London’s Living Hours Landscape: Exploring Insecure Work in the Capital

This report explores the scale of insecure work in London, as well as the experiences of Londoners employed in insecure jobs. We consider different aspects of insecure work, such as variable hours, guaranteed hours, shift notice periods, shift cancellations and compensation, as well as the impact of variable hours and short shift notice periods on different aspects of workers’ lives.

Our research finds that workers employed in insecure jobs in London are more likely to experience certain aspects of insecure work, such as short shift notice periods and unexpected shift cancellations, and to face higher costs associated with insecure work than workers employed in insecure jobs elsewhere in the UK.

This report adds to the insights published in our previous ‘Living Hours Index’ reports. This body of research provides a unique study of insecure work in the UK, analysing data on shift notice periods and shift cancellations which is not captured in national labour market datasets. 

Our analysis finds that:

• There are over 800,000 insecure jobs in London. While the capital has a slightly lower overall incidence of insecure jobs (17.5 percent) compared to other regions of the UK, it remains the region with the highest total number of workers in insecure jobs, highlighting the scale of the issue in the capital. 
• The sector in London with the highest proportion of insecure jobs is ‘Accommodation and food services’ (Hospitality) with 49.1 per cent of jobs being insecure. London sectors with a high number of insecure jobs include ‘Health and social work’ with over 94,000 insecure jobs, and ‘Wholesale, retail, repair of motor vehicles’ with over 91,000 insecure jobs. 
• London workers with variable hours are more likely to have shorter shift notice periods compared to workers outside of London. 63.9 per cent of London workers who work variable hours get one week’s notice or less for shifts – including 12.5 per cent who receive less than 24 hours’ notice - compared to 52.6 per cent of workers outside of London. 
• London workers with variable hours are more likely to experience unexpected shift cancellations than workers outside London. 35.3 per cent of Londoners whose hours vary experienced unexpected shift cancellations compared to 24.9 per cent of workers outside London. 
• 91.7 per cent of workers in London receive less than their regular pay when they experience unexpected shift cancellations, compared to 85.4 per cent of workers in the rest of the UK.
• London workers with variable hours are more likely to be guaranteed fewer hours, with 29.0 per cent of Londoners being guaranteed fewer than 16 hours per week compared to 20.4 per cent of workers outside London.
• London workers who have short shift notice periods or see shifts cancelled unexpectedly are more likely to experience an insecurity premium compared to workers in the rest of the UK.
• The insecurity premium paid by workers in London is often higher than the premium paid by workers in the rest of the UK.