In Your Corner - REC Campaigns and Policy News – 1 December

After the political turmoil of 2022, we’ve finally made it to December – no doubt MPs and the Prime Minister will be on countdown to the Christmas recess. After so much political change, things appear to have somewhat calmed down – we might even have a bit more stability under the Rishi Sunak administration (one can only hope so!).

Stability within the Conservative Party might not be so straightforward though, with recent statements from a number of Conservative MPs who have confirmed they’ll be stepping down ahead of the next General Election. Politics aside, the REC Campaigns team has had plenty of other things to focus on in the last couple of weeks. More on that below. 

Department for Transport announces £100 million HGV parking and driver welfare grant scheme

On 24 November, the Department for Transport (DfT) announced a £100 million commitment towards improving the roadside facilities of HGV Drivers, something the REC has been campaigning on for the last 12 months. The investment aims to ensure that HGV lorry drivers benefit from safer, more secure rest areas and adequate showering facilities.

Funding is likely to be allocated to operators who propose projects in any of these three areas:

1)    Driver welfare facilities: includes toilets, shower facilities and rest areas

2)    Security for drivers: includes lighting systems, CCTV and monitoring equipment, and secure fencing

3)    HGV parking capacity: includes spaces and layout.

Visit our driver sector page for further guidance about the HGV Parking and Driver Welfare Grant Scheme.

Upcoming Strikes and the Repeal of Regulation 7

Many strikes are planned in the next couple of months, from nurses to transport workers. The repeal of regulation 7 has brought important changes to what agencies and agency workers can do during strikes. If you’d like more information on this, please take a look at the guidance from the REC's legal team. Alternatively, our legal helpline is always available to assist with member queries on this or any other issue.  

Restart Scheme: REC and Maximus Partnership Success

At the 2020 Spending Review, the then Chancellor allocated £2.9 billion for the new Restart scheme, which gives Universal Credit claimants who have been out of work due to the pandemic additional support to get into work. Maximus - an employability services provider- operate in the North (South & West Yorkshire, Derbyshire, and Nottinghamshire) and the South (South & East London).

The REC and Maximus partnership has been a great success, offering much-needed talent, and as of last week, 200 people have been successfully placed into new roles through this work this year.

To find out more about the partnership, please get in touch with Alice, looking after the North, or Chantell, looking after London and the South. They can be reached via alice.mcdermott@rec.uk.com or Chantell.jones@rec.uk.com

REC Campaigns Team Roundtable Events

Last week, the campaigns team was out and about, representing the REC at various stakeholder roundtables. The first was on immigration and the labour market chaired by Baroness Mobarik in the House of Lords. With several cross-party MPs and the likes of CBI and Unison attending, it provided a great opportunity for the REC to share our ‘immigration for growth’ policy approach calling for a more flexible immigration system that meets the needs of employers.

Then on 24 November, Joseph Rowntree Foundation and Tony Blair Institute for Global Change hosted a discussion looking at how policymakers should respond to digital labour platforms. The roundtable was well attended, and the discussion was wide-ranging, including whether there should be an additional classification for platform workers, the motivations of platform workers, the use of AI, and regulation. The Tony Blair Institute will publish a paper on this before Christmas, focusing on better serving worker needs around control, income, and flexibility – recurring issues they found in their research and fieldwork.

Earlier this week, our Campaigns Manager was in parliament for a breakfast roundtable on ‘green jobs for a green future’. The event was hosted by WSP which has just published research on young people;s views on green jobs and green skills. What was clear from the event was that we need a universal definition of what green jobs are, better careers advice in schools about such work, and a joined up approach between government, industry, and education providers. These are also asks of the REC’s overcoming shortages campaign. We’ll be doing more work on this next year so if you’ve got any views, please feed these into Sam on sam.beggs@rec.uk.com

British Beer and Pub Association meeting with REC

Last week, the Campaigns team met with the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) to discuss key campaigning priorities, including addressing shortages in the hospitality sector, Apprenticeship Levy reform and introducing more flexibility in our immigration system. Given our shared interests, we’ll be keeping in touch and collaborate on shared goals in where possible in 2023. 

Upcoming Events

Today, REC Deputy CEO Kate Shoesmith is at the Palace of Westminster, feeding into the 50 PLUS: Choices Taskforce. The event seeks to bring experts and industry leaders together with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to discuss how to best capture labour data. Kate’s also attending a DWP roundtable on the 6 December to discuss labour market shortages and to offer REC expertise and insight.

Research Corner

The REC’s RISR (Recruitment Industry Status Report) has been published, showing the industry rebounding strongly after lockdowns eased. The report shows the vital role the recruitment industry played in the economic recovery of the UK between January and December 2021. The recruitment and staffing industry contributed £42.9 billion of direct Gross Value Added (GVA) to the UK economy in 2021. This marked a 21.7% increase on 2020 and a rise on pre-pandemic levels.  

The REC’s latest JobsOutlook found that hiring intentions increased despite economic confidence dropping. For permanent and temporary recruitment, employers' sentiment to increase headcount in the short-term and medium-term rose by at least 1%.

This Friday, we’ll be publishing our latest Labour Market Tracker, keep an eye out for the latest insights into the jobs market.