LOCAL MS Jack Sargeant this week led a debate in the Senedd where he called for the use of “fire and rehire” to be banned by the UK Government.

Jack’s debate was entitled – “A fair deal for workers.”

Fire and rehire has shot to prominence this year following a number of high-profile cases including British Gas using it to worsen the terms and conditions of their employees.

The controversial process is where employers threaten employees with the sack if they do not accept a worsening of their pay and conditions.

In the Senedd, Jack said: “The disgusting scandal of fire and rehire that seeks to lessen workers' terms and conditions with the threat of the sack if they don't agree. Such practices, as the First Minister so eloquently stated last week, have no place in Wales, and they have no place anywhere else.

“Deputy Llywydd, this practice is abhorrent, and we should all stand with unions to say it must stop. Warm words are not enough, and the UK Conservative Government should immediately ban fire and rehire.

“I, for one, am not interested in voluntary codes; working people need the full protection of the law.”

During his speech, Jack also gave examples of where employers and employees had pulled together during the pandemic siting the example of the ventilator challenge that saw a huge of amount of ventilators built at Airbus.

Jack added: “We saw workers putting their lives on hold to switch production to ventilators at a moment's notice. Non-engineers will not understand how difficult that is. What those workers did was miraculous and saved lives.

“Six months of normal ventilator production in just one day. And I repeat that: six months of normal ventilator production in just one single day.”

Jack also paid tribute to the Unite Union workplace rep at Airbus Daz Reynolds for his work in protecting jobs.

The Labour MS continued: “We see countless examples of the amazing work that trade unions—and in particular shop stewards like Unite's Daz Reynolds—do for our communities.

“Again, the work done at Airbus last year by Daz and Unite Wales the Union, to secure jobs, was a shining example of social partnership in action. Unions stepped in and negotiated a shorter working week, saving 360 highly skilled well-paid jobs.”