As we enter Winter, the true depth, breadth and likely length of the Covid-19 crisis has become increasingly clear. Encouraged by the initial success of the national lockdown in reducing infection rates, and driven by an understandable desire to get ‘back to normal’ and re-start those parts of the economy that were frozen, the UK’s policy focus over the summer rapidly turned to winding down support schemes and building a recovery that supported the people and places worst affected. But an economic crisis driven by a global pandemic was unlikely to ever follow the usual pattern of downturn followed by recovery. With infection rates rising rapidly once again, strict public health measures reintroduced and a widely available vaccine still a year away at best, we remain closer to the beginning of this crisis than the end. This presents fundamental challenges to all parts of our economy and the labour markets of villages, towns and cities all across the country. In response, we have seen a series of announcements from the Government which seek to provide additional support to businesses and workers, from the newJob Support Scheme , which provides a partial subsidy to the wages of workers who are able to work afifth of their normal hours, to increased investment in employment support and trainingaimed at supporting those who lose their jobs to find new employment. But there remain real concerns that these measures will prove insufficient to stem rising unemployment in the months to come. One part of the economy particularly impacted by the pandemic is the retail sector. Despite being the largest source of private sector employment in the UK, with 2.8 million workers employed nationally at the beginning of 2020, long-term changes in demand and consumption mean that for many years retail workers have faced an increasingly insecure working life characterised by low pay, temporary contracts, irregular hours and limited opportunities for career progression. The Work Foundation’s latest research shows average pay in retail was already much lower than in other sectors prior to the pandemic, with one in three workers paid the minimumwage, meaning – on average – full-time workers in the retail sector earn approximately £135 less each week than those in other sectors. Likewise, part-time and temporary contracts are common in the sector, with 48.5%of retail employees working part-time, compared to only 26.5% across the UK, and 128,000 workers on precarious temporary contracts. In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, this means many workers are likely to lack employment protections and essential pay entitlements over the coming period. 16 | ʼʼ part-time and temporary contracts are common in the sector, with48.5% of retail employees working part-time, compared to only26.5% across the UK, and128,000 workers on precarious temporary contracts. ʻʻ
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