Senior Policy Advisor @jrf_uk. Views are my own not my employer's.

London, UK
Joined June 2016
We did it for self-employed dads 🎉 Today after over a year of campaigning, @andyburnham has announced we are extending paid paternity leave to self employed dads ✅
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Today's announcement on Paternity Pay is a big win for all the parents & organisations like @dadshiftuk who have campaigned for a fairer deal for self-employed dads. They deserve to be valued and supported as carers no matter how they work. Great to see the Govt recognising that!
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Self-employed mums must not be left behind either. Maternity pay is much lower for women who are self-employed than for those who are employees, and doesn't do enough to protect incomes. Every child deserves the same start in life, regardless of how their parents work.
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We know self-employed workers face greater risks of poverty and financial insecurity, yet often miss out on core protections. Today's announcement is a welcome step towards a better system. Next up: sick pay and pension savings support!
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Meri Åhlberg retweeted
1/3 @UKLabour Gvt intends to consult on bogus SE personneltoday.com/hr/govern… The focus will be on personal service, a rebuttable presumption, and extra rights for the 'genuinely self-employed'. This seems to fall short of the manifesto pledge of introducing a 'single worker status'
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Speaking at our event last week, @JWatsonONeill from @sensecharity spoke about the need for welfare reforms to protect disabled people who will never be able to work ⤵️
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Meri Åhlberg retweeted
My reaction on behalf of @jrf_uk, on today's labour market statistics and the Government's plans to cut disability benefits. The threat of widespread hardship among disabled people, unable to replace the incomes they lose out on through work, is even starker.
New @ONS figures show job vacancies have fallen by 42,000 between Feb and April 📉 Disabled people who are able to work already find it more difficult to find suitable work that accommodates their needs. The fall exposes the need to rethink plans to cut disability benefits. 1/2
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New @ONS figures show job vacancies have fallen by 42,000 between Feb and April 📉 Disabled people who are able to work already find it more difficult to find suitable work that accommodates their needs. The fall exposes the need to rethink plans to cut disability benefits. 1/2
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Meri Åhlberg retweeted
Analysis from both @NEF & @jrf_uk shows that the government's original 250k figure for the number pushed into poverty is an understatement & should be closer to 350k Combined with these new figures, that's over 1m people pushed newly or deeper into poverty due to these cuts
NEW: Internal DWP figures show 700,000 families *already* in poverty are forecast to be hit by planned disability benefit cuts That's on top of the 250k+ who are predicted to be newly pushed into poverty by the changes By me, for the Guardian: theguardian.com/society/2025…
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New Policy Adviser role 📢 You will: Deliver projects that generate policies and ideas to address social and economic challenges underpinning poverty in the UK Connect with people or orgs developing new ideas that contribute to our mission Shape the national conversation 1/2
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Extensive media coverage today on the need for Statutory Sick Pay to rise. With MPs debating sick pay tomorrow, it’s clear that more needs to be done to protect millions of workers from being forced into work before they have recovered from illness ⬇️ independent.co.uk/news/uk/po…
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Meri Åhlberg retweeted
"Anti-migrant politics will not build a single house, staff a single hospital or raise anyone’s wages. Instead, by echoing its rhetoric, the government is simply fuelling the rise of Reform UK" Well done to these Labour MPs, trade unionists & members.
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Meri Åhlberg retweeted
Today is our national day of action on #SafeSickPay 🥳 No one can survive on £116 of Statutory Sick Pay. It is time this changed. Please share your support on social media and let your MP know why they should back an increase in the rate of Statutory Sick Pay.
📣 Today's our national day of action on #SafeSickPay! 📣 We're united with workers, health groups, charities and businesses across the UK calling on the Government to raise the rate of Statutory #SickPay. ✍️ Take part by writing to your MP here: buff.ly/4hJQMTS
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Meri Åhlberg retweeted
FLEX is delighted to be one of @BigIssue's Top 100 Changemakers for 2025. We will never stop working to challenge and transform the systems and structures that make workers vulnerable to abuse, until we live in a world free from all forms of labour exploitation.
This week's issue is out now! 📰 Inside: 💯 We introduce our Top 100 Changemakers for 2025, celebrating people and organisations who have focused not on themselves but on the rest of society, as voted for by YOU 🎹 Italian composer and pianist Ludovico Einaudi tells us about becoming the most-streamed classical artist of all time 🏆 Joe Alwyn talks about Oscar frontrunner The Brutalist Find out more ▶️ bigissue.com/news/activism/c…
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At yesterday's @CommonsBTC inquiry session on Making Work Pay, it was great to see the @UKDirectorLME call for protections for migrant workers reporting exploitation so they don't lose their right to remain in the UK by doing so.
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Great blog from @hcslaughter_ on the importance of enforcement for the government's employment rights push. I really hope govt. listens to this point on data sharing. Otherwise the #FairWorkAgency will miss out on vital intelligence and fail to help those most vulnerable. 👇
An awful lot rides on the Government’s welcome commitment to complement its package of labour market reforms with a new single enforcement body. In our latest blog @prospect_clark and @hcslaughter_ asses its challenges and chances⤵️ Read now➡️ buff.ly/4guhiQs
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