A committee of MPs has called for zero-hours contracts to be scrapped across the UK, as it says the use of such contracts is creating a two-tier workforce.
One in 10 (11%) organisations using zero-hours contracts adopt exclusivity clauses which seek to prohibit workers from securing employment elsewhere, research finds.
Individuals who have been on a zero-hours contract for at least 12 months should be given the legal right to switch to a fixed hours contract, a thinktank has argued.
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has urged the government to place an outright ban on exclusivity clauses in zero-hours contracts where there is no guarantee of work.
The number of employees on zero-hours contracts has increased from 183,000 in 2010 to 583,000, newly revised figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) reveal.
The government has published its long-awaited consultation on zero-hours contracts. Hannah Uttley looks at what issues the report addresses and how this will affect employers and their staff.
ACAS is predicting that zero-hours contracts and pay awards will dominate workplace relations in 2014.
Business secretary Vince Cable has launched a review which will seek to simplify and clarify employment rights for employers and their staff.