Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122) - United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (Ratification: 1966)

Individual Case (CAS) - Discussion: 1993, Publication: 80th ILC session (1993)

A Government representative referred to the Government policies for encouraging the growth of employment and for reducing unemployment and to the arrangements in place for consultation. He stated that the Government was firmly committed to pursuing policies which would encourage economic growth and generate sustainable employment. Key elements of this policy were low inflation and elimination of unnecessary regulations. The clear evidence from previous economic cycles showed, however, that during a period of recession special initiatives to increase or maintain employment in particular sectors would be successful, if at all, only in the very short term. Nevertheless, his Government accepted that in order to promote employment it had an important part to play in raising the levels of skills of the workforce and helping the unemployed back to work. A number of initiatives were taken to that end throughout the country. In addition, active labour market measures specifically designed for the unemployed were developed. Besides the normal placement services offered by the Employment Service, the Government would be offering unemployed people almost 1.5 million employment and training opportunities in 1993, which represented the most comprehensive range of help and advice ever made available with a view to improving the quality of opportunities. New measures would introduce 100,000 new opportunities mainly targeted at the needs of the long-term unemployed at a cost of 230 million pounds sterling. He stated that the Government did have, as a major goal, through the policies and programmes mentioned, the achievement of full, productive and freely chosen employment, and therefore was complying fully with the requirement of Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Full compliance with the Convention was, however, no guarantee that the policies applied would succeed: developments in employment depended on a variety of complex factors over which States had little direct control. While there were first signs of a recovery in the economy as testified by statistics, it was still too early to assess the strength of this recovery. The Government believed, however, that the conditions were firmly in place for sustained, non-inflationary growth and for improvement in the employment situation.

Responding to the Experts' comments concerning the serious difficulties encountered in establishing tripartite consultations on employment policy measures required by Article 3 of the Convention, he stated that the test of compliance with this provision could not be that full agreement be always achieved. With many interest groups to consult, the Government was bound to be faced with differing views and tripartism did not mean unanimity. While reduction of unemployment and promotion of full employment remained paramount objectives for the Government and both the social partners, there was a continuing difference of viewpoint between the Government and one of the social partners on the way to achieve this. There was a rich diversity of consultative arrangements to seek the views and cooperation of the social partners as well as other interest groups in the employment field, and these arrangements were well used. Both at the national and at the local level there were permanent bodies established on a tripartite basis or representing an even wider range of interests in the employment field. The tripartite Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service -- an independent statutory body -- dealt with industrial relations and their implications for employment patterns, terms and conditions. As regards the health and safety aspects of employment policies, the Health and Safety Commission was the national body representing the interests of the social partners, local authorities and the public at large. It supervised the work of the civil servants in the Health and Safety Executive. Both these bodies were of long standing and had a well deserved international reputation in their respective fields. As regards vocational education and training, much of the implementation of government policy and expenditures at local level were channelled through 82 Training and Enterprise Councils in England and Wales and 21 Local Enterprise Councils in Scotland. These councils included representatives of employers and workers, as well as of other organizations involved, such as local education and voluntary agencies. In the United Kingdom, the institutional arrangements for consultation were constantly reviewed and changed to meet the needs of the current circumstances. Thus, while the Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service had been kept, the tripartite Area Manpower Boards had been replaced by the Training Enterprise Councils which now were directly responsible for developing programmes to meet local needs. In the case of the National Economic Development Council, the Government took the view, after consultation, that it no longer reflected the realities of the British economy in the 1990s and that the Government no longer needed to use a separate body of this kind to consult the social partners or other interest groups on issues of economic or industrial policy. Instead, the Government relied on more direct consultative arrangements between particular government departments and industry. It was not the consultation that ceased, but its form. Besides the institutional arrangements, there existed also recognized procedures for consultation in particular areas of policy. The dissemination of publications known as Green or White Papers to employers' and workers' organizations and other interest groups provided the Government with a well accepted means of detailed assessment of its legislative proposals and policy initiatives. At senior level the social partners had access to government ministers. Efforts were also made to seek directly the views of individual unemployed people who usually had no organization to represent them as a basis of developing the Employment Service and measures specifically designed for the unemployed. In this respect a Job-Seekers' Charter set out the standards to achieve, assessed by the Employment Service, through the local customer satisfaction surveys. He concluded by stating that these examples illustrated the variety of ways in which the Government consulted its social partners and other interested groups on issues which affected them in the employment field. The Government believed that this complex of consultative methods, ranging from formal institutional structures and procedures to informal and ad hoc arrangements for particular issues, met the requirements of Article 3 of the Convention fully and flexibly, and should reassure the Committee that there was no basis for concern about consultative arrangements on employment matters in the United Kingdom.

The Workers' members recalled that they considered this Convention to be a priority Convention, coming immediately after the Conventions concerning fundamental human rights since the pursuit of employment objectives was indispensable to the safeguard of human rights. They noted that some people considered this Convention as merely a promotional one, and therefore less important than other Conventions. They recalled, however, that, in the general part of its report, the Committee of Experts had emphasized, on the contrary, the importance of this Convention. They stressed that the Convention imposed two obligations: the pursuit, as a major goal, of an active policy designed to promote full employment; and the obligation, under Article 3, to consult equally workers' and employers' organizations with a view to taking fully into account their experience and views and securing their full cooperation in formulating and enlisting support for such policies. They noted that the Government had not provided on this occasion all of the typical excuses for non-application of this Convention: recession; the control of inflation as a primary objective; the need to get rid of unnecessary regulation; the need to render the nation and its workforce competitive; and finally, the need to flow with the free market and not interfere with its movement by imposing social objectives. The Government had apparently ignored the prime objectives of the Convention: (1) the formulation and implementation of an active policy to promote full, productive and freely chosen employment; and (2) the obligation to decide on and keep under review, within the framework of a coordinated economic and social policy, the measures for obtaining these objectives. They pointed out that unemployment in the United Kingdom was not entirely due to recession, but rather it had been estimated that two-thirds of unemployment was due to economic restructuring. This latter cause precisely demonstrated the failure to apply policies aimed at promoting employment as a major goal. A great deal of unemployment was also due to the destructive search for zero inflation. While one could not argue that the search for low inflation was undesirable, it should not be done at the expense of completely destroying the economy; yet, in this case, this was precisely what was being done. This was demonstrated by the statement made by the former Chancellor of the Exchequer that high unemployment was a price worth paying for low inflation. They noted that there was a general tendency with the philosophy presently applied in the United Kingdom to eliminate any labour standards, including taking measures to place restrictions on trade unions, in order to render the workforce "competitive". Yet even while reducing the conditions of employment, the country still had the highest long-term unemployment in its history. They queried whether the numerous employment policies adopted over the decade were designed to assist the unemployed or rather to exclude them from the unemployment statistics.

As concerned consultation, which they intended to discuss in greater detail when looking at this Government's application of the Tripartite Consultation (International Labour Standards) Convention, 1976 (No. 144), they noted that the Government had destroyed practically every tripartite organization in the country with the exception of the Manpower Services Commission and the Health and Safety Executive. As an indication of the Government's view of tripartism, they noted that the Minister of Trade had referred to tripartism as "the corporate state". They noted that, with the abolition of the National Economic Development Council (NEDC) -- the only tripartite body where employment policy questions could be raised -- without any replacement structure, there was no longer any dialogue at the national level where most of the economic policy decisions were taken. Informal or occasional consultations, including direct contacts with the unemployed, could not be considered as a framework for dialogue with respect to the formulation of employment policy. They concluded by expressing their dissatisfaction with the measures taken by the Government and noting that, even if fairly sustained economic growth was the aim for the rest of the year, unemployment would continue to rise in 1994.

The Employers' members indicated that they approached the matter of employment policy in a different way to the Workers' members. In their opinion, the Workers' members over-simplified the problem and put too much emphasis on short-term gains. They did note, however, that there seemed to be a difficult relationship between the social partners in this case. They stated that every country attempted to put in place employment policies designed to create good and productive jobs. Nevertheless, it was natural that, in any country, one or other of the social partners was bound to disagree with the policies taken. This Convention, however, did not establish a blueprint for creating jobs. No one particular policy would work in every situation. The Employers' members considered that economic development was the key to creating jobs. They stated that the characteristics of this case were very similar to those involving another country concerning this Convention discussed this year. They referred the Committee to those earlier comments which were equally applicable here. In this case, the Government was following active labour market policies, including education and training programmes designed to improve the job prospects of unemployed persons. The problems in this case were compounded by the fact that the Government was trying to fight inflation and deal with the difficulties of structural adjustment.

As concerned consultation, Article 3 of the Convention did not stipulate the type of consultation to be held or the level at which it should be held. The Government appeared to be trying a variety of approaches. Consultation was a two-way street, however, and required the best of will on all sides. The Government, worker and employer representatives should make every effort to ensure that the consultative machinery worked.

The Workers' member of the Netherlands drew attention to the strong wording in the Committee of Experts' comments concerning the need for consultation with representatives of employers and workers on employment policy with a view to taking fully into account their experience. He recalled that the Committee of Experts had indicated that it was not clear that the consultations in the area of training and on a series of complex technical subjects effectively met the requirements of Article 3 of the Convention. He noted that, contrary to the opinion of the Employers' members, Article 3 did establish a blueprint for involving workers and employers in the formulation and implementation of employment policies. He queried whether the alternative consultations referred to by the Government were really equivalent to bodies like the National Economic Development Council (NEDC). Since the Committee of Experts did not seem to be convinced that this was the case, he asked the Government to indicate whether it had been impressed by the concern raised in the comments and was willing to act upon the Committee of Experts' recommendations.

The Government member of Germany referred to the conclusions in the Committee of Experts which expressed the hope that the results obtained in fighting inflation, lowering interest rates and reinforcing economic competitiveness would ensure that the employment policy measures were successful and contributed effectively to improving the employment situation. He noted that this conclusion appeared to indicate that the Committee of Experts did not necessarily exclude the possibility that such measures would have a positive impact on employment. As concerned consultation, he noted that Article 3 of the Convention did not specify the type of consultative machinery which had to be instituted or that such consultations had to result in consensus. He did not feel that he was in a position to judge whether the machinery which replaced the NEDC was adequate, but was of the impression that the Government had indicated a readiness to consult with the social partners on employment policy.

The Workers' member of the Netherlands wished to stress that, while Article 3 of the Convention did not set forth a particular form of consultation, it could be understood to mean that governments, employers and workers played a full role with respect to employment policy. The indication given by the Government representative, however, left the impression that the Government was allocating a less important role to workers in this matter.

The Government representative welcomed the comments made by the Employers' members concerning the complexity of employment policies in the current circumstances and the complexity of consultative arrangements. It was not always possible to consult adequately through national bodies or even regional bodies. Sometimes it was necessary to consult at the local level or directly with the individuals concerned. He stressed that it was not the Government's position that macroeconomic policies were the only answer. But he also felt that a quick-fix for creating employment opportunities, particularly in a recession, did not exist. He noted that the Workers' members did not provide any advice as to a quick solution to the problem, nor did the Workers' members acknowledge the broader range of employment opportunities now available. It was obvious that the Workers' members and the Government had a difference of opinion as concerned the appropriate solutions. This difference existed despite the many communications with the social partners. The problem, therefore, did not concern the consultative machinery. As concerned the criticism made by the Workers' members concerning the numerous employment policies, he pointed out that this precisely demonstrated the Government's flexibility in adapting the policies in order to achieve the objectives. The Workers' members also seemed to reject flexibility with respect to the consultative arrangements. Yet Article 3 of the Convention was not limited to tripartism, but concerned consultation with anybody affected by employment measures and did not stipulate the form of that consultation. A flexible approach and a range of consultative machinery, in his opinion, demonstrated fuller compliance with Article 3.

The Committee took due note of the detailed information supplied by the Government representative. The Committee noted in particular the measures adopted and contemplated with a view to promoting vocational training and the placement of unemployed persons. The Committee considered that employment was of paramount importance to the workers concerned and that tripartite consultations were essential to deal with the problem of unemployment. It accordingly invited the Government to continue to take appropriate measures to give full effect to Article 3 of the Convention which required consultation and cooperation with representatives of the persons affected and, in particular, representatives of employers and workers on employment policy matters. In general terms, the Committee hoped that the next report would contain information showing, as requested by the Committee of Experts, that the measures taken under the growth strategy of the Government contributed towards improving the unemployment situation and promoting the objectives of the Convention.

Individual Case (CAS) - Discussion: 1987, Publication: 73rd ILC session (1987)

A Government representative stated that concern at the continuing high level of unemployment in the United Kingdom was shared by his Government, the Committee of Experts, employers and workers throughout the United Kingdom and indeed by many other organisations whose interests related to social justice, Progress and development. The discussion today was not about a will to reduce unemployment, but whether the Government was adopting measures which would be effective and enduring in achieving a significant reduction. It was his view that it was doing so.

The information supplied by his Government to the Committee of Experts had indicated an improvement in the unemployment situation. The improvement had continued at a gradual but sustained rate. Since June 1986, the total number of unemployed had fallen by almost 200,000 and there had been declines for ten consecutive months. Over the last three months there had been an average monthly fall of over 31,000, the best rate of reduction in unemployment since the early 1970s. Seasonally adjusted unemployment was at its lowest level for almost three years. Long-term unemployment was also falling, over 60,000 less than a year ago, and unemployment among persons under 25 was at its lowest level for about five years. This had been achieved despite a continuing increase in the total labour force. The United Kingdom's experience was significantly better than that of many Western countries where unemployment levels had not shown a similar downward trend. This improvement was not accidental but the result of policies aiming at the creation of an environment which could sustain genuine growth.

The Committee of Experts had drawn attention to the requirement in the Convention for governments to adopt appropriate policies and measures and to keep them under review. The policies referred to above were appropriate because they were fundamental to the promotion of full, productive and freely chosen employment which would be enduring and sustainable by the economy.

There could be no questioning of the willingness of his Government to keep its policies and measures under constant review. The Committee of Experts had referred to certain measures taken by his Government which fully met its obligations in relation to this requirement of the Convention. Since then there had been still further measures demonstrating willingness not only to keep such matters under review but to take action in a flexible and responsive way. The policy of stimulating growth by reducing inflation and encouraging enterprise had helped the economy make a sustained recovery. Economic growth had averaged nearly 3 per cent since 1983 and inflation was at its lowest level for 20 years. Industry and commerce were taking advantage of the reduction in the burden of taxation and the increased flexibility allowed by the removal of unnecessary legal and administrative restrictions. New businesses and jobs were being created, and between March 1983 and December 1986 the employed labour force had risen by more the 1.1 million. Employment growth had been strongest with those types of employment best meeting new demands for adaptability and flexibility. New contractual arrangements had helped towards an impressive increase in self-employment, now undertaken by nearly half a million more people since March 1983. There was more shift work and more part-time work. For instance, this had provided a boon to married women who did not wish to work fulltime. Over 80 per cent of women working part-time preferred it to full-time work. There was a trend away from manufacturing employment, an experience shared by many developed countries. But job losses since 1983 were on average at a lower level than in the late 1970s and a recent survey had shown growing optimism in manufacturing, including employment increases in textiles.

The Committee of Experts had expressed concern at youth unemployment. In this area the United Kingdom was making real progress, with youth unemployment at its lowest level for five years. The Youth Training Scheme offered all young people under 18 a guaranteed place to train for modern skills, and young people could choose between education, training and employment. The policies pursued were having a significant impact on productivity. The training schemes developed for both young People and older workers had contributed to ensuring productive employment and had widened freedom of choice in employment.

The Committee of Experts had called on the Government to provide full information on the comments made by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) on the application of this Convention. This information would of course be supplied. Finally, the speaker stressed that, in promoting policies and measures relevant to the objectives of the Convention, his Government had introduced a range of innovative and imaginative initiatives which bore comparison with those of Western neighbouring countries.

The Worker member of the United Kingdom said that answers had not been provided to the points raised by the Committee of Experts. Whereas the Government representative had attempted to add to the information available to the present Committee, the contents of the Government's report and the statements made today lacked real conviction. The promises made by the Government had had little or no impact on the high unemployment figures. It was difficult to know the true number of unemployed. The TUC and many economists and scholars argued that this figure exceeded 4 million, whereas the Government stated that just over 3 million were unemployed. This discrepancy was due to the fact that over the past six or seven years the Government had changed the method of collecting unemployment statistics 16 times, and each new system had led to a reduction in the Published figures of the unemployed. Creative manipulation of the employment figures could never be a substitute for the pursuit of government policies which would find work for those who were unemployed through no fault of their own. A large proportion of unemployed people in the United Kingdom were unemployed precisely because of the economic policy "pursued" by the Government, and also because of its failure to pursue other and more constructive policies which would be more in conformity with Convention No. 122.

Elections had recently been held in the United Kingdom. At that election three out of the four parties had argued that unemployment could be reduced by 1 million within a reasonably short time. The employment policies of these three parties had been examined by a respectable newspaper, the Financial Times, which found that these policies would actually work without any serious effect on inflation or the balance of payments. Thus, to establish a reduction in the high unemployment rate was essentially a question of political, social and economic priorities. Whereas each country was entitled to pursue its own economic policies without any outside interference, it had to be asked whether a government could continue to pursue its domestic policies quite so assiduously if these policies were to bring serious conflict with the country's international obligations. This seemed to be the case in Convention No. 122. Some other Western countries were also pursuing similar market philosophy policies to that of Great Britain and they too were experiencing higher unemployment: in that sense all workers had a common interest in the discussion of the real issues behind this case. Whereas the Government had been happy to join other countries in ratifying this Convention, it had refused to take any effective steps to implement it. The Government had alleged that steps were being taken to reduce unemployment. Whereas the Government representative had pointed to a fall in unemployment, most commentators believed that this was a short-term trend. This fall was perhaps due more to an impending general election than to a major change which would have long-term consequences. The measures now being adopted would not make any real impact. With regard to the employment situation of married women, they had actually been eliminated from unemployment statistics. Whereas there had been some improvement in employment figures, the jobs created were largely part-time, largely low-paid and largely service-industry jobs. The Government representative had stated that young people would have a choice between training, education and jobs. But the choice was not that free because those persons who did not do training could lose their unemployment benefit. In the Report of the Committee of Experts, reference had been made to "job clubs". But a job club really meant a no-job club. It was a place where expert advice was given on how to apply for a job that did not exist. There was also reference in the report to measures "to facilitate smooth adaptation to structural change". This meant adapting to the fact that one did not have a job. There was also reference to "lowering young people's wages". There was little evidence that reducing wages provided more jobs. It increased profits, but did not increase jobs. The lack of a job was not only an assault on human dignity but also meant the absence of a union to provide protection.

The problem discussed here was common to many on the workers' bench. This Convention could not be wielded like a big stick. One could merely note with concern the Government's reply which did not establish that it would make serious attempts to observe Article 1 of the Convention. The Committee should ask the Government to provide a further report in 1988 in response to the request of the Committee of Experts and should express the hope that the Government would, in the meantime, take all necessary steps to fulfil those obligations which in the speaker's opinion it had failed to do up to the present time.

The Employer member of the United Kingdom stated that employment meant productive employment, embracing vocational full-time or sandwich-style training, as well as wage earning in industry or commerce. It must be accepted that technological advances in the United Kingdom and the rest of the world had resulted in displacing workers, but while maintaining and increasing production, thus ensuring ongoing and expanding businesses and providing employment for vast numbers of people. Although there had been significant growth in available jobs, there had been an equally large increase in jobseekers. Employers had not been blameless, for they could have done more to train employees and taken advantage earlier of technological developments. Nor were trade unions immune from criticism for their policies during the days of full employment. The record showed a very determined government policy resulting in recovery over the past eight years from a recession affecting many countries. The United Kingdom employers subscribed fully to the spirit of this Convention, would continue to support it, and would use to the full the consultative machinery available to them to persuade the Government to continue to implement a policy of economic growth. This had to be the only possible means of maintaining and expanding employment.

The Workers' members stated that, as the Government and the Committee of Experts had recognised, this was a very disturbing problem. There were enormous problems for unemployed youth and school leavers and there was an urgent need to take their situation to heart. As the Worker member of the United Kingdom had stated, one could not bring unemployment down by manipulating statistics; there should be uniform statistical methods applied to the EEC countries and others. The Government had taken certain measures, including vocational training, to address the situation. The vast majority of the unemployed, in particular of unemployed youth, were unqualified and untrained young persons who had not received the correct guidance. Economic growth was important. But even when there was such growth, new technologies brought serious difficulties for the maintenance of employment. One could not expect everything from the private sector. The public sector too could absorb a large number of workers if adequate employment-creating investments were to be made. The problems of unemployment could only be tackled through consultation with all the social partners.

The Employers' members said that unemployment was always a cause for serious concern. The United Kingdom example was one that met the needs of many other cases and it was useful to have this tripartite discussion. In the report of the Committee of Experts there was a detailed description of the employment policy being carried out by the Government. It said it was trying to create a climate in which industry and the economy could function effectively. This appeared to be the correct approach as it would not be possible to create new jobs without a stable and growing economy. In the report, there had been reference to tax reductions, the encouragement of investment and further promotional measures for the establishment of enterprises, in particular small enterprises, part-time work, etc. One very important measure which might be promising for the future was bringing training up to the highest possible level, in particular for young people. In any country a worker had very little chance of getting a decent job without qualifications and proper training. As mentioned in the report of the Committee of Experts, there had also to be tripartite consultations. The Government was called upon to continue its efforts to deal with unemployment, and to continue dialogues with employers and workers. The Government representative said he welcomed the emphasis placed by both the Employers' and Workers' members on the need for adequate training and updating of skills, especially for young people. With regard to statistics, it was not true that there had been 16 changes in the statistical methods. There had been six changes since 1979 which had a discernible effect on the unemployment count. All of them had been adopted in the interests of greater accuracy. Some had decreased the count and some had increased it, and they had all been taken into account in a comparative series on unemployment figures. The Government's methods of compiling statistics were fully in accord with ILO standards, and there was a close correspondence between the unemployment rate published in the Government's official statistics and those calculated by OECD officials on the basis of that organisation's definition. With regard to part-time work, industry was entitled to facilitate this if it suited both parties. Married women still wished to participate in the labour market, and the Government was creating an environment for this through part-time work. With regard to job clubs, unfilled vacancies were 24 per cent higher than one year previously. These job clubs as well as the restart programme provided a very useful counselling service. Sixty per cent of the people leaving job clubs left to take a job and 13 per cent went into training. The speaker concluded by reiterating that his Government was pursuing policies aiming at the strengthening of the economy so that productive and freely chosen employment could be available for all who sought it. These policies and the measures implementing them were kept under review, and the Government had demonstrably adopted a flexible and innovative approach in its measures. The evidence was that they were now working with a downward trend in unemployment and an increasingly strong economy.

The Committee welcomed the opportunity to discuss Convention No. 122, particularly as it referred to the United Kingdom. The full and impressive exchange of views highlighted the usefulness of dialogue in this Committee. The Committee noted the serious concern of the Government at the level of unemployment. It hoped that the Government would pursue and develop its efforts to raise employment opportunities and that it would consult the social partners who might be affected by the measures to be taken with a view to creating a favourable climate and achieving better results. The Committee expressed the hope that the Government's next report would contain further information on the measures taken in the area of employment policy.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2024, published 113rd ILC session (2025)

The Committee notes the observations of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), received on 31 August 2022. The Committee requests the Government to provide its reply in this regard.

Articles 1, 2 and 3 of the Convention. Active employment policy. Consultation with the social partners. The Committee welcomes the information provided by the Government regarding the measures undertaken during the reporting period, particularly with a view to adapting the provision of training with the changes in the demand for knowledge and skills and the needs of the labour market. The Government also provides information on the different reforms introduced to improve access to and the quality of education and vocational training offered, as well as the implementation of different schemes to promote employment among the unemployed. With regard to employment trends, the Committee observes that, according to ILOSTATS, in 2023, the labour force participation rate was 62.2 per cent (66.6 per cent for men and 58.1 per cent for women), the employment-population ratio was 59.7 per cent (63.7 per cent for men and 56 per cent for women). It also observes that, while the general unemployment rate was 4 per cent (4.3 per cent for men and 3.7 for women), the unemployment rate for young persons was 12 per cent (14.3 per cent for men and 9.4 for women). The share of youth not in employment, education or training was 12.8 per cent (13.5 per cent for men and 12.1 per cent for women).

The Committee further notes that, in its observations, the TUC expresses its serious concerns regarding the shape of the post-Covid labour market recovery with disproportionately negative consequences for certain groups, such as Black and Minority Ethnic workers (BME). The TUC points out that, in 2022, the unemployment rate of BME was over twice as high (7.7 per cent) compared to the unemployment rate for white workers (3.5 per cent). In this regard, the TUC suggests introducing race equality requirements into public sector contracts for the supply of goods and services, which would incentivise companies to improve their race equality policies and practices and minimise the use of zero-hours, temporary and agency contracts and promote permanent employment. The Committee observes that these disparities remain. According to the UK labour market statistics report of the House of Commons published on 12 November 2024, the unemployment rate for minority ethnic groups (8.1 per cent) during the period July to September 2024, was more than double the rate for White ethnic groups (3.6 per cent).

The TUC also emphasizes that the disability employment gap hasn’t changed since 2013, and it even widened since the pandemic. It refers to the “United Nations Convention on the Rights of Disabled People. Westminster Government Civil Society Shadow Report” of Inclusion London of March 2022, which underscores the increasing barriers for persons with disabilities to both finding and sustaining employment (paragraph 96). The TUC points out that, according to the report, persons with disabilities: (i) face pay gaps (they earn 20 per cent less than workers without disabilities, while women with disabilities face the biggest pay gap, as they earn on average 30 per cent less that men without disabilities); (ii) are over-represented in insecure work and zero hours contracts (26 per cent of them are in insecure work in comparison with 15 per cent of those without disabilities, while 15 per cent are in insecure work and earn less than the living wage compared to 11 per cent for workers without disabilities),where they are unable to access sick pay or disability leave, and employers are less likely to make reasonable adjustments for workers on insecure contracts; (iii) benefited less from home working arrangements than workers without any disability during the pandemic due to being less likely to be in managerial or professional roles. Moreover, the TUC highlights that, according to the cited report, since 2013 it has become increasingly difficult to access the “Access to Work” disability employment scheme, as in order to be eligible, persons with disabilities must work over a certain number of hours and earn over a certain threshold. Regarding the flagship disability employment scheme “Disability Confident”, the TUC argues that it is not clear what tangible difference the scheme has made and states that, for example, in 2019, while 13,600 employers signed up for the scheme, they only promised to provide 8,763 new paid jobs and 1,903 traineeships for persons with disabilities (representing an average of 0.78 jobs and traineeships per employer despite including some of the largest employers in the country). In addition, the TUC claims that thousands of persons with disabilities on out of work benefits (such as Universal Credit) are subjected to mandatory work search requirements under threat of sanctions (having their benefits stopped or reduced) for non-compliance. The TUC claims that research found that conditionality for jobseekers with disabilities is “mad-making” and it moves them further from employability. The TUC further claims that the Government has consistently ignored calls to end conditionality for persons with disabilities and that is not clear the number of persons with disabilities affected due to a lack of disaggregated data under Universal Credit.

Lastly, the Committee observes that the Government does not provide information on the consultations held with representative of the persons affected by the measures to be taken, and in particular representatives of employers and workers concerning employment policies with a view to taking fully into account their experience and views and securing their full co-operation in formulating and enlisting support for such policies of the employers and workers organizations, as required by Article 3 of the Convention. The Committee notes, in this respect, the TUC’s indication that, it has not been consulted. Noting that the Government has not replied to the TUC’s abovementioned observations and that the next report on the application of the Convention is due in 2025, the Committee has decided to analyse the Government’s reply to these observations together with updated information related to the policies and measures adopted to achieve full, productive and freely chosen employmentsince the Government’s 2022 report. In order to be able to examine the situation as regards employment and human resources development in a holistic manner, the Committee requests the Government to supply, in its next report on the application of the present Convention, updated information on any developments as regards the manner in which the national legislation and practice also give effect to the Paid Educational Leave Convention, 1974 (No. 140) and the Human Resources Development Convention, 1975 (No. 142).

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Employment services. The Government indicates in its report that Jobcentre Plus managers have flexibility to offer various measures to help claimants get back to work in their area, based on claimant and local labour market characteristics. The Committee notes in this regard the available measures such as the work experience programme which helps young people gain the experience they need to get a job and the New Enterprise Allowance to help unemployed people who want to start their own business. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the contribution of the employment services in the implementation of active labour market measures.

Education and training. In reply to previous comments, the Government indicates that there are currently 19 National Skills Academies in various stages of development and refers to the dedicated websites and information relating to every training area. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved by the various National Skills Academies in matching skills and labour market needs.

Youth employment. The Government reports on the various employment and training measures specifically targeting young people. The Committee notes in this regard that the Youth Contract was launched in April 2012 and builds on much of the support already available to young unemployed people, particularly through the Government Apprenticeships offer and the Back to Work support provided by Jobcentre Plus and the Work Programme. Taken as a whole, it will ensure that every unemployed young person who needs support will get it. Moreover, other measures include wage incentives which supported employers during the recession and were always intended to be a time-limited measure. The Committee notes that this measure provided nearly 100,000 job opportunities for young people. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the impact of the measures taken to address youth unemployment.

Older workers. In reply to previous comments, the Government indicates that figures published on 1 October 2014 show that nearly a 250,000 more people aged 65 and over had opted to stay in work following the abolition of the default retirement age on 1 October 2011. The Committee notes that in October 2014 there were 643,000 men over 65 in work compared to 526,000 in 2011, and 460,000 women in work, compared to 348,000 in October 2011. The Government further indicates that many older workers are driving an entrepreneurial boom helping to boost the British economy, with over 400,000 people aged 65 and over in self-employment according to Office for National Statistics data (April to June 2014). The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the impact of the measures taken in terms of promoting an increased participation of older workers in the labour market.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

The Committee notes the observations of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) received on 1 September 2015.

Articles 1, 2 and 3 of the Convention. Active employment policy. Consultation with the social partners. The Government provides in its comprehensive and detailed report statistics on labour market trends and information in reply to the previous comments. The Government indicates that the number of employed persons rose by 248,000 persons in the first quarter of 2015 and 557,000 on the year, to 31.05 million. The employment rate rose 0.5 point on the quarter and one percentage point on the year to 73.4 per cent. Unemployment data showed that the number of unemployed people fell by 76,000 in the first quarter of 2015 and 416,000 over a one-year period to 1.84 million. The Government further indicates that 742,000 young people were unemployed, decreasing by 151,000 people over a year. The Committee notes that both full-time and part-time employment saw an increase over a one-year period. The Government indicates that businesses in the United Kingdom say that current employment laws are difficult to cope with and put them off on employing more workers. Simpler, more flexible employment laws would make it easier for companies to hire and manage staff, while protecting workers’ basic rights. This should encourage employers to create new jobs, supporting enterprise and growth. The Committee notes in this regard that a series of labour market measures were adopted since the last report with the goal of increasing flexibility in the labour market. In its observations, the TUC states that it is concerned that Mandatory Work Activity and Help to Work programmes (where long-term unemployed people can be obliged to undertake Community Work Placements or work experience) contradict Article 1 of the Convention regarding “freedom of choice of employment”. The Government provides findings of an evaluation of Mandatory Work Activity in which the study showed that the aims of the programme appeared to be well understood by the Jobcentre Plus staff, providers and hosts, who recognized the potential for this scheme to impact positively on participating claimants. The majority of claimants were also clear about the compulsory elements of the scheme, and reported a range of positive attitudinal and behavioural outcomes as a result of their participation. However, the research also identified a number of implementation problems that require significant attention to ensure the smooth delivery of the policy and to maximize the intended impacts on participants. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the implementation of the Mandatory Work Activity programme and how this programme will translate into productive and lasting employment opportunities for its beneficiaries. Please also continue to include information on the impact of other labour market measures being implemented and on the details of the consultations held with the social partners on matters relating to the Convention.

Long-term unemployment. In reply to previous comments, the Government indicates that the Work Programme is a scheme to help individuals at risk of long-term unemployment to find and keep jobs. In particular, it aims to improve support for those who are harder to help and reduce the time that people spend on benefits. The Government further indicates that innovative features of the Work Programme include processes that are not prescribed, that is, by adopting a “black box” approach, providers are free to innovate and use what works best. The TUC is of the view that the Work Programme is achieving roughly the level of performance of previous programmes, but is worried by repeated reports that the results-oriented “black box” model described in the report encourages “creaming and parking” of the easiest and most difficult candidates respectively by providers. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the impact of the measures taken to address long-term unemployment.

Persons with disabilities. The Government indicates that the Work Programme supports a wide array of claimants who are receiving out-of-work benefits and who are at risk of long-term unemployment. This includes both claimants on Jobseeker’s Allowance and some claimants on Employment and Support Allowance. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) knows that some claimants may need more support than others to secure sustainable employment. Therefore, a Work Programme provider can receive up to £6,600 for a person on Jobseeker’s Allowance and up to £13,700 for an Employment and Support Allowance claimant. The referral process gives harder-to-help groups, such as persons with disabilities, access to personalized, individual support at the appropriate stage in their claim. Persons with disabilities who have been claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance for three months have the opportunity to volunteer for early access to the Work Programme to ensure they receive it within a timescale that is most appropriate to them. While Work Programme providers are free to design the support they offer, the DWP will hold them more rigorously to account for their performance than in the past, ensuring that all groups, including persons with disabilities, are supported effectively. The TUC indicates that performance through employment programmes for persons with disabilities is still very poor, adding that statistics show that, of those who had joined the Work Programme in March 2014 (and could have therefore participated for up to 12 months), 22.8 per cent of unemployed persons under 25 years of age on Jobseeker’s Allowance obtained jobs by March 2015, compared to 21.7 per cent of those over 25 and 8.7 per cent of persons with disabilities on Employment and Support Allowance. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the impact of the measures implemented to address the needs of persons with disabilities in the open labour market.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

Active employment policy. Consultation with the social partners. The Committee notes the detailed information provided by the Government in August 2012 in response to the request made by the Conference Committee in June 2012. It also notes the observations provided by the Trade Union Congress (TUC), and the Government’s response to these observations in October 2012. In reply to the 2011 observation, the Government reports that the number of people employed in the public sector was 5.9 million in March 2012, down 39,000 from December 2011, and the number of people employed in the private sector in March 2012 was 23.38 million, up 205,000 from December 2011. Since the Government announced its intention to reduce the deficit as a means to securing stronger growth, the amount of people in employment (aged 16–64) has risen from 28,862,000 in May 2010 to 29,354,000 in July 2012, which represent an increase in employment from 70.3 per cent to 70.7 per cent. Over the same period, unemployment has risen slightly from 7.9 per cent to 8.1 per cent. There were 9.29 million persons economically inactive and 1.6 million people were on Jobseeker’s Allowance as at March 2012. The Government indicates that, as part of an active labour market policy, full use must be made of support offered by the State. Individuals claiming state benefits can expect increased help in overcoming barriers to work, finding and retaining a job. However, benefit payments will become increasingly conditional on the requirement to use this improved support and to look for employment. In this regard, the Committee notes that several regulations came into effect in April 2011 which created the legislative framework for the Mandatory Work Activity programme for Jobseeker’s Allowance recipients. The Government indicates that Mandatory Work Activity gives extra support to a small number of Jobseeker’s Allowance claimants who would benefit from a short period of activity. There are around 19,000 Mandatory Work Activity placements available per year, and Jobcentre Plus advisers have the flexibility to use the programme, where they feel it is appropriate, as part of a wider range of support options. Mandatory Work Activity placements last for four weeks and deliver a contribution to the local community. The TUC believes it is impossible to describe the Mandatory Work Activity programme as “freely chosen” as it is a compulsory work programme of 30 hours per week for four weeks for all benefit claimants of working age. It adds that the Government’s equality impact assessment showed that Mandatory Work Activity is disproportionately likely to be applied to older, disabled and minority ethnic claimants. The TUC further indicates that Mandatory Work Activity is not supportive and there are more and more reports of abuse of the programme. The Government responded by indicating that the programme is only available to those claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance, and not for all benefit claimants of working age. Mandatory Work Activity is a “work-related activity” that is designed to move participants closer to the labour market, not directly into employment. Official statistics from the early stages of the programme show that 29 per cent of claimants referred to Mandatory Work Activity between May 2011 and February 2012 were non-white and 21 per cent were claimants with disabilities. The Government indicates that claimants are referred to the programme on the basis of suitability for the scheme, regardless of ethnicity. It also adds that the figure with respect to persons with disabilities is not disproportionate compared to the Jobseeker’s Allowance caseload. Furthermore, early findings from a survey of participants have found a positive impact on work attitudes, motivation to find work, and the majority of participants reported a good experience in the programme. The Committee notes that full findings will be published in December 2012. The Committee invites the Government to continue to provide information on the implementation of the Mandatory Work Activity programme and how this programme will translate into productive and lasting employment opportunities for its beneficiaries. It also invites the Government to specify in its next report how, pursuant to Article 2 of the Convention, it keeps under review the measures and policies adopted according to the results achieved in pursuit of the objectives of full, productive and freely chosen employment, specified in Article 1. It recalls that, in the terms of that Article, an active employment policy should be pursued “as a major goal”. The Committee trusts that the Government will be able to report on further developments on how the social partners have been involved in the consultation procedures required by Article 3 of the Convention.

Role of employment services in employment promotion. The Government indicates that staff in Jobcentre Plus, service providers, local authorities, further education colleges, training providers and employers are coming together in their communities to find new and innovative ways to support people back to work. It reports that it is modernizing the way Jobcentre Plus delivers its services and handing responsibility back to jobcentre plus advisers who work with claimants on a daily basis. Advisers are now able to offer claimants a comprehensive menu of help, including skills provision and job search support. They have the flexibility to decide which interventions will help claimants at the most appropriate point in their jobseeking journey, tailoring this to individual need. To support this new regime, the Government indicates that a single flexible support fund has been created worth approximately £118 million, which allows local resources to be aligned to the needs of the locality, to tackle local unemployment and multiple barriers to employment in a holistic and joined up way. The flexible support that Jobcentre Plus district managers are putting in place is bolstered by a number of Get Britain Working measures whose success depends on strong local partnerships and the active support of employers. The Committee also notes that the Government reported that it met with the TUC to discuss the design of the Get Britain Working programme. In particular, they discussed the potential impacts on employees, where employers are involved in hosting work experience placements for unemployed young people. The Government indicates that discussions have been constructive and are ongoing. The Committee invites the Government to continue to provide information on the contribution of the employment services in the implementation of active labour market measures.

Education and training policies. The Government reports that National Skills Academies (NSAs), which are employer led, innovative, sector based education and training organizations, are designed to enable high levels of employer involvement and attract significant employer sponsorship and investment. The NSAs have a clear and distinct place in the skills system as delivery agents. Their role is to transform the supply of skills to meet employers’ needs in defined sectors or areas of the economy by delivering specialist, high quality skills provision. The Government indicates that there are currently eighteen NSAs in operation and one NSA in development. The Committee invites the Government to provide in its next report information on the results achieved by NSAs in matching skills and labour market needs.

Youth employment. The Government reports that youth unemployment dropped in July 2012, when compared to April 2012, to 22.2 per cent. It indicates that the Youth Contract was introduced in April 2012 to provide additional support, worth almost £1 billion, to young unemployed people over the next three years. The Youth Contract builds on existing support to provide young people with more intensive adviser support and work experience, as well as providing employers with wage incentives and apprenticeship incentives to encourage them to recruit young people. Furthermore, the Committee notes that the Scottish Government introduced in December 2011 the role of Minister for Youth Employment. The ministerial portfolio focuses on drawing together all the activities across Government to support youth employment. The Committee invites the Government to provide information on the impact of the measures taken to address youth unemployment and the results achieved in Scotland following the appointment of the Minister for Youth Employment.

Persons with disabilities. The Government indicates that the Green Paper “Support and aspiration: A new approach to special educational needs and disability”, published in March 2011, sets out proposals for a different system to support better life outcomes for young people with disabilities and those with special educational needs. These proposals include a single assessment process and education, health care plan focusing on outcomes that will follow the young person from birth to age 25, improvements to vocational and work-related learning, and improved opportunities to get and keep a job, including the introduction of supported internships for young people with disabilities. In addition, the Government’s scheme for workers with disabilities, Access to Work, supported 35,840 people with disabilities to keep or get employment during 2010–11. Between April and December 2011, 27,420 people with disabilities were supported by the scheme. Access to Work provides additional support for individuals whose health or disability affects the way they do their job. It provides individuals and their employers with advice and support with extra costs which may arise because of an individual’s needs. The Committee invites the Government to continue to provide information on the results of the implementation of the measures designed to address the needs of persons with disabilities in the open labour market.

Older workers. The Committee notes that the Default Retirement Age (DRA) was removed from legislation. Employers can no longer force employees to retire when they reach the age of 65. Employers can only set retirement ages where it can be objectively justified in their particular circumstances – but this is open to challenge at Tribunal. The Government also indicates that Jobcentre Plus managers and advisers now have more flexibility to help older benefit claimants to find employment, and – apart from some specific options for jobseekers aged under 25 – older people have the same access to a comprehensive menu of individually tailored help. Furthermore, the Department for Work and Pensions is working in partnership with key business leaders in nine key occupational sectors to drive forward sustained improvements in the employment, training and retention of older workers. The Government indicates that it is still gathering information on the impact of these measures on older people’s employment. The Committee invites the Government to provide information on the impact of these measures in terms of promoting the participation of older workers in the labour market.

Long-term unemployed. The Committee notes that the Work Programme was launched on 10 June 2011 which has replaced much of the employment support previously offered. The Government indicates that providers will be paid primarily for supporting claimants into employment and helping them stay there for longer than ever before, with higher payments for supporting the hardest to help. Jobcentre Plus will continue to support benefit claimants during the first months of their claim. The Work Programme is for those people who are at risk of long-term unemployment. Any claimants who complete two years on the Work Programme without finding employment will return to Jobcentre Plus for further support. The Government indicates that the Department for Work and Pensions is currently running a small scale trial which will be evaluated to understand how best to support very long-term Jobseeker’s Allowance claimants who may reach the end of the Work Programme from 2013. The trial was launched in November 2011 and will run for approximately nine months across Jobcentre Plus districts to test two new elements of support: Community Action Programme, a 26-week contracted employment programme; and Ongoing Case Management, a more intensive offer of Jobcentre Plus support and access to further resources. The Committee invites the Government to include in its next report information on the implementation of the Work Programme and the achievements in promoting the return of long-term unemployed persons to the labour market.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2011, published 101st ILC session (2012)

Articles 1, 2 and 3 of the Convention. Employment trends and active labour market measures. The Committee notes the comprehensive and detailed Government’s report received in September 2010 for the period from June 2008 to May 2010, including the 2008–11 Corporate Plan of the Department for Employment and Learning, and information for Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The Government states that it remains committed to the idea that work is the best route out of poverty and, despite the recession, has objectives to: (a) provide employment opportunities for all; (b) prevent poverty and provide security for those who cannot work; and (c) ensure that the welfare system is affordable for the State. The Government indicates that the labour market performed well during the recession, despite record falls in GDP and large rises in the number of people being made redundant. While unemployment increased by 383,000 people in January 2010 when compared to the previous year, it fell in the last quarter of 2009. The number of people in employment in the United Kingdom for the three months ending January 2010 was 28.86 million, down 54,000 over the quarter, and down 483,000 over the year. This relatively strong performance was reportedly driven by £5 billon investment to maintain an active labour market regime and extend support to people to help them move back into work. The Government reports that, even at the height of the recession, around half of all people who made a claim to Jobseeker’s Allowance had left benefit within three months, many of them moving straight into employment. The Government also reports that the employment rate for ethnic minorities fell, along with the overall rate in Great Britain, while the gap between the two narrowed to 12.4 per cent. The 2010 first quarter figures showed that the employment rate in Great Britain stood at 71.9 per cent and the ethnic minority employment rate at 59.9 per cent. The Government indicates that the most urgent task facing the United Kingdom is to implement an accelerated plan to reduce the deficit as a necessary precondition for sustained economic growth. The June 2010 budget set out the action the Government will take to rebalance the economy and provide the conditions for sustainable, private sector-led growth, balanced across regions and industries. The Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts an increase in private sector employment of nearly 2 million by 2015–16 through measures such as reducing the main rate of corporation tax and increasing support to businesses. The Committee invites the Government to provide information in its next report on private and public sector employment outcomes and the labour market impacts of public budget cuts, as well as on the involvement of the social partners in the employment policy formulation and implementation process.

Role of employment services in employment promotion. The Committee notes that Jobcentre Plus is the principal agent of the Government’s active labour market policy. Working with a range of partners, Jobcentre Plus promotes work as the best form of welfare, helping unemployed and economically inactive people of working age to move closer to the labour market and compete effectively for work, while providing appropriate help and support for those without work. The Committee notes that the Government published a consultation paper entitled “21st Century Welfare” in July 2010 on the future of the benefits and tax credit systems. Following consultations, one of the Government’s responses with regard to Jobcentre Plus is to allow it freedom and flexibility to work in partnership at the local level and to respond to local needs, to secure improvement to employment services and achieve the necessary employment outcomes. The Committee invites the Government to include information on the contribution of the employment services and Jobcentre Plus in the implementation of active labour market policies.

Education and training policies. The Government reports that it established a Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) in April 2008, which funded and managed the performance of the Sector Skills Councils. The Government also indicates that it is committed to bring about a culture and systems change to integrate employment and skills services to help low-skilled unemployed persons to improve their skills, to get and keep a job, and to progress in work through continued training. The white paper “Building Britain’s Recovery, Achieving Full Employment”, published in December 2009, committed the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to work more closely with Jobcentre Plus and the LSC–SKILLS Funding Agency, to bring employment and skills closer together. The Committee notes the Five Year Strategic Plan 2009–14 which sets out UKCES’ corporate plan and high-level priorities. An important part of the skills strategy is to focus training provision on meeting more accurately the needs of business and local economies. The Committee also notes that in April 2008 the Scottish Government created a new public body, Skills Development Scotland (SDS), to bring a better focus to skills development. The SDS has a key role to play in driving forward the strategic priority on learning, skills and well-being as set out in the Scottish Government Economic Strategy to contribute to increasing sustainable economic growth. It will work with other established bodies to realise the vision set out in the skills strategy to focus on the individual development of skills, improve the economic pull of skills development and create cohesive structures for the delivery of skills development. The Government further reports on the trade unions’ role in raising demand for learning and skills through the Union Learning Fund, which has enabled over 800,000 workers to get back into learning since the Fund was introduced in 1998; and over 220,000 workers during 2008–09. The Committee asks the Government to provide in its next report information on how various existing and newly established bodies are actually streamlining the efforts to make skills development and employment closer.

Youth employment. The Committee notes two major specific measures targeting youth employment. Firstly, the Young Persons’ Guarantee (YPG) offers a guarantee of an offer of a job, training or work experience to jobseekers aged 18–24 who reached the six-month point of their claim to Jobseeker’s Allowance. Under this programme, the young unemployed were given a number of options to choose, from applying to existing vacancies to taking up an internship. However, due to the austerity measures, the Government planned to end the YPG programme during the first half of 2011. Another programme called Backing Young Britain (BYB) supported young people aged 18–24 in obtaining work experience. Work experience was available from week 13 of a young person’s Jobseeker’s Allowance claim. However, as part of the public expenditure savings announced in the May 2010 budget, the Future Jobs Fund was scaled back and the recruitment subsidy ceased in June 2010. The Government indicates that it will replace the employment measures with a coherent single programme, the Work Programme. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the impact of the measures taken to meet the needs of young people in order to increase their access to lasting employment.

Persons with disabilities. The Government indicates that it is important that everybody, and in particular health-care professionals and employers, understand the links between work and health and the role they can play in helping people to stay in or return in employment. It is working to take this agenda forward, in partnership with key stakeholders like employers, the National Health Service, health-care professionals, trade unions and insurers. The Government reports an increase in the labour participation rate for persons with disabilities from 39 per cent in 1998 to 48 per cent in 2008, thanks to specific targeted measures, such as the New Deal for Disabled People and Pathways to Work provision, alongside a strengthening of the legal rights of persons with disabilities. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide information on the results of the implementation of the measures designed to address the needs of persons with disabilities in the open labour market.

Older workers. As many people wanted to remain in the labour market beyond the age of 65, the Government indicates that it issued a public consultation paper in July 2010 outlining proposals to phase out the Default Retirement Age (DRA). The Government also indicates that the Age Positive initiative is working with business leaders in nine key sectors – manufacturing, transport, construction, health, retail, hospitality, local authorities, education and finance – to align their respective priorities to the business case for older workers, the value of flexible working and the value to employers of retaining skills and experience by working without a fixed retirement age. The Committee invites the Government to provide information on the impact of measures promoting the participation of older workers in the labour market.

Long-term unemployed. The Government indicates that it recognizes the continuing need to provide strong employment support to people out of work. In this regard, the Committee notes that the Government will introduce a single Work Programme for the long-term unemployed to deliver coherent, integrated support more capable of dealing with complex and overlapping barriers to work. The Work Programme will be an integrated package of support providing personalized help for people who find themselves out of work, based on need rather than benefit claimed. The Committee invites the Government to include information on the implementation of the Work Programme and the achievements in promoting the return of long-term unemployed persons to the labour market.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2009, published 99th ILC session (2010)

Employment trends. The Committee notes the Government’s comprehensive and detailed report received for the period ending May 2008, including information on the measures taken in Northern Ireland and Wales. In its 2005 observation, the Committee took note of a strong labour market situation with a high level of employment and record levels of unemployment. This trend was again noted in the 2007 direct request in which the Committee observed the new historic favourable conditions of the labour market. In its last report, received in September 2008, the Government indicated new unprecedented high levels of employment (in May 2008 the number of persons in employment was 29.59 million). The favourable employment trends, however, began to reverse towards the end of the reporting period. The United Kingdom economy experienced almost 16 years of unbroken gross domestic product (GDP) growth up to the second quarter of 2008, when the economy recorded negative growth. As indicated in May 2009 by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) in its analysis of the impact of the recession on the labour market, the unemployment rate was 7.1 per cent for the three months to March 2009; during this period, the number of unemployed persons increased by 244,000 over the quarter and 592,000 over the year, reaching 2.22 million. The West Midlands has been hardest hit by the recession, with high levels of redundancies combined with high unemployment and large decreases in vacancies. Men have been more affected by the recession than women. According to the analysis of the ONS, the discrepancy may be explained by the greater tendency for men to work in the private sector. Young persons have experienced the largest percentage point increase in unemployment compared with any other age group. The Committee notes the deterioration that has taken place in the employment situation since its last comments. It understands that the Government intends to support employment by stimulating growth. The Committee requests the Government to specify in its next report how, pursuant to Article 2 of the Convention, it keeps under review the measures and policies adopted according to the results achieved in pursuit of the objectives specified in Article 1. It recalls that an active policy designed to promote full, productive and freely chosen employment should be pursued “as a major goal”. As required by Article 3, the Committee hopes that the Government’s report will also include information on consultations and cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations in the formulation and implementation of employment policies to address the current employment situation.

Role of employment services in employment promotion. The Government indicated in its report that there were two key features of its national active labour market policies, namely Jobcentre Plus and the New Deal programmes. Jobcentre Plus offices combined payment of benefits to customers on unemployment benefits with active labour market interventions. The New Deal programmes offer intensive individualized support, delivered through Jobcentre Plus personal advisers. These programmes are primarily directed at those who have been unemployed for long periods of time and offer a number of options. The Committee notes that the New Deal approach has been extended to groups further away from the labour market, including single parents and those on incapacity benefits. It further notes that the programme to roll out Jobcentre Plus across Great Britain was formally completed in July 2007. The Government indicated that, as a result of the programme, a Jobcentre Plus presence was established together with a network of around 800 modern jobcentres for customers seeking face-to-face services, a network of telephone contact centres and a network of benefit delivery centres. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide information on the activities of the employment services, and how they contribute towards implementing active labour market policies.

Education and training policies. The Government indicated that it seeks to build a joined-up employment and skills system that offers flexible and responsive help which supports individuals in preparing for and securing sustained employment. The Committee notes that a Command Paper entitled “Work skills” was published in June 2008 which sets out proposals for: (a) a skills system shaped by employers that puts the individual in charge of their learning; (b) the extension of the principle of rights and responsibilities to those with skills needs that are preventing them from finding work, so that when they claim benefits they also sign up for skills provision; and (c) a skills system that is less top-heavy, ensuring that delivery systems work more closely together and are driven by those who know best how to shape services to meet local needs. The Committee also notes that Skills for Jobs seeks to help those out of work to gain sustainable employment and progress in both employment and learning. Skills for Jobs encompasses an employability skills programme, developed to enable Jobcentre Plus customers to gain, on a part-time or full-time basis, nationally approved literacy, language, numeracy and employability qualifications delivered in an employment-embedded context with the aim to help customers find a job and progress in work; and other projects run locally to help those out of work or economically inactive. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide information in its next report on the policies and measures being implemented to improve skills levels and to coordinate education and training policies with prospective employment opportunities.

Youth employment. The Committee notes from the Office of National Statistics that, in the year to March 2009, unemployment rates for 18–24-year-olds increased by nearly 4 percentage points to 16.1 per cent. In this regard, the Committee notes the information provided by the Government on the New Deal for Young Persons, which is a mandatory programme for 18–24-year-olds who have been claiming job support allowance for at least six months. The programme aims to give participants the skills, confidence and motivation to help them find work. They further enter a “gateway” of intensive job search and specialist help to improve their job prospects. The Government is requested to continue to provide information on the measures taken to meet the needs of young people and on the effect such measures have had on increasing the access of young people to lasting employment.

Persons with disabilities. The Committee notes that the employment rate for persons with disabilities has increased by nine percentage points since 1998 from 39 per cent to 48 per cent in early 2008. The Government attributed this progress to active labour market policies, such as the New Deal for Disabled People and the Pathways to Work provision, alongside a strengthening of the legal rights of persons with disabilities. The Pathways to Work programme seeks to help persons with a disability or a health condition move towards work. The programme provides a series of interviews with a personal adviser, training programmes to increase skills, increase confidence or help to manage a health condition, support once in work and financial incentives to assist in the transition into work or to give a temporary increase in income during the first year in work. The Committee also notes the Work Preparation programme which provides for individually tailored assistance for persons with disabilities to address barriers associated with their disability and prepares them to access the labour market with the necessary confidence to achieve and sustain their job goals. The Work Preparation programme can also be used to help persons who are at risk of losing their job due to their disabilities by helping them overcome difficulties that are affecting their work. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide information on the results of the implementation of the measures designed to address the needs of persons with disabilities.

Long-term unemployed. The Committee notes that the Local Employment Partnerships project aims to help priority group customers into work through a simple deal between the Government and employers, by which the Government prepares long-term jobseekers for work, while employers agree to give them a fair opportunity to find employment, inter alia, through measures such as guaranteed job interviews, work placements, monitoring, work trials and reviewing recruitment processes to be more inclusive. The Government indicated that the project seeks to integrate both employment and skills, and thus the Government seeks to ensure that people not only find sustained employment but also have opportunities to develop their skills during employment. The Government is requested to continue to provide information on the implementation of the Local Employment Partnerships project, and on the effects this has had on promoting the return of long-term unemployed persons to the labour market.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2007, published 97th ILC session (2008)

The Committee notes with interest the comprehensive and detailed information contained in the Government’s report received in September 2006.

1. Employment strategies and trends. The Government indicated that the number of people in employment ending in June 2006 was at an historical high with 28.94 million people in employment, up 42,000 over the quarter and up 240,000 over the year. However, it recalled that there was still more to do to increase labour market participation among vulnerable groups and to meet the challenges related to the ageing population. The national employment strategy addressed these problems through the Department for Work and Pensions Five Year Strategy published in February 2005 and the Welfare Reform Green Paper – A New Deal for Welfare: Empowering People to Work, published in January 2006. The long-term objective was to increase the employment rate to 80 per cent, by taking 1 million persons off incapacity benefits and helping 1 million older workers and 300,000 single parents into work. This was to be done by tackling inactivity and unemployment, in particular in the most deprived areas with high rates of unemployment. The Government introduced the Deprived Areas Fund in October 2006 to provide Jobcentre Plus with the flexibility to address specific local problems and to help move local residents into employment.

2. The Government recalled that the labour market policy was aimed at creating economic conditions under which employment could flourish. The policy was based on four key elements: (a) macroeconomic stability to ensure a solid foundation for the creation of employment; (b) flexibility and diversity in employment that allows employers and workers to choose the form of work that suits them; (c) making work pay by reforming income tax and national insurance contributions, as well as increasing the national minimum wage and introducing tax credits; and (d) active labour market policies delivered through Jobcentre Plus and the New Deals programme. The Committee notes again with interest the data on labour market trends and in particular the measures taken to increase employment opportunities for vulnerable groups. The Committee asks the Government to continue to report on the manner in which measures adopted under the general economic policy, and in particular income and wages policies, contribute “within the framework of a coordinated economic and social policy” to pursuing “as a major goal” the objective of full, productive and freely chosen employment. As requested in its previous comments, it would also appreciate continuing to receive information and data on successes, problems encountered and lessons to be learned from the experience of social partners in the United Kingdom with regard to the application of the provisions of the Convention.

3. Educational and training policies. The Government indicated that the working-age population was becoming better qualified and that the proportion of the population with no qualifications was declining. The White Paper Further Education: Raising Skills, Improving Life Chances, published in March 2006, sets out reforms to the further education sector to equip learners with high-quality skills for productive, sustainable employment and personal fulfilment and ensure that these skills correspond to the demand of employers. It also announced that the Government would continue to support low-income learners and they would extend the Adult Learning Grant to national coverage in 2007–08. The Government further indicated in its report that the United Kingdom had one of the lowest participation rates in education for 16-year-olds in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. In order to encourage youth to stay in education, a reform of the education system for 14–19-year-olds was adopted. The target of the reform was to increase attainment by the age of 19 years, increase the number of young people completing apprenticeships and increase the number of young people participating in education at 17 years. The introduction of the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) in 2004 had also had a positive impact in widening access to both further and higher education by encouraging young people from lower income backgrounds to enter academic or vocational post-compulsory education. More than 297,000 young people benefited from the EMA in 2004–05 and the participation of young persons in full-time education was expected to increase to 492,800 by 2006–07. The Committee notes the extensive measures the Government has put in place to coordinate education and training with prospective employment opportunities. The Committee would appreciate receiving an update on the impact of such measures in overcoming the difficulties in finding lasting employment faced by young workers entering into the labour market.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2005, published 95th ILC session (2006)

The Committee has taken note with interest of the detailed information contained in the Government’s report received in January 2005, the National Plan for Employment 2004, as well as several other reports and publications annexed to it.

1. Employment strategy and trends. The Government recalls that the three key objectives of the European Employment Strategy are full employment, quality and productivity and cohesion and social inclusion. These have been supplemented by employment taskforce recommendations prioritizing: increasing the adaptability of workers and enterprises; attracting more people to enter and remain on the labour market; investing more effectively in human capital and lifelong learning; ensuring effective implementation of reforms through better governance; and promoting gender equality in the labour market. The Government indicates that the country has a strong labour market with high levels of employment at 74.7 per cent, and low levels of unemployment, the lowest in the G7, at 4.8 per cent in 2004. For men, the employment rate stood at 79.5 per cent while the unemployment rate was 5.1 per cent. For women, the employment rate was 69.8 per cent and the unemployment rate was 4.5 per cent. The Government emphasizes that the number of employed people in the United Kingdom is at record levels, up 250,000 persons since 2003, while unemployment is the lowest for about 30 years and continues to fall, with major improvement in long-term unemployment, which is at its lowest level in three decades. The Committee takes due note of this information and would appreciate continuing to receive detailed disaggregated data on labour market trends. It also reminds the Government of the interest it attaches to information relating to the manner in which measures adopted under the general economic policy, and in particular income and wages policies, contribute "within the framework of a coordinated economic and social policy" to pursuing "as a major goal" the objective of full, productive and freely chosen employment (Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention).

2. Labour market policies. In December 2003, the Government published the report "Full employment in every region". The paper sets out the Government’s strategy to achieve full employment by tackling areas of disadvantage and concentrations of worklessness. The Government, actively seeking to combat discrimination in the workplace, has launched Equality Direct, which enables employers to access information and advice on equal opportunities by telephone or through the Internet. Furthermore, the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 and the Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations came into effect in December 2003. These regulations prohibit discrimination on grounds of religion or belief, and sexual orientation in employment, self-employment, occupation and vocational training. The Government also indicates that the Pensions Green Paper "Simplicity, security and choice: Working and saving for retirement" of December 2002 announced measures to give older people more opportunity to remain in work longer. The Government has in fact set a new target for 2005-08 to increase the employment rate of people aged 50-69 and reduce the gap between their employment rate and the overall employment rate.

3. The Government further indicates that following the success of the New Deal for Disabled People, which was the first programme specifically designed to support people on disability and health-related benefits in finding and retaining paid employment, this programme was extended to March 2006. Regarding education and training policies, the Government states that the key target of the learning and skills councils is that by 2010, 90 per cent of young people by age 22 should have participated in a full-time programme fitting them for entry into higher education or skilled employment. Moreover, the Government wants 50 per cent of the 18-30 year-olds to participate in higher education by the year 2010. This target is driven by strong economic and social arguments and the bulk of the increase should come through new types of qualification tailored to the needs of students and the economy. The Government also states that the network of Jobcentre Plus offices is currently being modernized and increased and at completion is expected to include a network of around 1,000 sites. The Committee takes note with interest of these developments, as well as the various programmes described in detail in the report, and looks forward to receive from the Government, in its next report, an assessment of the impact of its active labour market measures, in particular with regard to vulnerable groups like working-age people claiming sickness and disability benefits and low-paid women in part-time work. The Committee would also appreciate continuing to receive information and data on successes, problems encountered and lessons to be learned from the experience of social partners in the United Kingdom with regard to the application of the Convention.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2004, published 93rd ILC session (2005)

The Committee notes that the Government’s report has not been received. It hopes that a report will be supplied for examination by the Committee at its next session and that it will contain full information on the matters raised in its 2002 direct request, which read as follows:

The Committee notes with interest the detailed information contained in the Government’s report  for 1 June 2000-31 May 2002, the Employment Action Plan 2000 and other documentation forwarded, as well as the detailed reply to the 2001 direct request, in particular, concerning projects for the homeless and former drug users.

1. Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. The Government states that the employment rate was 74.7 per cent in March-May 2002, up from 74.6 per cent in 2000. Employment has continued to shift from the production sector to the services sector. Unemployment decreased from 5.7 per cent in March-May 2000 to 5.2 per cent in 2002. The unemployment rate was 5.7 per cent for men and 4.6 per cent for women. Long-term unemployment as a percentage of total unemployment has continued to decline. And youth unemployment is at its lowest level since the mid-1970s, with almost no long-term youth unemployment.

2. The Committee notes that many of the pilot programmes described in detail in the last report have now been launched nationally, based on lessons learned in the pilot phase. It also notes with interest the extension of some programmes, such as the New Deal for Partners in isolated communities, New Deal for 50 Plus, etc. The Committee would appreciate continuing to receive information on the impact of these various programmes on employment promotion for the target groups. The Committee also would appreciate continuing to receive information on macro-level policies (fiscal, monetary, trade, etc.) that directly affect job growth.

3. Furthermore, the Committee notes the comments on some positive aspects of government skills and union training policy made by the TUC on the application of the Convention received in the Office in November 2002 and forwarded to the Government in December 2002.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2002, published 91st ILC session (2003)

The Committee notes with interest the detailed information contained in the Government’s report  for 1 June 2000-31 May 2002, the Employment Action Plan 2000 and other documentation forwarded, as well as the detailed reply to the 2001 direct request, in particular, concerning projects for the homeless and former drug users.

1. Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. The Government states that the employment rate was 74.7 per cent in March-May 2002, up from 74.6 per cent in 2000. Employment has continued to shift from the production sector to the services sector. Unemployment decreased from 5.7 per cent in March-May 2000 to 5.2 per cent in 2002. The unemployment rate was 5.7 per cent for men and 4.6 per cent for women. Long-term unemployment as a percentage of total unemployment has continued to decline. And youth unemployment is at its lowest level since the mid-1970s, with almost no long-term youth unemployment.

2. The Committee notes that many of the pilot programmes described in detail in the last report have now been launched nationally, based on lessons learned in the pilot phase. It also notes with interest the extension of some programmes, such as the New Deal for Partners in isolated communities, New Deal for 50 Plus, etc. The Committee would appreciate continuing to receive information on the impact of these various programmes on employment promotion for the target groups. The Committee also would appreciate continuing to receive information on macro-level policies (fiscal, monetary, trade, etc.) that directly affect job growth.

3. Furthermore, the Committee notes the comments on some positive aspects of government skills and union training policy made by the TUC on the application of the Convention received in the Office in November 2002 and forwarded to the Government in December 2002.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2001, published 90th ILC session (2002)

The Committee notes the information contained in the Government’s report for 1 June 1998 to 31 May 2000, the Employment Action Plan 2000 and other documentation forwarded, as well as the detailed reply to the 1999 observation.

1. Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. The Government states that the employment rate was 74.6 per cent in March-May 2000, up from 73.8 per cent in 1998. Employment declined in the production sector but grew in the services sector, which now accounts for 75 per cent of all workforce jobs. Unemployment decreased from 6.3 per cent in 1998 to 5.6 per cent in 2000. The unemployment rate was 6.1 per cent for men and 5.0 per cent for women. Long-term unemployment as a percentage of total employment dropped from 32 per cent in 1998 to 27 per cent in 2000. The Government describes in detail a broad range of programmes to tackle remaining unemployment and promote participation, including New Deals for a range of jobseekers, tax credits for working families and disabled persons, telephone and Internet-based employment services, Employment Zones and Action Teams for Jobs to assist the long-term unemployed in locations with high levels of unemployment, a one-stop-shop for obtaining a range of benefits and job search assistance, codes of practice concerning older workers and workers with disabilities, Equality Direct to provide employers with information about equal opportunities, rural public transport development, a National Child Care Strategy, and a new career guidance and support service for 13-19 year-olds. Many of these new programmes are still in the pilot stages. The Government states that it pilots new policies to ensure value for money and that initiatives meet the needs of target groups. Please continue to supply information on the impact of these programmes on employment promotion for the various target groups.

2. The Committee notes with interest that the Government is piloting an employment and training programme to support homeless people over 25 years of age and is testing a programme to help jobseekers who are disadvantaged due to former drug use. The Committee would appreciate receiving further information on the success of these programmes in promoting employment of these categories of potential jobseekers.

3. Article 3. The Committee notes that the Government consults with representatives of client groups, with clients directly and with NGOs. The Committee also notes with interest that the Government ensures that the needs and interests of small businesses are considered in the formulation of policy, and small business representative organizations are always consulted when new policies impacting on small businesses are being developed. Please continue to provide information on the manner in which those affected by employment policies are consulted.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1999, published 88th ILC session (2000)

1. Further to previous observations, the Committee notes the Government's report received in October 1998. According to the OECD, the standardized unemployment rate has decreased from 8.3 per cent in 1996 to 7 per cent in 1997 and to 6.3 per cent in 1998; employment has increased by 1.6 per cent in 1997 and 1.4 per cent in 1998; and long-term unemployment has decreased from 38.6 per cent in 1997 to 33.1 per cent in 1998. The Government indicates that workforce jobs increased by 429,000 from 1997 to 1998.

2. The Committee notes with interest the detailed information on the National Employment Action Plan and the new policies to be implemented by the Employment Service. The Government has put into place numerous programmes, including: a Jobfinder's grant to ease the transition from benefit to work; an employment-on-trial scheme which allows people unemployed for over 13 weeks to try a job and leave it voluntarily between the fourth and 12th week without subsequent temporary loss of unemployment benefits; and employment zones with more tailored programmes in geographical areas with particularly high levels of unemployment. The Committee would appreciate being kept informed of the results obtained under the Employment Action Plan and the Employment Service, as requested in the report form under Article 1 of the Convention.

3. According to the Government, part-time jobs reached 6.72 million as of the second quarter of 1998, an increase of 40,000 over the last quarter. According to the OECD, women constitute 80.4 per cent of part-time workers, and part-time employment constitutes 41.2 per cent of employment for women. The Committee notes that the 1999 OECD Employment Outlook report indicates that 22 per cent of the women in part-time work in the United Kingdom would prefer to be employed full time. The Committee would appreciate receiving in the next report further information on part-time employment, in particular on the voluntary nature of part-time work by gender.

4. The Committee requests that the Government indicate whether there are ongoing formal consultative procedures for ensuring the participation of employers' and workers' organizations in the formulation of employment policies.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1997, published 86th ILC session (1998)

With reference to its observation of 1996, the Committee took note of the Government's report which provides additional information on the application of the Convention up to May 1997. The Government states that it is not yet in a position to provide a detailed response to the Committee's previous comments, but that its determination to give priority to job creation, employability and social cohesion has already been clearly established. A "New Deal" for the young and long-term unemployed has been announced and, during the autumn of 1997, the Government was to set out in detail its programme for employment, education and training.

In this context, and in order to contribute to the formulation and application of an employment policy which complies with the Convention, the Committee wishes to recall the main points raised in its previous observations. While noting the change in unemployment figures -- of which the overall rate for the whole country has, according to the Government, again decreased from 7.6 per cent in June 1996 to 5.6 per cent in June 1997 -- the Committee notes that the Trades Union Congress (TUC) made known its great concern at the continued deterioration in the quality of the jobs offered and in the advancement of precarious and poorly paid employment which does not enable workers to exercise fully their right to be represented by a trade union. The criticisms made by the trade union organization also related to the insufficient and ineffective nature of the active labour market policy measures and to the constraints placed on those receiving unemployment benefit to accept jobs which were not suitable for them. In addition, for many years the Committee has observed a worrying trend towards the elimination of tripartite dialogue on employment policies, as required under Article 3 of the Convention.

The Committee hopes that the Government's next report will contain complete and detailed information demonstrating that an active policy to promote full, productive and freely chosen employment, within the framework of a coordinated economic and social policy and in consultation with all the representatives of the persons affected, has been formulated and is being applied.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1996, published 85th ILC session (1997)

Further to its previous observation, the Committee notes that the Government's report for the period ending May 1996 was received on 11 November. Comments of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) were received on 28 November, having been simultaneously transmitted to the Government.

The TUC has referred to the vital role of the public employment services in the achievement of full employment. Rather than being concerned with policing the benefits system, the employment service should be engaged in active labour market policies as advocated by the OECD, including helping individuals return quickly to work, thus maximizing the job impact of growth; improving flexibility of labour markets by providing free services and advice for unemployed people and employers; raising the quality of job opportunities by enforcing minimum standards, informing employers and workers also of training opportunities; and helping overcome discrimination by targeting particular groups. The United Kingdom's comparative record of spending on active labour market measures is said to be poor, and results of training undergone in terms of later employment are weak. Compulsion, says the TUC, forces unemployed people to waste their time on activities which do not help them to get work; and workfare-type schemes force the weakest into badly paid jobs, destroying the good ones.

The Committee hopes the Government will supply its comments.

[The Government is asked to report in detail in 1997.]

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1995, published 83rd ILC session (1996)

1. The Committee notes the Government's comprehensive report for the period ending June 1994, and a communication from the Trades Union Congress (TUC) which was transmitted by the Government and in which the trade union organization gives its observations on the above report. It also notes the information provided to the 80th Session of the Conference (June 1993) and the discussion in the Conference Committee.

2. The Committee notes with interest that the trend of the continued rise in unemployment over the previous period has been reversed. In a context of economic recovery, following a long period of recession, the unemployment rate, which reached 10.5 per cent in December 1992 (14.1 per cent in Northern Ireland), fell back to 9.2 per cent in 1994 (and 13.6 per cent in Northern Ireland). According to the most recent OECD data, this trend of the decline in unemployment has been confirmed and the unemployment rate fell to 8.4 per cent in March 1995. The Government notes that the reaction of the labour market to the improvement in the situation was particularly rapid. However, the TUC draws attention to the decline in activity rates. Furthermore, according to the trade union organization, the moderate recovery in employment rates has to be attributed to the sharp rise in self-employment and an increase in temporary work and part-time work. In its analysis of the employment statistics, the TUC again emphasizes the inequality of ethnic minorities as regards unemployment; in 1993 they experienced unemployment rates two or three times higher than the average, and their situation (particularly with regard to women) has deteriorated further.

3. The Government considers that the results obtained in terms of the decline in unemployment demonstrate the success of its growth strategy which aims to improve the efficiency and competitiveness of the economy by emphasizing its openness to international trade and by lifting excessive regulations that are a burden to trade and harm the labour market. It emphasizes that the priority it gives to containing inflation also contributes to the creation of the necessary conditions for the growth of employment, which remains one of its fundamental objectives, and that a high level of employment cannot be obtained through the application of inflationary policies, as demonstrated by past experience which shows that a boosted demand tends to result in rising inflation and unemployment. The Government also believes that the considerable resources that it is devoting to assisting individuals who are unemployed to find employment and to the modernization of training systems bear witness to the sincerity of its commitment with regard to the principles set out in the Convention. The Committee notes in this respect the detailed information provided on the implementation and evaluation of labour market policy measures. The TUC states that the number of participants in employment and training programmes has declined, as have the resources devoted to active measures, with the Government preferring to rely on measures that are neither costly nor effective, such as jobseekers' programmes. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide full information on the manner in which the various measures are subject to regular evaluation and review in the framework of a coordinated economic and social policy, on the basis of their results in achieving the objectives set out in the Convention.

4. The major part of the TUC's criticism is directed against the harmful effects of the policy of deregulating the labour market on the quality of the jobs provided. In the opinion of the trade union organization, the so-called flexible employment which the Government is encouraging by promoting temporary and part-time work, is in fact resulting in increased insecurity for workers in precarious, low-paid jobs in which they cannot be represented by a trade union. Furthermore, this insecurity is not conducive to training and the mobility of workers. The Committee notes the improvement in numbers unemployed but recalls in this respect that an employment policy in the meaning of the Convention must not only endeavour to pursue the objective of full employment, but should also ensure that there is "the fullest possible opportunity for each worker to qualify for, and to use his skills and endowments in, a job for which he is well suited," without any discrimination (Article 1, paragraph 2(c), of the Convention).

5. With reference to its previous observations, in which it expressed its concern at the difficulties in establishing the tripartite dialogue required by Article 3 of the Convention, the Committee notes the Government's new explanations and its opinion that the fact that one of the social partners holds a different opinion on the means of achieving employment objectives should not be interpreted as implying an absence of consultation. The Government recalls that there are various tripartite institutions in the field of employment policy, but that it regularly reviews institutional arrangements with a view to their usefulness. In this way, it was necessary to abolish the National Economic Development Council (NEDC) when it was concluded that it no longer reflected the needs of the economy. The abolition of the NEDC was supported by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and other employers' organizations. The Government indicates that it now gives priority to direct consultations. Furthermore, it considers that in a pluralist society where many interest groups exist, employers and unions cannot hope to represent all the "persons affected" in the meaning of Article 3. The Committee is bound to join with the Conference Committee in recalling in this respect that representatives of employers and workers have a special interest in collaborating in the formulation of employment policies. It trusts that consultations with the other persons affected, as described by the Government, do not take place to the detriment of dialogue with the principal recognized social partners.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1993, published 80th ILC session (1993)

1. The Committee took note of the Government's report containing detailed information on developments during the period ending June 1992, and replying to its previous observation. It also notes a communication from the Trades Union Congress (TUC), dated 23 December 1992, concerning the application of the Convention. The Committee notes the Government's indication that it would respond to the comments made by the TUC in due course.

2. The Committee notes that the deterioration in the employment situation on which it commented in its previous observation was even more marked during the period under consideration. The recession in economic activity, which has proved to be deeper and more protracted than anticipated, has caused the loss of more than a million jobs in Great Britain and a rapid increase in the unemployment rate which, according to the Government, rose from 5.5 per cent to 9.4 per cent between June 1990 and March 1992. In Northern Ireland, employment dropped by 2.3 per cent and unemployment rose by 4.8 per cent, reaching 14.3 per cent in June 1992. The OECD reports a standardized unemployment rate of 9.7 per cent in June 1992, and indicates that long-term unemployment is moving towards its high level of 1988 and that the contraction of employment has affected all sectors and all regions of the country, including those which were hitherto the least affected. The TUC confirms this. The TUC also considers that the official figures for unemployment understate its real extent, in particular owing to the narrow restrictions on unemployment insurance.

3. In the TUC's view, the high and rising unemployment reflects the failure of a policy which relies solely on the operation of market forces and disregards the obligations under the Convention. For the TUC, the reduction of unemployment and the restoration of full employment are paramount objectives. The Government, for its part, continues to believe that the best means of promoting employment growth is to create the right economic and financial conditions for enterprises to flourish and to provide everyone with the possibility of obtaining economically viable employment. It mentions in this connection the reduction of burdens on business, the reform of the tax system and the significant progress made in reducing inflation which should reinforce the competitive position of British enterprises in the international market and lead to the expansion of employment. The Government recognizes, however, that unemployment may continue to rise even after economic growth has resumed.

4. The Government also believes that the considerable efforts and resources devoted to assisting the unemployed to find work reflect its concern at the rise in unemployment and its commitment to the principles of the Convention. The Employment Service provides the unemployed with a recently completed package of services to help them keep in touch with the labour market and avail themselves of employment opportunities. With regard to the abolition of the community programme on which the Committee commented in its previous observation, the Government indicates that it was replaced in October 1991 by a new temporary employment programme, Employment Action. The Government also reports that it is increasing financial resources for training for employment. The Committee also notes that far-reaching structural reforms are being implemented to ensure that education and training systems are better matched to job prospects. In this connection, it refers the Government to its comments on the application of Convention No. 142. More generally, the Committee would be grateful if in its next report the Government would supplement the information on the objectives and scope of each of the labour market policy programmes with an evaluation of the results they have made possible in terms of the effective and lasting integration of the programmes' participants into employment.

5. With reference to Article 2 of the Convention, which lays down the obligation to "decide on and keep under review, within the framework of a coordinated economic and social policy", the measures to be adopted in order to attain the objectives of full, productive and freely chosen employment, the Committee notes the substantial increase in public expenditure on employment policy measures as a component of the Government's growth strategy. None the less, the strategy is still based on macroeconomic policies which give priority to curbing inflation, even at the risk of increasing unemployment, as is pointed out by the TUC which quotes the Chancellor of the Exchequer in this respect. The Committee hopes that the results obtained in fighting inflation, lowering interest rates, and reinforcing economic competitiveness, referred to in a statement of 21 January 1993 by the Employment Secretary communicated by the Government, will ensure that the employment policy measures are successful and contribute effectively to improving the employment situation which is still a matter of concern in the short term, according to the forecast of both the OECD and the Government.

6. The Committee remains deeply concerned at the serious difficulties encountered in establishing the tripartite consultations on employment policy measures required by Article 3. In this connection, the TUC states that tripartite dialogue about monetary policy or collective dismissals, for example, has been refused; it particularly deplores the abolition of the National Economic Development Council (NEDC) which was the only remaining tripartite body in which issues of employment policy could be pursued. The TUC stresses that the confrontational approach has not remedied the long-standing national economic weaknesses, and considers that consultation of the social partners would demonstrate the Government's determination to pursue the objectives of the Convention. In a spirit of social partnership, it is committed to finding ways of achieving consensus on employment policy. The Committee also notes the Government's general assurances concerning the consultation of employers' and workers' organizations, particularly in the area of training. The Government also indicates that it is conducting consultations on a series of complex technical subjects, but it is not clear whether such consultations effectively meet the requirements of Article 3 in terms of their content and the persons involved. The Committee cannot overstress the importance of giving effect to this essential Article of the Convention which provides that the representatives of persons affected, and in particular the representatives of employers and workers, must be consulted on employment policy matters "with a view to taking fully into account their experience and views and securing their full cooperation in formulating and enlisting support for such policies". It trusts that the Government will shortly be able to report positive developments in this respect. With regard to the specific question of the effective consultation procedures to be pursued in preparing reports on the application of the Convention, the Committee refers the Government to its observation under Convention No. 144.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1992, published 79th ILC session (1992)

1. With reference to its previous observation, the Committee has examined the Government's detailed report for the period ending June 1990, which was received in February 1991, and communications from the Trades Union Congress (TUC) dated 21 December 1990 and 20 December 1991, a copy of which was addressed to the Government. It notes that the Government has not acted on the invitation to transmit its own observations on the points raised by the TUC.

2. The Government's report indicates that employment increased vigorously over most of the period under consideration and that the unemployment rate continued to fall, from 8 per cent in June 1988 to 5.4 per cent in March 1990. The drop in unemployment was smaller in Northern Ireland, where the unemployment rate stood at 13.6 per cent in June 1990. The favourable trend in employment, however, began to be reversed towards the end of the period of report. The information supplied by the TUC, confirmed by OECD surveys and reports, indicates that in 1991 the recession in economic activity was accompanied by an appreciable decline in total employment and a swift increase in unemployment. According to the TUC, more than 850,000 jobs were thus lost between March 1990 and December 1991. Moreover the real extent of unemployment is said to have been largely underestimated by government statistics; according to the TUC's calculations, at least 480,000 persons, of whom a majority are women, are not registered owing in particular to restrictions on unemployment insurance benefits. The TUC expreses its concern at the prospects of a continued increase in unemployment affecting all sectors and all regions, and at the increasing length of periods of unemployment. Its estimate of approximately 2.5 million unemployed by the end of 1991, or some 9 per cent of the economically active population, corresponds to the figures published by the Government and available to the Office.

3. In this context of profound deterioration in the employment situation, the TUC declares itself deeply concerned about the continuing failure to apply the Convention effectively. It mentions its attachment to the principles of the Convention, and regrets that an impact of those principles on the economic and industrial policies of the Government is still not discernible. Far from making full employment a central aim of economic policy, the Government appears to be content to see the return of mass unemployment; it shows no sign of pursuing an active policy to promote full employment. The Government, for its part, considers that the favourable results achieved in terms of employment during the period of report can be credited to a sound economic and financial policy that gives priority to bringing down the level of inflation and improving supply conditions. Consequently its economic policy continues to be aimed mainly at reducing inflation to a low level and creating a favourable climate for investment by undertakings as prerequisites for job creation. The Government maintains, however, that employment prospects also depend on factors beyond its control, such as the level of wage settlements and the state of the world economy. In its latest communication, however, the TUC does not fail to point out that, in the same international economic context, Britain lost 700,000 jobs in the year to June 1991, whereas nearly 1 million jobs were created in the other 11 EEC countries.

4. The Government also refers in its report to labour market policy measures for the placement and training of the unemployed. It states that it is the priority of the Employment Service to ensure that the unemployed, especially the long-term unemployed, do not lose touch with the labour market and are encouraged to use every possible means, including training, of getting back to work. According to the TUC, however, the Government has failed to take the active labour market policy measures required by the Convention, such as improvements in employment services, adult training measures and promotion of the employment of women and disadvantaged groups. In particular the Community Programme has been discontinued and the schemes introduced to replace it have in many cases proved inadequate. More generally, the volume of spending on measures to help unemployed adults is declining significantly and the resources allocated to active labour market policy measures have fallen proportionately far short of those alotted to them by several comparable European countries.

5. The Government emphasises that the interested parties are fully involved at the national, sectoral and local level in the formulation and implementation of employment policies, and that it takes care to conduct broad consultations with the social partners before introducing new legislation in these fields. The TUC, in contrast, considers that, by diminishing the role of tripartite bodies in which questions of employment and training can be discussed, the Government is failing to apply Article 3 of the Convention. In this connection it refers to the abolition of the tripartite Training Commission and the reduction in the frequency of meetings of the National Economic Development Council (NEDC), and states that its proposals for serious discussion of employment policies have been repeatedly rejected by the Government.

6. The Committee notes with regret the persistence of difficulties in establishing direct dialogue and of a profound difference of appreciation between the Government and the TUC concerning the employment policies and their conformity to the provisions of the Convention. With regard to the choice and hierarchy of the Government's economic policy objectives and the deterioration that has taken place in the employment situation since its last comments, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would specify in its next report how, pursuant to Article 2 of the Convention, it keeps under review the measures and policies adopted according to the results achieved in pursuit of the objectives specified in Article 1. It recalls that, in the terms of that Article, an active policy designed to promote full, productive and freely chosen employment should be pursued "as a major goal". Such a policy should aim at ensuring that there is every opportunity for each worker to qualify for a job for which he is well suited, irrespective in particular of sex, race or colour. In view of the trends observed, the Committee can only ask once again for additional information showing that the policy pursued will not have the effect of lowering the level of the Government's commitment with regard to its basic obligations under the Convention. The Government continues to bear the primary responsibility in this matter, as the Conference Committee has already had occasion to point out. With regard in particular to the requirements concerning consultation and cooperation with employers' and workers' organisations in the formulation and implementation of employment policies, the Committee hopes that the Government's report will feature new elements relating to consultation with the persons affected calculated to alleviate the Committee's serious concern with regard to the effective application of Article 3 of the Convention. As regards certain questions of vocational guidance and training, it again refers to its comments under Convention No. 142. Lastly, it repeats its recommendation that the next report should be communicated to the organisations of employers and workers and should be transmitted by the due date in order to facilitate the necessary tripartite dialogue as well as the Committee's own examination.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1991, published 78th ILC session (1991)

1. The Committee takes note of a communication from the Trades Union Congress (TUC), dated 21 December 1990, a copy of which was addressed to the Government.

2. The TUC points out that it had to submit its comments on the application of the Convention before receiving the Government's report for the 1988-90 period. The TUC states that it is deeply concerned about the failure to apply the Convention properly.

3. The Committee takes note of the Government's report received in February 1991. The Government provides detailed information on the application of the Convention and in reply to the Committee's previous comments. It indicates that it has sent copies of its report to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and the TUC, but that it has received no comments in reply.

4. The Committee does not feel itself to be in a position to undertake rapidly a full examination of the application of the Convention, so as to come to any conclusion on the Government's and TUC's diverging assessments as to the consistency of government policy with the principles of the Convention. However, it notes the difficulties that the TUC again raise with regard to the lack of constructive discussion between the Government and the social partners, which continue to be a source of concern to the Committee.

5. The Committee proposes to defer to its next session its examination of the application of the Convention. In order to do so, it would be grateful if the Government would make the observations on the matters raised by the TUC in the above communication. More generally, the Committee can only reiterate the hope that the Government's next reports will be supplied by the due date to the ILO and the employers' and workers' organisations concerned, in order to facilitate the necessary tripartite discussion and the examination of the report. Finally, it asks the Government, as it did in its 1990 observation on Convention No. 142 (human resources development), to provide additional information showing that the policy pursued will not have the effect of lowering the level of the Government's commitment with regard to its main obligations under the Convention, particularly as concerns the requirements for co-operation with employers' and workers' organisations.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1989, published 76th ILC session (1989)

1. In its previous observations in 1987 and 1988, the Committee referred to, amongst other things, the comments received from the Trades Union Congress (TUC) on 16 February 1987 expressing concern about various aspects of the application of the Convention. The Committee expressed its hope that full information would be provided by the Government in due time. It notes the Government's full report for the period ending 30 June 1988 received in February 1989 and the information in reply to its previous observations and to many of the TUC's comments of 1987.

2. The TUC considers that the Committee's comments have offered a constructive approach to tackling mass unemployment in Britain. It drew attention to the continuing high level of unemployment; it pointed out that many of the jobs being created were part-time rather than full-time ones. It referred to distortions caused by changes in the basis of unemployment statistics, which make it impossible to say how many are in or out of work and thus greatly reduce first the usefulness of a means of assessing employment trends formerly available and, secondly, the ability of the Government to fulfil its obligations under the Convention. Special government schemes were designed to discourage registration or temporarily remove groups of the unemployed from the official count: the TUC estimated that, without changes in the basis of calculation, unemployment would be over 400,000 higher.

The TUC indicated that the Government has consistently failed to use economic opportunities - such as those presented by self-sufficiency in energy - to reduce unemployment. The Government, it was pointed out, still refuses to give any indication as to when its strategy may be expected to reduce unemployment substantially.

As regards regional policies, the TUC indicated that the North-South incomes gap has widened, and the Government has cut regional aid. As regards the relation between wages and employment, it pointed to OECD research, which has shown there is no direct link between national wage levels and national unemployment, or between national rates of job mobility and employment: the TUC therefore does not accept government criticism of the well-established system of national pay bargaining. The TUC referred to an EEC Commission study (of March 1986), naming lack of effective demand as the greatest obstacle to the development of manufacturing industry. The TUC stated that the Government has frequently rejected its proposals for a constructive dialogue with employers and workers on employment problems. It stated that the Government has continued to have no regard to its commitment under the Convention to give priority to the achievement of full employment and has refused to review an approach which has clearly failed. The Committee has in addition taken due note of the TUC's comments in relation to Convention No. 142 concerning measures which, it is stated, will have the effect of forcing young people into jobs, education or training, by removing certain social security entitlements.

3. According to information provided by the Government in its last report, employment rose over the period of 1986-88, mainly in the service sector, while national unemployment stood at 10.7 per cent in 1987 and continued to fall until May 1988, when it was 8.5 per cent for Great Britain and 17.1 per cent for Northern Ireland. The Government supplies extracts from official publications explaining the recent revisions of the basis of unemployment statistics. The Government indicates that inflation is a major cause of high unemployment and that its macro-economic policies are designed to keep inflation low and stable, while its micro-economic policies promote an efficient and competitive market economy, thus creating new employment opportunities. In reply to the TUC observations, the Government sees a much greater role than the TUC in wage and labour market flexibility as a means to reduce unemployment and improve the operation of the labour market; but the OECD study referred to by the TUC, differs in its view of the effects of wages on employment. The Government again stresses the influences on employment beyond its control, in particular the world economy and the level of wage settlements. The Government states that its research shows that if wages were to increase more slowly 110,000 to 220,000 more jobs would be created; it will continue to draw attention to the concept of greater geographical variation in pay, despite the unfavourable response of the TUC. It indicates that frictional unemployment associated with structural change may be higher when such change is more rapid. It refers to cuts in income tax and the promotion of the mutilateral trading system as enhancing employment prospects. Its industrial policy has been marked by a series of "initiatives" aimed at encouraging wealth creation through advice and assistance. It states that it has aimed to promote small firms, particularly in the regions and in inner cities. It has reorganised the public employment service to place an emphasis on advice for those going into business for themselves. The report again refers to a variety of employment measures, said to be aimed primarily at long-term and young unemployed and includes detailed information on these and the above-mentioned measures and policies. The Government indicates that consultations on employment take place in the tripartite National Economic Development Council (NEDC). The NEDC Annual Report, 1986-87, supplied by the Government, indicates in particular that the Council spent much of its time considering how the prospects for employment could be improved and continued more intensively to explore the relationship between pay and employment.

4. The Committee notes that studies published by the OECD (in particular the 1988 Economic Survey of the United Kingdom) indicate that employment growth was confined mainly to the service sector, self-employment and part-time employment; about a third of the total workforce is estimated now to be in "flexible" categories (temporary workers, permanent part-time workers or permanent self-employed). As regards employment, the OECD Economic Survey indicates that the rate of unemployment has fallen partly due to greater strength of activity, partly due to the effects of specific government programmes such as RESTART or YTS, which have reduced the numbers of unemployed on the registers, especially the numbers of young unemployed. OECD expects unemployment to rise again slightly in 1990. Inflation has remained above the OECD average and has recently accelerated.

The Committee notes that, whilst the rate of unemployment has shown a clear improvement over the figures reached in the early 1980s, it is, as the Government observes, still high by historical standards: according to the 1988 OECD Economic Survey, the average unemployment rate from 1980 to date of 9.6 per cent is more than twice the rate in the 1973-79 cycle. In this light, in view of the relation drawn by the Government over many years between inflation and unemployment, and in view of the difficulties mentioned by the TUC - not least that of establishing a constructive dialogue with employers and workers and other persons affected by employment policies in conformity with Article 3 of the Convention - the Committee continues to entertain concern as to the extent to which an active policy for full, productive and freely chosen employment in the terms of Article 1 of the Convention has been pursued. As regards certain questions of vocational guidance and training, it would again refer to its comments under Convention No. 142. It again expresses the hope that the next report will be supplied by the due date, in order to facilitate the necessary tripartite consideration as well as the Committee's own examination.