On 22nd July 2010 the Con-Dem coalition government announced plans to scrap the Agricultural Wages Board (AWB) putting thousands of rural and agricultural workers’ pay and conditions in jeopardy.
In October, ministers confirmed that the Agricultural Wages Board (AWB) would be scrapped as part of the so-called “bonfire of quangos”. The AWB has been in existence since the first world war and protects agricultural workers’ pay and conditions. If the AWB is removed not only will agricultural workers suffer but also their employers, the farmers will be effected. Pay bargaining would become instantly fragmented and every farmer that employs workers would have to become a negotiator overnight.
Abolition of the AWB would give bad employers the opportunity to undercut wage agreements in a race to the bottom as rates sink closer to the national minimum wage. That’s why Unite is campaigning to stop the abolition of the AWB.
- The Date: Come along on Wednesday 9th February 2011
- The Place: Old Palace Yard, Westminster, London SW1P 3JY.
- The Time: The demonstration will start at 12.30pm and the lobby will commence at 2pm.
