Shop Direct (Greater Manchester) — House of Commons, 2018-05-01
Topic: Labor
Deborah Angela Elspeth Marie Abrahams (Labour, Centre-left): My hon. Friend makes a very valid point, and this needs to be explored. Again, I was struck by the lack of awareness among the directors we met about that situation, which really needs to be given considerably more thought I would be grateful to the Minister for an assurance that focused plans will be developed regarding skills and retraining packages, employment advice and financial support. Locally, it is vital for all parties, including the Government, to partner with Get Oldham Working, which provides holistic support to Oldham residents to access employment and training opportunities, as well as to work with local employers to understand the workforce and skills requirements better. Will the Minister commit to his Department working with the council on workforce support and employment opportunities for current Shop Direct employees, and will BEIS representatives be actively involved in the taskforce that has been set up for this purpose? What discussions has he had about supporting Oldham Council and Shop Direct to bring new employment to the Shaw and Chadderton sites, and about ensuring that the future of all Greater Manchester sites are secured Turning to the wider implications of automation, the move to increased automation is given as a key driver behind Shop Direct’s proposals to move to the east midlands. The Minister will be aware that the Bank of England estimates that 15 million UK jobs will be affected by automation by the 2030s, with PricewaterhouseCoopers saying that a third of all UK jobs will be affected. There is already evidence of this in the retail sector and although automation will affect jobs at all levels, it will hit low-paid jobs first. The potential effect on already widening inequalities is a real risk, and the estimates do not even factor in the impact of Brexit on the economy and jobs We therefore need to know what measures the Government have put in place to support workers affected by the ascendance of automation. What are the Government doing to assess the impact on the labour market as a whole, and on socioeconomic inequalities? The Minister’s letter mentions the Matthew Taylor report and his positive outlook on innovation, but while we must embrace change we must also manage it, recognising that at each stage both positive and negative effects will be associated with industrial progress—as history has taught us—and we must look to mitigate the negative effects. The "we" in this are businesses, workers and their unions, and the Government. What, specifically, is being proposed to mitigate the negative effects of automation? For example, what engagement have the Government had with businesses regarding the challenges of automation, and in particular the way employers manage the transition to automation that supports their needs to compete, but recognises their responsibilities as employers? The Government’s industrial strategy, published last year, stated that the Government will introduce a national retraining scheme in England by the end of this Parliament, with a high-level advisory group—the National Retraining Partnership—bringing together the Government, businesses and workers, through the Confederation of British Industry and the Trades Union Congress, to set the scheme’s strategic direction and oversee implementation. Given that the first meeting was only on 5 March, what progress has been made to date on this and how does the Minister envision this helping my constituents in Shaw and others affected across Greater Manchester? In addition, what support will be offered to agency workers, such as those at Blue Arrow, who will feel the impact in my constituency; and will it be worker led rather than employer led The sum of £40 million was announced in the spring statement to test innovative approaches to help adults upskill and reskill. What progress has been made on these pilots, and will the Minister consider a pilot in the Shaw and Greater Manchester areas? Information from Oldham Council indicates that Oldham’s labour market expects growth in health and social care, and business and financial services, which could be ideal for a national retraining scheme pilot, supporting career changers. I hope that the Minister will say something about that in his remarks I gently say to the Minister that, given that the Government cut £1.15 billion from the adult skills budget between 2010 and 2015, and the adult education budget is 40% less than it was 10 years ago, the money allocated to the national retraining scheme is a drop in the ocean. But whatever funding is available, I want to make sure that Oldham, and Greater Manchester as a whole, gets a fair crack at it Our vision for this country must be for a high-skill, high-pay, knowledge-driven economy, and the Government must recognise the investment needed to achieve that. Focusing, as much of the industrial strategy does, on a few elite sectors will not deliver on the ambition to transform Britain’s economy. Will the Minister therefore look at setting up sector councils, modelled on the highly successful Automotive Skills, for every strategically important industry, bringing together Government, business, trade associations, research councils and so on, so that they can collaboratively plan and take action for the future security and growth of each sector, including small and medium enterprises As people increasingly transition between jobs, training and re-training, we need to have a responsive, supportive and enabling social security system. This does not exist at the moment. The hostile environment in the Home Office is replicated in the Department for Work and Pensions. This has to stop. I would be grateful for the Minister’s reassurance that he will do everything in his power to work with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to ensure that my constituents are afforded the dignity and respect that they deserve, and that he will report back to the House on the joint work that he will undertake with the Secretary of State to make our social security system fit for purpose for everyone affected by this new world of work It is clear that as well as affecting nearly 2,000 workers in Greater Manchester, Shop Direct’s proposal to relocate and move towards greater automation in its distribution facilities is indicative of profound changes in the labour market and the nature of work. Together with colleagues, I will continue to do all I can to support the 1,992 people affected by this decision and to maintain jobs on the sites affected. There are serious questions for Ministers about the impact of automation on the labour market, the increasingly insecure nature of work and our inadequate social security system. All those issues need to be addressed. I look forward to the Minister’s response to the many points I have raised.