The P&O Ferries scandal is a damning indictment of 12 years of Tory rule.
This firm has been able to fire about 800 workers with a view to replacing them with agency staff.
Loyal service counted for nothing when these corporate vultures swooped to axe hard-working employees.
P&O have also admitted to breaking the law by failing to consult unions ahead of their brutal move.
CEO Peter Hebblethwaite, who said the sackings were needed to save P&O, brazenly admitted he would do it again.
This shabby episode has proven that the balance between companies and staff has shifted too far in favour of firms.
In 1997, the new Labour government gave workers new rights that helped boost economic growth.
Underpinning the reform agenda was a national minimum wage that increased the take-home pay of millions.
The gains made by workers in this period have been steadily eroded by the David Cameron, Theresa May and Boris Johnson governments.
Young people have to endure zero-hour contracts, while “fire and rehire” is an ever-present risk.
The implications of P&O’s shameful treatment of their workers are wider than the shattered reputation of one company.
If they get away with this, others will surely follow. New laws are needed to protect workers from awful employment practices.
A start would be ensuring that what happened to P&O staff can never happen again.
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