Retail union Usdaw is sending a delegation of members, reps and officials to Labour conference in Liverpool from Sunday 27 to Wednesday 30 September, with motions on ‘Good Jobs for Young Workers’ and ‘Rebuilding Our Economy for Retail Workers’ — pressing Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s government for a better deal for young staff and a strategy to save shops.
Usdaw, the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers, is the UK’s fifth biggest TUC union with around 370,000 members, most of them in retail. Joanne Thomas, Usdaw general secretary, said the union meets again in Liverpool under new leadership and with renewed determination to deliver the change Labour promised, secure voters’ support and win a second term.
She said Labour had made great progress improving members’ lives since 2024, and that this week the union would look to build on those achievements. The Employment Rights Act would help make work better paid and more secure, she argued, but manifesto promises must now be delivered in full — particularly on guaranteed hours contracts, so no loopholes let employers exploit workers.
Thomas: ‘No loopholes on guaranteed hours’
“We meet again in Liverpool under new leadership and with renewed determination to deliver the change Labour promised, secure the support of voters and win a second term in government. Labour have made great progress in improving our members’ lives by delivering the change they voted for in 2024, and this week we will be looking to build on their transformational achievements.
“The Employment Rights Act will help to make work better paid and more secure. We now need to ensure that manifesto promises are delivered in full, particularly on guaranteed hours contracts, so that no loopholes are introduced that allow employers to exploit workers.”
After the government changed the Low Pay Commission’s remit to weigh the cost of living and end rip-off youth rates, minimum wage rates rose substantially in April. Usdaw has called on the Chancellor to keep that path to help workers deal with the long tail of the Conservatives’ cost of living crisis.
On retail crime, Thomas welcomed a standalone offence for attacking a retail worker, funding for extra uniformed patrols and the end of the £200 shoplifting prosecution threshold in the Crime and Policing Act — and said those measures need to come into force as soon as possible to tackle an epidemic of retail crime and attacks on workers.
Thomas: ‘Reject rolling back youth rights’
Turning to the young workers motion, Thomas said she was deeply concerned by the economic challenges facing young workers, who deserve decent pay, guaranteed hours, high-quality training, progression and a meaningful voice at work.
“It is disappointing that the Government is looking to place limits on the right to a guaranteed hours contract and we reject employers’ calls to roll back employment rights for young workers. We welcome the Labour Government’s £2.5 billion investment in the youth jobs guarantee. Crucial to this is support for industries like retail, which employ large numbers of young people, to protect vital local routes of entry into employment.”
Usdaw is calling on the government to equalise National Minimum Wage rates from age 18 as soon as possible; deliver the guaranteed hours commitment in full; tighten regulation of automated hiring and give unions a right to be consulted on AI and new technology at work; and take forward high-quality, secure jobs for young workers across the economy.
Save our shops: 122,682 stores closed
On rebuilding the economy for retail workers, Thomas said the sector is essential infrastructure — more than £117 billion a year in output, around three million jobs, present in every community — yet 122,682 retail stores closed between 2016 and 2025, leaving vacancies and workers facing redundancy.
“A thriving retail sector must be a central element of Labour’s Plan to deliver growth in every postcode.”
Usdaw wants business rates reform that levels the field between online and bricks-and-mortar retailers, including exempting all stores from the higher multiplier; action on energy costs; and an industrial strategy and skills plan for retail, with union engagement and a restored Union Learning Fund.
Fringe: ‘Fixing the system’
Usdaw’s fringe meeting, ‘Fixing the system: Rights that work for working families’, is at 6.30pm on Monday 28 September in Exhibition Event Space 3. Speakers include Kate Dearden MP, the employment minister; Connor Rand MP, chair of Usdaw’s parliamentary group; and Joanne Thomas. Jane Jones, Usdaw president, will chair.
