Written submission from Jim Dickinson (ERB0009)
Written evidence submitted by Jim Dickinson, Associate Editor, Wonkhe
I work at Wonkhe - which specialises in higher education policy analysis and debate.
As part of my role I support students’ unions and associations to understand higher education policy, regulation and research on the student experience.
I am writing in a personal capacity.
While there is strong evidence to suggest the need for reform in this area, little of the evidence suggests that full-time students require the guaranteed hours reforms - indeed students tend to be those who prize the flexibility now being restricted.
Polling that we have carried out in October and November suggests that around two thirds of students at work are on a zero hours contract - and all universities and students unions use them to employ student staff.
The Taylor review noted that:
“For instance, a sector heavily reliant on students or those seeking part-time work to fit around other commitments, such as caring responsibilities, will need to provide flexible working opportunities to attract the right people and deliver quality jobs.
My specific concerns are twofold:
● That the "guaranteed hours” reforms to zero hours contracts do not take into account term-time employment or employers
● That there is a missed opportunity to consider the strategic role that employment plays in the student experience from both a learning and financial point of view
● The a considerable volume of students work for agencies who will not (at least not yet) be covered
In the Bill, after working a certain amount of time (defined by the reference periods), workers will have to be offered a guaranteed number of hours by their employer.
The “reference periods” will be set in secondary legislation but are expected to be 12 weeks.
Anyone on low-hours contracts, common in part-time roles, could benefit from this provision if they exceed the minimum hours during a reference period. It ensures that even those with minimal contracted hours are considered for guaranteed hours if their actual work surpasses expectations.
The big problem for universities, students’ unions and businesses that serve students seasonally is that there’s nothing specific in the Bill about employers who offer inherently “seasonal” work.
I note there are provisions for exceptions to the duty on employers to offer guaranteed hours which make room for regulations that could provide exceptions for certain types of employment, potentially including seasonal work. Employers whose work is inherently seasonal might benefit from such exemptions, though this is yet to be detailed.
If a university or students’ union employs a student under a zero-hours or low-hours contract and the student meets the criteria (e.g., working regularly during the reference period), the employer would be required to offer guaranteed hours after the reference period ends.
This requirement applies irrespective of holiday periods like Christmas, Easter, or summer, unless the worker’s contract is terminated or falls under specified exceptions.
The problems that the proposals could create unamended are buried in the Bill’s impact assessments:
● By increasing labour costs on forms of contracts that are more used by those with a weaker attachment to the labour market (e.g. students), these measures may reduce labour demand for these workers.
● The main non-monetised impact on business of this policy is the potential loss of flexibility for those firms that rely on these forms of contract, particularly where demand is seasonal or unpredictable. The degree that employers lose flexibility will depend on details that are defined in secondary legislation and on how they choose to evolve their business models in response.
The impact assessments also pointed to a CIPD report on the issue–which noted that the lack of guaranteed hours can be “a strength rather than a weakness”, the “archetypal case” being students wanting to fit work in around study. It found almost a quarter of full-time students who had a job said it involved a zero-hours contract.
I note the option of a variable contract is available to individuals who prefer that form of arrangement, by allowing workers to decline the offer of guaranteed hours.
As such, the problem isn’t so much that students won’t be able to turn down a guaranteed hours contract. It’s that universities, students unions and other term-time high-demand businesses who’ve been employing students for a 12 week term will apparently have to offer equivalent hours over Easter, Christmas and the summer.
Option One would be for the government to commit to an exemption. New Section 27BD(5) explicitly allows regulations to create exceptions to the duty to offer guaranteed hours. Terms such as “excluded workers” and the conditions under which the duty does not apply are left undefined in the Bill itself, granting flexibility to define such exemptions in secondary legislation. Therefore, a regulation could potentially specify that full-time students are excluded from this obligation.
Option Two would be to write an exemption onto the face of the Bill:
Amendment to Clause 1, New Section 27BD:
Insert the following subsection under Section 27BD:
(11) The duty to offer guaranteed hours under Section 27BA(1) does not apply to workers who are full-time students, as defined in Section 4(4) of the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998.
Option Three would be to create an exemption not for students per se but for a type of employer – based on a percentage of workers that are students, for example.
Amendment to Clause 1, New Section 27BD:
Insert the following subsection under Section 27BD:
“(11) The duty to offer guaranteed hours under Section 27BA(1) does not apply to an employer if, during the relevant reference period, 50% or more of the workers employed by the employer are full-time students, as defined in Section 4(4) of the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998.”
Arguably what is needed is a bespoke set of contractual and infrastructure arrangements for students designed to support them to earn while learning.
A raft of European countries with tougher labour laws than the UK have dedicated arrangements and contracts for student workers and student jobs – and that’s because their governments have recognised that students need the money and value the flexibility.
In Slovenia, there’s a dedicated regime that is designed around students earning while learning. Student work (študentsko delo) involves a special type of (more) flexible (than others get) contract, and dedicated agencies (studentski servis) offer lists of available student jobs and take care of payments – as well as doing some degree of labour law enforcement and promotion of the role of student work to local employers.
Students benefit from a net payment arrangement that includes accident insurance, and there’s a lower income tax on student earnings, and they have dedicated employment advice via the agencies. It helps them build work experience, develops soft skills, and provides employers in hospitality, administration and retail with a flexible and affordable workforce.
In the Slovenian system, there’s also tiny tax that employers pay on top of student wages – some goes directly to the state budget to fund services like a dedicated national skills recording platform for student workers’ CVs, and another little portion is allocated to student organisations, which use these funds to support student activities, scholarships, infrastructure, and advocacy.
● Germany runs a system of student “minijobs”. Students can earn up to 538 euros per month (about around 10 hours per week or around 40 hours per month), and don’t pay tax or social security contributions. There’s also “werkstudent” contracts that allow students to work up to 20 hours per week in term time – unlike for other workers, employers are not obligated to offer long-term commitments, and students can easily exit the contract if their academic workload changes.
● In France, a Contrat de Travail Étudiant is another dedicated type of contract designed for students, allowing them to balance studies and work. It includes reduced working hours (less than 20 hours per week) so as not to interfere with studies – and is commonly used in sectors like hospitality, retail, and services.
● Belgium too has a dedicated system. Students can work up to 600 hours per year with reduced social security contributions, making it cheaper for employers to employ them. Students benefit from lower tax rates and retain certain social security rights, but are not entitled to full employment benefits such as unemployment insurance.
● Lithuania has specific employment provisions for university students – all internships are regulated, ensuring interns receive fair compensation, and students can agree to part-time / zero hours work arrangements with employers, which do not affect their rights compared to full-time employees.
● In Croatia specific frameworks and regulations are aimed at university students engaged in employment. The Act on Student Work governs the rights and obligations of students, intermediaries, and clients in student employment. Student work is facilitated through Student Centres, which act as intermediaries between students and employers. The minimum hourly wage for student work is determined annually by the Minister, and students can earn up to a certain threshold without incurring income tax, with specific rules to avoid double taxation if applicable.
● In some countries there are also systems of national pay setting and bargaining for students who teach or act as teaching assistants or demonstrators inside universities – and in some, students on placement who also provide valuable cover in that business or service are paid for their time – partly because they have less of it to enable them to earn on the side. Many countries’ universities employ far more students than is the usual case in the UK. And some countries pay their PGRs a proper wage, or at least a proper stipend. I am aware that a consultation is due on reform to unpaid internships.