PRESS RELEASE
from the office of Joan Walley MP

Joan Walley MP helps

bring redundancy fairness one step closer

Action by Joan Walley MP for Stoke-on-Trent North, means that a better deal for workers in hard times is now one step closer.
Joan is a leading supporter of the Statutory Redundancy Pay (Amendment) Bill, and was present on March 13th for its successful second reading in the Commons – a crucial step in the legislative process. If the Bill is enacted into law, it will increase the value of statutory redundancy pay by over £200 for every year that an employee has worked in a company.
The value of redundancy pay has declined since its introduction in 1965, and is now capped at less than 60% of average earnings, meaning workers are losing out on thousands of pounds at the very moment they need it most. Joan estimates that three out of every four workers facing redundancy today would benefit from a change to the redundancy pay level: She said

"Last week’s victory in Parliament was critical. We are now one step closer to making sure that hard-hit workers get a fairer deal."
"In my constituency, just as in others up and down the land, workers are worried that they or someone in their family could be out of work. My priority is to do everything in my power to help people stay in work but I will also be fighting hard to make sure that where people do lose their jobs they are compensated appropriately and able to support themselves and their families."
The Bill is also backed by a coalition of the country’s leading unions. The chair of that coalition is Tony Woodley (also the joint General Secretary of Britain’s largest trade union, UNITE) who thanked Ms Walley for her continued support:
"Workers take very close note of those who appreciate the difficulties they are going through and are striving to help them. Joan Walley is a true friend of working people"
"This campaign is a priority issue for the trade union movement. With the support of Joan we will win justice and deliver fair play on redundancy pay."
The Bill now awaits its Committee stage in the House of Commons, although trade unions and Labour MPs are urging the government not to delay and to make the changes in the Budget.
Ms Walley said:
"With the Budget looming there is a real opportunity before us to bring redundancy pay into line with the real cost of living. It would be tremendous to offer a helping hand to workers faced with tough times before the summer is out."