Unpaid Jubilee scheme 'displacing proper jobs'

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has warned that the government's employment schemes could be displacing the creation of proper jobs that pay at least the minimum wage.

This comes after revelations that unemployed Brits were given unpaid roles as stewards for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations, working alongside fully paid members of staff.

Brendan Barber, general secretary of the TUC, asserted that this kind of treatment of workers is both damaging and exploitative.

He denied the validity of the tasks being labelled as work experience, stating that the main thing that unpaid workers will have taken from the events were poor working conditions.

Furthermore, with the government repealing employment rights, Mr Barber said that more and more employers will be encouraged to treat staff poorly.

Groups such as the British Chambers of Commerce have argued that the retraction of employment rights is necessary for growth.

"The number of involuntary temporary workers is at a record high. These are not the jobs that will take Britain out of recession and improve people's living standards," he commented.