Sign our open letter

Tell the Chancellor she must invest in young women's rights at work.

Right now, millions of workers on temporary and zero-hour contracts are facing low pay, unsafe workplaces and discrimination.

Young women are more likely to be trapped in this unfair situation. Illegal practices – such as discrimination and paying less than the legal minimum wage - are rife within insecure work. More than a quarter of young women have put up with sexual harassment because they were worried about not getting the hours they need if they challenged it. This must end now.

The Government is proposing more rights for workers under the Employment Rights Bill – and this is a positive move.

However, without proper funding for them to be enforced, workers’ rights will continue to be violated.

We’re calling on the Chancellor to ensure there is proper funding for the enforcement of workers' rights.

Take action to demand young women’s rights at work are properly enforced and protected.

Every name counts. Add yours now.

Read the full letter.

The Rt Hon Rachel Reeves MP, Chancellor of the Exchequer,
11 Downing Street, City of Westminster, London, SW1

Tuesday 18 March 2025

For the Employment Rights Bill to work for young women and their employers, the Spending Review must increase funding for enforcement of their rights.

Dear Chancellor,

Millions of workers in insecure work are facing low pay and unpredictable earnings, whilst discrimination in these workplaces is rife.
Some groups are particularly exposed to this. Young women are more likely to be in insecure work than young men, because they’re more likely to work in the industries that use it[1]. They’re paid less than young men within insecure work. They’re feeling trapped, unsafe and their mental health is on the floor.

We welcome the Government’s commitment to strengthen workers’ rights with better enforcement via the Fair Work Agency as outlined in the Employment Rights Bill, as well as their sponsorship of the Equality and Human Rights Commission which has an essential role in enforcing new equalities provisions in the Bill. Neither organisation can do this without more resources. The Bill itself provides an opportunity to create a more equal world of work and can’t come soon enough. However, it’s imperative it is accompanied by the resources to properly promote and enforce these new rights.

In Young Women’s Trust’s latest research, the alarming rate at which workers of all genders in insecure work are subjected to illegal workplace practices is clear:

51% had worked more hours than contracted/agreed to
46% had been paid late or inconsistently
44% had worked free trial shift(s)
44% had less than 24 hours notice of shift cancellations – this went up to 61% for less than a week’s notice
42% had been paid cash in hand
35% had been paid less than minimum wage

This shows that even the rights workers currently have are regularly being flouted.

The enforcement system is under-resourced and hard to navigate. This leaves workers powerless to tackle unfair, unsafe and illegal behaviour. Young women are particularly affected by this, with evidence showing they’re less likely to challenge their employer or report discrimination.

This situation is allowing rogue employers to undercut those who want to do the right thing. This is not only bad for workers, it’s bad for businesses: those who comply with the law are being penalised by lack of adequate enforcement.

With the much needed new rights coming in, enforcement bodies need the funding and powers to ensure they happen in reality.

We are asking you to include robust funding plans for the Fair Work Agency and the Equality and Human Rights Commission as part of your spending review on 11th June 2025. These bodies need significant resources if they are to stop bad employers exploiting young workers and breaching the law.

Your commitment to closing the gender pay gap is achievable and the Employment Rights Bill includes important steps towards this. But for the Bill to have its desired effect, it must be underpinned by a properly funded enforcement system. The Spending Review in June is the key opportunity to address this..

^{[1]According to Young Women’s Trust report, 24% of young women are working in hospitality compared to 12% of young men and 13% in health and social care compared to 8% of young men.}

Signed by:

Young Women’s Trust, Claire Reindorp, CEO
Fawcett Society, Martha Hannan, CEO (interim)
Trade Union Congress, Paul Nowak (General Secretary)
Women’s Budget Group, Dr Mary-Ann Stephenson (Director)
Work Foundation at Lancaster University, Ben Harrison (Director)
UNISON, Christina McAnea, General Secretary
Helen Pankhurst CBE
Joeli Brearley MBE
Gingerbread, Sarah Lambert (Head of Policy and Campaigns)
Equality Trust, Jo Wittams and Priya Sahni-Nicholas (Co-EDs)
Pregnant Then Screwed, Faeeza Vaid MBE (Deputy CEO)
Storia World, Elizabeth Uviebinené (Founder & CEO)
Working Families, Jane Van Zyl (CEO)
Usdaw, Paddy Lillis, General Secretary
NEU, Daniel Kebede, General Secretary
National Union of Students, Amira Campbell, NUS President
Flex Appeal, Anna Whitehouse, Founder
Chloe Laws, Journalist
Girlguiding, Angela Salt (CEO)
Working Chance, Natasha Finlayson (CEO)
Can’t Buy My Silence, Zelda Perkins (Co-Founder)

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