The UK government’s employment rights bill has made “important strides” to stop another P&O Ferries scandal happening – but more must be done, according to trade unions.
The TUC, Nautilus and RMT unions said more measures to prevent “unscrupulous” employers such as P&O Ferries from treating staff like “disposable labour” were needed as they marked the three-year anniversary of the firing by P&O of UK workers.
More than 780 mainly British workers were sacked by P&O Ferries with no notice or consultation, and replaced with low-cost agency staff from countries including India, the Philippines and Malaysia. The scandal sparked outrage across Britain and political parties. The company later admitted that the lack of consultation before the sackings meant it broke UK employment law.
In November, the Guardian reported that the company spent 47m on the sackings. The scandal re-emerged the month before when the prime minister, Keir Starmer, rebuked his transport secretary, Louise Haigh, after she referred to the ferry company as a “rogue operator”. DP World, P&O’s Dubai-based owner, had reportedly threatened to pull out of a 1bn investment in the UK.
A Guardian and ITV News investigation revealed a year ago that the new staff were earning as little as 4.87 an hour, lower than stated by the company.
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