Over a million UK workers on zero-hours contracts: Survey

New UK employment figures today showed that more than 1 million British workers could be employed on "zero-hours contracts" that  do not guarantee work and pay each week.

According to these figures, British businesses could be deploying the controversial employment terms far more widely than previously thought,  say commentators.

The figure – derived from a poll of over 1,000 employers conducted by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) led to renewed calls for the government launching a full inquiry into the use of the contracts.

Peter Cheese, the chief executive of the CIPD, said, the research suggested zero-hours contracts were being used more commonly than the ONS figures would imply.

Earlier a string of organisations – from retail chains to Buckingham Palace had come in for criticism for hiring staff but offering no guarantee of work and pay each week.

Employees on zero-hours contracts do not get  holiday or sick pay and have to seek permission for additional work elsewhere.

According to the CIPD, 38 per cent of zero-hours contract workers described themselves as employed full-time, typically working 30 hours or more a week. A third of voluntary sector employers used the contracts, while the corresponding figure stood at 25 per cent for public sector organisations.

The latest numbers also put a question mark over the accuracy of official data on the subject, with the  Office for National Statistics (ONS) increasing its estimate of the number of UK zero-hours workers by 25 per cent, to around 250,000.

Meanwhile, The Independent revealed last month that 300,000 people in the social care sector alone had been required to accept zero-hours terms.

The CIPD's survey of over 1,000 businesses found one-fifth (19 per cent) of employers had recruited staff on zero-hours contracts, while the practice was more common in the voluntary and public sectors than in private industry.

Nearly half (48 per cent) of employers in the hotel, catering and leisure sector had used zero-hours contracts, as against 35 per cent in education and 27 per cent in health care.

The contracts were likely to be used more by large than small businesses. According to the survey young adults (aged 18 to 24) and older workers (over 55) were most likely not to be offered the contracts.

Of the staff employed on these contracts 14 per cent told the CIPD they did not receive enough work to ensure a decent basic standard of living.

Starting with hotels, restaurants and shops, where they were first introduced, the use of such contracts has spread to the public sector due to spending cuts.