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Great Jobs with Guaranteed Hours

What do workers really think about ‘flexible’ zero-hours contracts?
Author
Alex Collinson
Policy officer - analysis and research
Report type
Research and reports
Issue date
Key findings

Many ZHC workers don't receive important rights

Zero Hours Contract workers' rights

They'd also like more hours

ZHC workers and hours of work

This report looks at the real experiences and views of those employed on zero hours contracts.

The number of people employed on zero-hours contracts has increased rapidly over the past decade and currently lingers at around 900,000.

We commissioned a nationally representative poll of working people across Great Britain to find out more about the rights they get at work, whether they’re happy in their jobs, whether they’d rather work a different way, and much more.

What we found out from those on zero-hours contracts paints a bleak picture. Many on zero-hours contracts don’t benefit from important workplace rights, and they put up with insecure hours and pay.

Many don’t choose to be employed that way – they’re on a zero-hours contracts because it’s the only choice, but they’d rather have a contract with guaranteed hours.

They’re also more likely to be thinking about leaving their current job than other workers.

We go into more detail in this report, splitting the findings into three sections:

  • Rights and their importance
  • Whether a zero-hours contract is a choice
  • Job satisfaction

We end by setting out steps we would like employers and the government to take to take to ensure that this form of job insecurity is a thing of the past.

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