Yesterday was International Workers Day, and Ryan Jones, Chair of the National Young Members Forum, addressed the Welsh Assembly on young workers.
Here’s his speech:
My name is Ryan Jones and I am a Police Community Support officer based in the sleepy university town of Lampeter. For those of you that have never heard of it, it is in mid Wales.
I have been quite lucky really. I first started life wanted to join the Army as a Medic, but due to an illness I had as a child I was turned down. A few months later, the government was rolling out PCSO’s, to which I applied. In my Police service that was about 60 new posts. I was lucky enough to have got into this job through a large recruitment, some six and a half years ago. If it wasn’t for that I am not sure quite sure where I would be today.
I only have to look around me in my job to see the issues that face young people today. As a young person myself, realise what could be happening to me. An article published last week shows that 93% of young workers do not believe that the Government are doing enough to help them through the recession. It also showed that Young Women are being hit hard, with 27% applying for 21 or more jobs before gaining employment. Is it any wonder then, why young people are starting to feel like they are at the bottom, and that no one really cares?!?!
This can be seen with the shocking fact that the UK has one of the worst levels of unemployment in the developed world. Again, we can see this, with the rising cost of living, and an increase in minimum wage, which does not match these rises. I am not affected by these issues as such. I can safely say I think it has been about three years since I saw my last pay rise, so things have got a lot tighter financially. I have a wife at home with two daughters. However I find there is a lot of pressure on me to provide for my family, as I am the only earner of the household.
“Why?” you may ask. Well, my wife who was a former Youth Worker, has had to leave her job since having our second daughter. This is thanks to the cost of childcare. If Elin, my wife was to return to work, the cost of childcare would be more than what she would earn, thus making us worse off as a family.
I often wish for some kind of subsidised scheme, that would encourage people back to work, and I think that the Welsh Government could explore this further with a view to helping young parents, especially young mothers, get back into work.
You can see then that I face problems myself. The cost of maintaining my young family is increasing. I am not quite sure how much more we are expected to take before it gets to breaking point. It’s really tough being the sole provider and I know there is a lot of responsibility resting on my shoulders and, at times, it can be stressful for the whole family. We can’t afford to have a take away night once a week like a lot of families. And the weekly shopping is a mathematical and logistical challenge as we try to balance our budget.
Away from my personal issue, there has been some assistance from the Welsh Government. This was the increase in PCSO’s in Wales by 500. This is great, especially as I have seen a number of young people get through to gain employment, and I have gone from being the only PCSO to part of a team of three. However this is only one example and I’m afraid I don’t have very many.
Not only has my job been made a little easier by the Welsh Government assisting my work loads, but also by my Trade Union. I am a member of UNISON. I am currently the chair of both regional and national Young member forums.
They have been at the front fighting against the attacks that my employer tried to impose about three years ago, thanks to the coalition cut backs. This would have seen me take a pay cut of about £4500. That is a big hit to take. Luckily, after about a year of negotiating, changes to terms and conditions were balloted to members with acceptance, which importantly did not affect pay.
I joined UNISON as a member as soon as I started employment, and as a steward and young member officer four years ago. Through this I have developed my skills both in my job and my trade union activities. Not only have I assisted members in my workplace, but also across the country, standing up for young workers.
As I mentioned earlier there are issues that affect young workers from all parts of the Country, and If I can be part of a process that makes just a small difference, I will feel that I have achieved something within my role with UNISON.
So as you can see I feel that my trade union has helped in more ways than one, hence the fact I am speaking to you today. I was asked what advice I would give to other young workers and I think the best advice I can give is: Do not lose hope if you feel let down, and join a Trade Union if you can within your workplace as they stand up for workers rights, and against any discrimination issues relating to young workers. I was also asked what I want the Welsh Government to do and the answer for me is quite simple – that the Welsh Government should work closely with trade unions. Through working with the trade unions, the Welsh Government can learn from the real experiences of young workers who are working hard to deliver public services day in and day out.
Through partnership working we can elevate young workers from the bottom of the pile and also ensure that our next generation of workers have the training and skills necessary to successfully join the workforce.
Thank you.
