hour contracts in Wolverhampton and right across the country.  They are manifestly unfair and often cause real problems for people employed on them.”

“For a small minority of people, zero hour contracts may be beneficial but in the current job climate, the vast majority of people on these contracts have often taken them out of necessity and as a result, are often victims of exploitation.”

July 2013