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Labour calls for Aricultural Wages Board not to be abolished | Labour calls for Aricultural Wages Board not to be abolished |
(about 1 hour later) | |
Abolishing the Agricultural Wages Board will result in the "under-cutting" of British labourers by foreign workers, Labour has warned. | |
In a Commons debate, ministers said the quango, which sets rates of pay for labourers and managers, was obsolete and wasteful. | |
But Labour argued that getting rid of it would lead to a "race to the bottom" over wages. | |
The board sets pay levels for 153,000 workers in England and Wales. | The board sets pay levels for 153,000 workers in England and Wales. |
Established in 1948, it ensures that employers provide a bed and drinking water, as well as holiday pay. | |
It will be abolished if the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill gains Royal Assent in its present form. | It will be abolished if the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill gains Royal Assent in its present form. |
Labour brought a debate on the issue, with shadow environment secretary Mary Creagh saying: "We don't want to see either a race to the bottom on wages or a great increase in the amount employers charge workers for their tied accommodation, for their hot bed in a caravan, which would mean they would end up effectively working for below national minimum wage and under-cutting British workers out of the market." | |
She told MPs workers would "see their wages eroded over time". | She told MPs workers would "see their wages eroded over time". |
Conservative James Paice, a former agriculture minister, said there was no "evidence" to back up this assertion, but Ms Creagh insisted the abolition of the board would take money "out of workers' pockets". | Conservative James Paice, a former agriculture minister, said there was no "evidence" to back up this assertion, but Ms Creagh insisted the abolition of the board would take money "out of workers' pockets". |
Ministers say that, with the minimum wage already in place, there is no need for the board, and that closing it will cut public spending at a difficult time for the economy. | |
Environment Secretary Owen Paterson told MPs: "This is the last throwback to an era where these councils did a worthy job in those days, but we have a free and expanding market and demand for labour in the countryside and I am absolutely confident that wages will be well above those set by the AWB. | |
"It's not a question of 'if'. Wages are now well above those levels." | |
But Liberal Democrat MP Andrew George said it was a "regrettable" decision by the government which would see damage to the terms and conditions of agricultural workers. |