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The IER Podcast · Yesterday · 44 min

Zero Hours Contracts

A flagship policy of the Starmer Government’s upgrade to workers’ rights was the promise to end the exploitative use of zero-hours contracts. Though these types of casual labour arrangements now referred to as ‘zero-hours contracts’ have been around for a long time, the past decade has seen the labour movement call out employers for abusing the one-sided flexibility of these arrangements, plunging millions into insecurity and low wages. In present day, ONS data (2025) shows near record levels of zero hours contracts: 1.7 million people in the UK are currently subjected to these arrangements, which is the second-highest figure ever recorded, and nearly three in four of them are in what’s classed as severely insecure work. Labour’s New Deal for Working People had promised to ban these contracts altogether, but four years later this materialised in the ERA 2025 as a guaranteed hours framework that preserves the legal status of zero hours contracts. In this episode, Director of the Institute of Employment Rights, James Harrison is in conversation with Dr Zoe Adams, labour law scholar and Affiliated Lecturer in Law at King’s College, University of Cambridge. She is also the author of ‘The Legal Concept of Work’ (2022), and ‘Labour and the Wage’ (2020). In this episode, Dr Adams explains the mechanism behind the ERA 2025 approach to restricting the use of zero-hours contracts, and evaluates whether these provisions go far enough to bring their use to an end. James and Zoe also talk about the dangers ahead with loopholes left open during the consultation period, and worries surrounding the enforcement of the guaranteed hours offer. They also consider the ways in which unscrupulous employers will still be able to get around this legislation if the Government doesn’t commit to strengthening it and addressing the causes of over-reliance on casual labour arrangements. Take a look at the Institute’s factsheet on ZHCs, authored by Dr Adams: https://www.ier.org.uk/employment-rights-bill-ier-fact-sheets/ This IER podcast and views expressed by experts does not necessarily reflect the collective view of the Institute. The responsibility of the Institute is limited to approving its media, publications, briefings and responses as worthy of consideration.

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A flagship policy of the Starmer Government’s upgrade to workers’ rights was the promise to end the exploitative use of zero-hours contracts. Though these types of casual labour arrangements now referred to as ‘zero-hours contracts’ have been around for a long time, the past decade has seen the labour movement call out employers for abusing the one-sided flexibility of these arrangements, plunging millions into insecurity and low wages.


In present day, ONS data (2025) shows near record levels of zero hours contracts: 1.7 million people in the UK are currently subjected to these arrangements, which is the second-highest figure ever recorded, and nearly three in four of them are in what’s classed as severely insecure work.


Labour’s New Deal for Working People had promised to ban these contracts altogether, but four years later this materialised in the ERA 2025 as a guaranteed hours framework that preserves the legal status of zero hours contracts.


In this episode, Director of the Institute of Employment Rights, James Harrison is in conversation with Dr Zoe Adams, labour law scholar and Affiliated Lecturer in Law at King’s College, University of Cambridge. She is also the author of ‘The Legal Concept of Work’ (2022), and ‘Labour and the Wage’ (2020).


In this episode, Dr Adams explains the mechanism behind the ERA 2025 approach to restricting the use of zero-hours contracts, and evaluates whether these provisions go far enough to bring their use to an end. James and Zoe also talk about the dangers ahead with loopholes left open during the consultation period, and worries surrounding the enforcement of the guaranteed hours offer. They also consider the ways in which unscrupulous employers will still be able to get around this legislation if the Government doesn’t commit to strengthening it and addressing the causes of over-reliance on casual labour arrangements. 


Take a look at the Institute’s factsheet on ZHCs, authored by Dr Adams: https://www.ier.org.uk/employment-rights-bill-ier-fact-sheets/


This IER podcast and views expressed by experts does not necessarily reflect the collective view of the Institute. The responsibility of the Institute is limited to approving its media, publications, briefings and responses as worthy of consideration.

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