TUC calls on PM to set timetable for Covid-19 public inquiry as nation remembers workers who have died during the pandemic (under embargo)

Embargo: 00.01hrs Wednesday 28 April 2021

• “Workers and families need to know when they will get answers”, says TUC

• National minute of silence to be held at midday to pay tribute to all working people who have died due to work in the past year

• Vigil to be held with bereaved families at National Covid Memorial Wall in London

The TUC is today (Wednesday) calling for an immediate public inquiry into the handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The call comes as workers around the world prepare to mark International Workers’ Memorial Day in memory of those who have died or been injured or infected at work.

The TUC is asking members of the public to observe a minute’s silence at midday.

Official figures show more than 11,000 working age people have died since the pandemic began.

Answers and accountability

The TUC says that there is broad acceptance across the political spectrum that there will be a public inquiry into the handling and mishandling of the pandemic response.

But the union body today calls on the prime minister to announce a date by when the inquiry will start, and to launch a public consultation to shape what the inquiry will cover.

The TUC says that the voices of workers and the families of those who contracted the virus at work will be central to understanding what went wrong and learning lessons for the future.

The union body says that alongside scrutinising the quality of decision-making across the pandemic response in government, the public inquiry must specifically look at:

• Infection control and workplace safety, including the failure to provide adequate financial support to self-isolate, PPE availability for health and care staff throughout the crisis, the effectiveness of test and trace, and the failure to enforce the law on workplace safety.

• The resilience and capacity of public services, including how prepared the NHS, social care, public health and local government were to deal with Covid-19, and the consequences of a decade of public spending cuts on pandemic preparedness across the public sector.

• The unequal impact of Covid-19 on different groups of workers, specifically Black and Minority Ethnic workers and insecure occupations among whom Covid mortality rates are disproportionately higher.

• The effect of the government’s economic support packages to ensure workers stayed in employment and businesses did not go to the wall, and the impact of these decisions on unemployment, poverty rates and equality.

• Who government contracts were awarded to and why, and the impact this had on the quality and supply of PPE and other areas of public procurement.

The national minute’s silence for those who have died

Unions will lead the national minute’s silence, held annually to remember those who have died at or because of unsafe workplaces, at the National Covid Memorial Wall in London at midday today.

TUC Deputy General Secretary Paul Nowak will be joined by Unite General Secretary Len McCluskey and Unison General Secretary Christina McAnea, and by representatives of families who have lost loved ones to coronavirus as a result of unsafe working conditions.

Events to commemorate workers who have lost their lives over the past year will take place across the UK.

TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said:

"We’ll forever be in the debt of the workers who died during this pandemic - nurses, carers, bus drivers and so many more.

“They lost their lives looking after our loved ones and keeping our country running in the hardest of times.

“We owe it to them, and to their families, to get on with the public inquiry. The prime minister must announce a date when it will start.

“Any public inquiry must look at why workers were put at risk – be it through inadequate PPE or being unable to afford to self-isolate.

“This isn’t about settling scores. It’s about getting answers and learning the lessons to save lives in future.

“On International Workers’ Memorial Day, we remember those who have died, and pledge ourselves to fight for safe workplaces for everyone.”

Jo Goodman, Co-Founder of Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice said:

“Many of our loved ones lost their life after catching Covid-19 in their workplaces.

“From working in the factories that produced PPE for the NHS to the nurses and doctors who didn't have enough PPE at the start of the pandemic, they kept the country going and paid the ultimate price.

“An independent, judge-led statutory public inquiry is vital to making sure we learn lessons and save lives during the pandemic and for any future waves.

“The stories of our loved ones hold the answers to preventing more grief for other families.”

ENDS

Notes to editors:

- Details of the TUC’s International Worker’s Memorial Day activities are available here.

- The TUC has published a report calling on the government to introduce tough new measures to ensure that before lockdown restrictions are eased, all employers assess the risks of their staff team returning to work outside the home. A copy can be found here

- Every year on 28 April, trade unionists around the world unite to remember those who have died in the course of their work. This year, the TUC will commemorate the large numbers of workers who’ve lost their lives to coronavirus, while also remembering those who have died from other causes.