Government Labour Market Czar called to work with GMB

GMB Southern Region welcome the appointment of Professor Sir David Metcalf as Director of Labour Market Enforcement responsible for setting priorities at the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority, Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate and HMRC National Minimum Wage.

Sir David Metcalf has been appointed to this new governmental role which has been set up to stop exploitation of labour market laws.

Paul Maloney, GMB Southern region secretary, said “GMB want Sir David to work with Trades Unions on the ground to deal with the following agenda:

1) Employers’ refusal to recognise rights of staff to ask a union to represent them.
2) Two tier employment created from agency and outsourcing work.
3) The gig economy.
4) Zero hours contracts.
5) Bogus self-employment.
6) Abuse of migrant labour.
7) Non-payment of national minimum wage, national living wage and paid holidays.
8) Use of umbrella companies to evade national insurance.

GMB pledge to work with Sir David to help expose and stop exploitation in the UK labour market.”

Contact: Paul Maloney on 07801 343839 or Michelle Gordon on 07866 369259

Notes to Editors:

1) Professor Sir David Metcalf CBE – Biography
Sir David Metcalf was Chair of the Migration Advisory Committee from 2007 to 2016.
Before that he was a member of the Senior Salaries Review Body from 2009 to 2015, providing recommendations on pay for Judges, Senior Civil Services, top military and senior NHS managers.
He was a founding member of the Low Pay Commission, serving for 10 years from 1997 to 2007 advising the government on National Minimum Wage rates.
Sir David is also director of the Starting Price Regulatory Commission, ensuring the returned price of a bet reflects the starting price.
He is currently an Emirates professor at the London School of Economics and has written over 100 publications on labour economics and industrial relations.
Previous roles in government:
Chair of the Migration Advisory Committee – 2007 to 2016

2) Director of Labour Market Enforcement
The Director of Labour Market Enforcement is responsible for setting priorities for the following enforcement bodies:
*Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EAS)
*Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA)
*HMRC National Minimum Wage (HMRC-NMW)
They will set a strategy and create an intelligence hub enabling data sharing between the director, enforcement bodies and other bodies with intelligence.