SHOPWORKERS’ union Usdaw launched its “time for better pay” petition today, calling on the government to tackle low wages and insecure work.

The union’s campaign is urging the government to strengthen workers’ rights by introducing a £10 minimum wage for all, normal hours contracts, 16-hour minimum contracts for those who want them and an end to zero-hours contracts.

Usdaw general secretary Paddy Lillis said that “real and urgent improvements” to workers’ rights were needed to “deliver an economy which works in favour of all working people.”

He said: “Going out to work should mean a decent standard of living for everyone. Usdaw has always been committed to tackling the issues of low pay and insecure work.

“We were a major driving force behind the creation of the national minimum wage and have always made strong cases for increases in the rates.

“Unfortunately, the increasing use of short and zero-hours contracts and the rising cost of living means that minimum wage rates just no longer guarantee enough money for people to live on.”

Over a 12-month period, 76 per cent of low-paid workers had to rely on unsecured borrowing to pay everyday bills, Usdaw’s survey of more than 10,500 working people revealed in September.

Ninety-two per cent of those surveyed said they had seen no improvement in their financial situation over the past five years and 63 per cent believed that financial worries were having an effect on their mental health.

The petition can be accessed at www.usdaw.org.uk/T4BP.