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We Asked an Expert What Would Happen If the UK Banned Zero Hour Contracts Tomorrow

New Zealand have just done it, so could it work here?

If you've been to a Wetherspoons, Cineworld or Sports Direct, then chances are you've been served by someone on a zero hours contract.

They are just some of the many British businesses that keep workers on these flimsy "contracts" that basically mean employers have no obligation to guarantee workers minimum hours of work per week, and in return they often expect workers to be around to work 24/7. Over 800,000 people in the UK are on a zero-hours contact, making up 2.5 percent of the employed UK workforce – a figure that's increased eight times in the last 10 years.

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Now, New Zealand has made the monumental decision to outlaw them – thanks to a campaign by unions there. We wanted to know whether the same thing could happen in the UK, so we asked Andrea Broughton, a research fellow at the Institute of Employment Studies to explain.

VICE. Hi Andrea. What would happen if the UK banned zero hour working contracts?
AB: It wouldn't have a big impact on the economy on the whole, due to the fact that zero hour contracts are not used that widely – they make up only 2.5 percent of the workforce. But a ban would have a significant impact on certain sectors in the shorter term, like in retail and hospitality where the contracts are relied on more.

So what would happen in the fast food and retail sectors, where zero hour contracts are more widely used?
Employers would have to think of different ways to deal with fluctuation and demand – because that's what these contracts are about. It costs employers a lot to have dead time where there aren't a lot of customers but you have a lot of workers standing around on the shop floor. These companies would need to think about rostering staff more carefully and do more research on when they are likely to be busy and when they will be less busy. They could still ensure flexibility by using contracts that are variable in hours but would guarantee a certain amount of minimum hours.

If zero hour contracts were banned in the UK right now, would the workers who were on them lose their jobs?
No, they would just have their contracts amended, depending on what the legislation said. If the legislation said you had to give workers a minimum amount of working hours, then their contacts would adopt that. It wouldn't be in anybody's favour to lay off workers, as the employer need employees as much as the employees need them. In fact I don't think it would be a huge deal if legislation were changed to give all employees 10 hours minimum of work. Employers can work around that.

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What about the people who say they like zero hours contracts because it gives them "flexibility"?
It depends entirely on the individual's circumstances. The Office of National Statistics says 20 percent of people in zero hours contracts are in full-time education. When you're a student you can be more flexible with your time, so for them I would think it fits in quite well. But if you have a family and need to plan your childcare and know for sure when you will be working, it's no good. It also means that workers may not be entitled to certain social security benefits if they are on such a flexible contract.

Will the New Zealand ban stimulate a debate on zero hour contracts here in the UK?
Yes, trade unions here are already campaigning against zero hour contracts so I'm sure they will look at New Zealand quite carefully. There was a change in the law recently that meant that there is no exclusivity anymore in these contracts – so people can work for multiple employers and top up hours with other jobs. This looks good on paper but in practice what often happens is that if you are offered hours by an employer and you turn them down for another job, that employer is not going to ask you back again. So workers will feel under pressure to accept the hours they are given. It's a very difficult situation that's leaving workers vulnerable.

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