November WorkerTech Roundup

November is often considered a month of reflection and gratitude. This may be because you’re amongst our American friends celebrating Thanksgiving this week or because you (like us) are struck by how quickly this year has gone by and can’t help but look back on all the changes this year has seen.

This month in particular has seen reactions from across industry to the new Government’s budget, a historic election in the US and another landmark win for gig workers in the fight for workplace rights.

Closer to home, economists at the Resolution Foundation have been focused on the changing economic circumstances for low-to-middle-income families in the UK. We’ve honed in on the state of work for unpaid carers, their contribution to the economy and the challenging financial circumstances they face. Read on to find out what our portfolio company Mobilise has been doing to tackle these challenges.

We hope you enjoy this month’s newsletter and would love to hear if you have any thoughts on the same. Get in touch here.
See you next month,
Aish Moothan
Ventures Manager

November Spotlight: ️Unsung Britain: decades-long stagnation leaving families at the brink?

The Resolution Foundation has launched Unsung Britain, a year-long research programme where RF economists are looking at how economic circumstances for low-tomiddle-income families have changed over the recent decades.

The initial research finds that poor health and disabilities are having a massive impact on the work circumstances and living standards of low-to-middle-income families. 30 years ago, people in low-to-middle-income families were just as likely to be economically inactive due to ill health as they were due to childcare responsibilities. In 2024, ill health as a factor is three times larger. One in eight people within this income group are also caring for an ill, elderly or disabled adult, likely suffering long-term consequences to their productivity and long-term employment prospects (as found by Bupa’s research from 2023). As of 2022, 2.6 million adults in low-to-middle-income families had caregiving responsibilities for five or more hours a week.

Our portfolio company Mobilise is the largest provider of carer support in the UK. They use their tech-enabled platform to deliver support in the form of guides, peer support and accessible online tools. They’ve found that while benefits like the Carers Allowance and Carers Credit are in place to help unpaid carers navigate the effects of their caregiving responsibilities on their finances, it remains extremely difficult for unpaid carers to navigate the systems of support that may (or in many cases may not) be in place whilst also juggling full-time jobs and childcare responsibilities. Doing so on low incomes can be debilitating.

Yet, the work that unpaid carers do is estimated to save the UK economy £119 billion each year in care costs (a number larger than the entire NHS budget) as found in research commissioned by Mobilise.

The Unsung Britain research programme aims to use data and direct evidence from the experiences of low-to-middle-income families to inform the context within which the new Government will legislate. Support for unpaid carers and low-to-middle-income families with instances of ill health or disabilities is a vital part of the path to improving the challenging economic circumstances these families find themselves in. Learn more here.

From the world of WorkerTech 

Bolt ruling and the growing economic impact of the gig economy

Early in November, over 15,000 drivers for ride-sharing app Bolt won their landmark legal case to be classed as workers in the UK. In a ruling that goes much further than that attained by Uber drivers in 2021, Bolt drivers will qualify for basic employment protections such as being paid the minimum wage, and the right to holiday pay.

The firm representing the drivers, Leigh Day, also confirmed that all 15,000 drivers are also expected to get £200 million in backdated compensation for the underpayment of minimum wage and unpaid holidays. Bolt is expected to pursue grounds for appealing the ruling, insisting that a majority of its drivers choose to remain self-employed contractors.

The ruling attracts fresh attention to the state of the gig economy, adding to the spate of gig work-related headlines hitting the press in recent years. This ongoing media focus represents the phenomenon’s growing role within the British labour market.

Research undertaken by the Resolution Foundation estimates that nearly half a million UK adults now do some form of gig work at least once a week. This represents a £20 billion contribution to the economy. However, the growing occurrence of gig work has not resulted in some of its more harmful aspects being addressed. A 2024 report by the Social Market Foundation found that 45% of gig workers who classify as self-employed are currently paid below the National Living Wage.

There are signs the Government is alive to this growing labour market phenomenon and is looking to tackle some of its challenges. The Employment Rights Bill (discussed in previous issues in greater detail) proposes eliminating the existing 3-tier employment framework and replacing it with a single worker status that seeks to broaden the number of workers eligible for employment rights. Under the new framework, workers would be categorised as ’employed’ and ‘self-employed’.

However, there are significant concerns that the new categories will have an effect opposite to that which is intended, in that it will push many low-paid workers into the self-employed category, effectively downgrading the level of employment protections they receive. This alongside increases in entitlements and national insurance rates for employees will give employers a stronger incentive to favour hiring workers as self-employed.

Back in September of this year, the Resolution Foundation convened labour market and employment experts to examine how the Government could bring about employment reform while minimising risk and unintended negative consequences like the ones discussed above. You can hear more from that event here.

More from the Resolution Foundation: Our comment on the Government’s Get Britain Working white paper.

The Government’s Get Britain Working white paper outlines its plans to increase employment and reduce economic inactivity, targeting an 80% employment rate which roughly translates to bringing 2 million additional people into the workforce.

Economists at the Resolution Foundation view the white paper as a step in the right direction but highlight several challenges it raises.

• There are concerns about the sustainability of funding – the proposed initiatives may lack the financial backing necessary to meet their ambitious goals.
• There is also a need for greater focus on low-wage sectors, where many inactive workers might re-enter the workforce, as well as on improving job quality and career progression opportunities.
• The absence of sufficient employer-side incentives, such as measures to encourage flexible or higher-quality job creation, risks undermining the policy’s success.

While the Get Britain Working paper brings attention to systemic issues like long-term sickness and youth unemployment, our initial analysis stresses the importance of ensuring these measures lead to meaningful improvements in job quality, pay progression, and worker security. You can read more from our economists here.

In other news…

What a second Trump administration might hold for American workers

Results from yet another historic American election are in and the United States has a new president-elect.

While the Trump campaign was scant on details on their plans for workers and labour legislation, it did narrow in on the voters’ anxieties about wages, jobs and inflations that are on top of the American voting agenda, particularly among the working class. There was some stark imagery too; readers may recall images of then-candidate Trump in a hard hat at a rally for Pennsylvania’s steelworkers and then in a McDonald’s uniform in the same state).

So what might a second Trump presidency mean for American workers? And what might the new administration’s stance be towards unions? Much of the predictions in the news right now amount to speculation but American news outlets have been speaking to labour market and union experts to indicate where policy may travel.

Experts quoted in the Washington Post have said that the Trump administration may reverse several labour policies from the previous administration, including easing restrictions on workers joining unions, workplace safety rules and access to rights and benefits for gig-economy workers. It is also expected that the incoming administration will drop the Federal Trade Commission’s ban on noncompete agreements for workers. If the president-elect’s prior term in office is any indication, his administration may favour tax breaks for corporations, weaken wage and labour protections and reject calls to raise the minimum wage.

Again, it is important to note that much of the above is early speculation. However, there are early signs that the administration may surprise experts. The president-elect has appointed Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer as Secretary of Labor (sic). Surprising most Washington and labour experts, the new head of the Labor (sic) Department is widely seen to be a strong advocate for workers and unions and was one of only 3 Republicans in the House to sponsor the ProAct, legislation that promises the biggest expansion to labour rights in the United States since the New Deal in the 1930s.

Get involved

✨New funding opportunities from Ufi

Ufi Ventures has launched its new Challenge Fund, investing in early-stage companies building in the skills development sector for a transitioning economy. The typical cheque size for the fund will be £250,000 with the potential to invest up to £1 million in follow-on funding. Find out more here.

The new Ufi VocTech Activate grant fund will support the development and adoption of new digital tools and services that could reach learners furthest from opportunity and have the potential to transform learning for work. The call for applications is expected to open in early January but you can learn more to prepare here.

You can learn more about Ufi’s work and read through their newly launched 5-year strategy for unlocking the potential for technology in the adult learning sector here.

✨ Investment from Resolution Ventures 
Apply for direct investment from Resolution Ventures. We accept applications from WorkerTech ventures on a rolling basis. Or you can book a slot in our office hours for an initial conversation.