‘Zero Hour Contracts Are You for or Against Them?
Introduction
In the present time of the economy and its competitiveness, businesses and organisations must be
able to provide a flexible, efficient workforce, that can respond to the wants and demands of their
designated markets. Businesses and organisations must be able to ensure that they can ‘‘respond
flexibly to peaks and troughs in demand without increasing their employment costs’’. This
requirement means that businesses must design a system of flexible employment opportunities while
also being able to balance costs.
Employees are also requiring their working commitments to become more flexible ‘’in order to
manage caring responsibilities, study, improve their work–life balance, or to downshift from full-time
work as they move more flexibly into retirement.’’
This has led to the creation of the controversial zero-hour contract in which I shall arguing exclusively
its uses and my opinion against the contracts.
Arguments Against Zero Hour Contracts
Zero hour contracts can often benefit needs of the employer and the employee but often the
connection between the two are heavily unbalanced, as discussed by the Scottish Government;
‘‘leaving the employer with all the flexibility and few costs and the worker in fear of dismissal, denied
access to due rights of employment and, in some cases, earning less than the minimum wage.’’
