Victoria Speed, the outgoing director of the Employment Legal Advice Network (ELAN) reflects on her time and the current climate of workers’ rights.
For over four and a half years I’ve led ELAN, a network of not-for-profit organisations working to help people in precarious, low-paid jobs understand their employment rights and how to enforce them.
This has been a deeply rewarding role. I’ve learned so much from ELAN members and the many professional relationships with a range of stakeholders including the judiciary, civil service, private sector and wider civil society. I’ve also gained insight into challenges of the employment justice system and the significant barriers faced by our most vulnerable workers in accessing it.
The enormous challenges facing low-paid workers
Exploitation and employment rights breaches (including simple rights to pay) are all too common. But when someone faces an issue at work, accessing justice is an enormous challenge.
First, workers need to know they even have rights. But there are wide gaps in the public’s knowledge about employment law. This is a particularly acute problem for vulnerable workers.
Second, once aware of their rights, they must then understand what steps to take to enforce them. This usually means learning a whole new language that will include terms like ACAS, ET1, disclosure, preliminary hearings, schedule of loss and more. For many, this can be overwhelming.
Third, workers need to take steps within strict time limits - usually within three months less a day after the issue took place. This presents a substantial barrier to justice.
If you are attempting to navigate this process alone, it is a long and isolating journey. So what help is there?
There is limited support available
Paying for legal advice is out of the question for many workers. Only 22.3% of employees are members of a trade union, leaving the vast majority of workers without collective support in the workplace. There is no Legal Aid available for common complaints like unauthorised deductions from wages, holiday pay disputes, or unfair dismissal. Even for many discrimination cases, Legal Aid is inaccessible due to strict means testing.
The not-for-profit advice sector offers some help but cannot meet demand. The grant funding that most charities rely on to fund employment advice services is simply not enough to enable all workers to effectively hold their employers to account. Even where the advice sector can help, support is usually limited to one off advice rather than ongoing assistance with casework.
The harshest thing I have learned through ELAN is that for those who do see their case through to employment tribunal and win, many don’t actually receive the financial award.
For low-paid, non-unionised workers with no resources to pay for legal advice, the reality is often stark: they must navigate the justice system alone. And the justice system in workplace rights is fragmented, confusing and there are frequently imbalances of power.
Many give up. Others call around trying to find someone to help. Just last month I received an email from someone seeking assistance. They had reached out to more than 10 organisations. “Part of me is losing hope,” they said. “But I am still trying to be optimistic”. I want so much to share this optimism.
The harshest thing I have learned through ELAN is that for those who do see their case through to employment tribunal and win, many don’t actually receive the financial award. Faced with more legal proceedings to enforce the judgement, many finally give up. What justice is there in this?
Looking to the future
Systemic change is needed to address these challenges. The government’s proposed Employment Rights Bill offers some hope. My view is that unless all workers – including the most vulnerable – actually know about and have access to employment rights, and those rights are properly enforced, it will mean very little. This includes migrant workers who face unique challenges and provide vital roles in our communities, including in the cleaning and social care sectors. I will follow with interest the Bill’s passage through Parliament.
Better data collection through the online employment tribunal system could extend to prompting employers to pay awards and to more full understanding of the scale of the enforcement issue with tribunal awards.
From the frontline advisers to the policy experts, to the volunteer judges, barristers and solicitors involved in ELAN, there is community so strong that I cannot help feel optimism that change will happen.
I’m hopeful that AI will offer solutions to improve the efficiency of existing advice services and that greater collaboration will enable more workers to benefit from decent work.
However, to really create change requires decent, knowledgeable people motivated to make a difference and I leave ELAN knowing that, in this respect, there is a great deal of hope. From the frontline advisers to the policy experts, to the volunteer judges, barristers and solicitors involved in ELAN, there is community so strong that I cannot help feel optimism that change will happen.
So as I prepare to hand over my caretaking role of ELAN, I send a huge thanks to ELAN members for embracing our employment advice community. My memories span from lockdowns, to elections with many highlights in between. When I first joined you all on screen in April 2020 I had no idea what a privilege it would be to work with you all.
We're seeking expressions of interest for the role of consultant director of the Employment Legal Network (ELAN). We are keen to receive applications from independent consultants or organisations interested in hosting the role. Find out more here. Deadline 15 January 2025.
