The right to work is a fundamental right. It is a right that trade unionists have fought for through the centuries and across the world. It is a right that is being denied to one of the most vulnerable groups of people living in the UK today.
In 2002 the government made it illegal for people claiming asylum to work.
These are men and women who have fled persecution in their own countries looking for a place of safety here. While they are in the UK they want to work, to support themselves and their families, to pay taxes and contribute to the economy. But they are being denied this opportunity.
Support
Read our report about the TUC congress 2008, where we took our pledgeboard.
Broadcaster Esther Rantzen has written in the Daily Mail about her own ancestors’ experience of seeking asylum in Britain and how today’s asylum seekers struggle without the right to work.
Lord Bill Morris, former General Secretary of the Transport and General Workers Union, has written for the Guardian endorsing Refugee Week and the Refugee Council's Right to Work Campaign.
Guardian: Let them give something back
Launch
The “Let them Work” campaign was officially launched at the TUC Black Worker’s Conference in Eastbourne on Friday April 18th. Read about the event and extracts from the speeches.
The Refugee Council and the TUC are campaigning together for the right of asylum seekers to work in the UK.
Find out how you and your Union can get involved.
