The
Liberal Democrats will champion equality in the workplace if elected.
Dr
Vincent Cable, spokesperson on trade and industry, said the Lib Dems would pass
a comprehensive Equality Act to tackle discrimination on grounds of race, sex,
religion, sexual orientation, disability, age or gender identity.
To
set best practice on tackling the gender pay gap, a Lib Dem government would
implement the findings of the Bett report into higher education.
He
said, "This will address the unacceptable situation of significant pay
differentials between male and female academics."
Additionally,
the Lib Dems would support recent European anti-discrimination legislation and
in particular Article 13 of the Treaty of Amsterdam.
While
the party has pledged to introduce a charter to control the influence of
Brussels, it would sign up to the EU directive on information and consultation.
Cable
said, "Workers should have a statutory right to consultation over key
business decisions affecting their future, such as factory closures and
redundancies."
The
Lib Dems support work-life balance practices, providing funding arrangements to
support further parental leave. "We support a partially funded parental
leave scheme with contributions shared by employers, employees and government
for those below a defined income threshold."
Workforce
training is an important part of the Lib Dems’ bold approach to boosting public
services through higher taxation.
"We
will give every 16 to 24-year-old the right to publicly funded tuition up to an
initial Level 3 nationally recognised qualification. Skills and academic-based
education and training must be accepted as of equal, if different, worth."
They
are also critical of the amount of red tape Labour introduced for employers.
Manifesto:
at a glance
Tax
and the economy
– 1p on the basic rate of income tax to fund £3.5bn education programme
– 50 per cent top rate of tax on earnings over £100,000, generating £4.6bn
– Changes to capital gains tax, raising £2bn
Business
– Equality in workplace act
– Improved workforce consultation
Education
– Recruit 5,000 new secondary school teachers
– Abolish university tuition fees
Health
– Recruit 32,100 nurses, midwives and doctors
– Raise nurse’s annual pay by £1,000
Constitution
– Proportional representation for voting at General elections
– Referendum on joining the euro
Europe
– New charter limiting the EU’s power
– Referendum on the pound
Crime
– Increase police numbers by 6,000 on last year
– Additional incentives to retain experienced officers
