As workers go on strike, UK threatens crackdown on labor union powers

Global Business

UK threatens to crackdown on labor unions

The British government is threatening to crackdown on labor union powers after hundreds of thousands of public sector workers went on strike. They unions say they’re protesting against what they call ‘poverty pay’ and pensions. CCTV’s Richard Bestic has the latest.

UK Prime Minister David Cameron has been accused by union leaders of being a “Bullingdon bully” after he vowed that the Conservative election manifesto would tighten the screw on strike laws in response to what he regards as Thursday’s illegitimate mass walkout of up to 1 million public-sector workers.

The local government unions are seeking a pay rise of £1 an hour. The unions claim ministers have in effect served notice that public sector pay freezes will continue until 2018.

So how does the standard Chinese work week stack up against the rest of the world’s average? According to a study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation, Turkey actually works the longest week in the world at almost 50 hours.

South Korea has been encouraging a better work-life balance, but the average worker still spends 45 hours a week at work. In Mexico, it’s 43 hours each week. Go north to the U.S. and Canada and that number drops to about 37.

The French have long had a reputation for their short weeks, but the OECD study shows their European neighbors in Germany actually clock the fewest number of weekly hours in the world, at about 26 hours, Monday through Friday.

CCTV’s Phillip Yin speaks to Jon Messenger from with the International Labour Organization to find out more about the global working conditions.