Gig workers to receive holiday and sick pay

 Gig economy workers to receive holiday and sick pay

The government is to give gig economy workers new rights including holiday and sick pay for the first time. Its Good Work plan is in answer to last year"s Taylor Review which recommended changes in conditions to reflect modern working practices. The right to holiday and sick pay will be enforced for the first time by HMRC. The government will also ask the Low Pay Commission to consider a higher minimum wage for workers on zero-hour contracts, and says it may also repeal laws that allow agencies to employ workers on cheaper rates. However, the Institute of Directors said the government should have gone further and reformed National Insurance. Stephen Martin, director general of the IoD, said: "The lack of action on tax reform is a wasted opportunity. The different tax treatment of the employed and self-employed has been a driving force behind the rise in self-employment in recent years, but tax treatment should not determine a person"s choice of employment status.”

Source: BBC News (07/02/2018)