Latest Fair Work news & opinion

2026 has been a busy year in Scottish politics. A new Scottish Parliament has brought fresh opportunities for engagement, emerging evidence on Fair Work First has reinforced the many benefits of Fair Work, discussions on the future of public service reform are beginning to take... Read more

The Employment Rights Act, passed by the UK Government in December 2025, represents the most significant overhaul of UK employment law in a generation, a significant opportunity to strengthen workers' rights and improve job security across Scotland, and the rest of the UK. SCVO... Read more

This letter was sent to Kate Forbes MSP, Deputy First Minister on the 26th of January 2026 from Anna Fowlie, Chief Executive, SCVO, Lesley Kelly, TSI Scotland Network, Louise Goodlad, Third Sector Employability Forum (TSEF) and Euan Leitch, Chief Executive, SURF. Dear Deputy... Read more

This letter was sent to Shona Robison MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Finance & Local Government on the 17th of December 2025 from Anna Fowlie, Chief Executive, SCVO and Alan Stevenson, Chief Executive, Volunteer Scotland. Dear Cabinet Secretary We write to you as the leaders of... Read more

SCVO has just published an analysis of Pay in the voluntary sector. Our analysis found that voluntary sector pay is managing to keep up with inflation and with the private sector, but it is lagging well behind public sector pay. The voluntary sector is also lagging the public... Read more

Following a debate on the National Insurance Contributions Bill in the House of Lords on Tuesday, Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) Chief Executive, Anna Fowlie said: “The Treasury decision to increase employer National Insurance Contributions will cost medium... Read more

Ahead of the 2nd reading of the National Insurance Contributions Bill, SCVO's Chief Executive, Anna Fowlie, wrote to Scottish MPs. Below is the text of the letter, minus tailored constituency information. You can find constituency information for other MPs on the Geographical... Read more

John Swinney MSP, First Minister Scottish Government 12 November 2024 Dear First Minister Autumn Budget 2024 As you have recognised in your recent public comments, the Chancellor’s intention to increase employers’ National Insurance contributions will have a significant impact on... Read more

Last week, following months of speculation, Britain’s first female Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, delivered Labour’s first Budget in 14 years. A historic moment and important opportunity.The Budget, the Chancellor promised, would invest, invest, invest, partly by raising taxes by £4... Read more

SCVO wrote to Scottish MPs on the 5th of November following the UK Autumn Budget on the 30th of October 2024. As part of the Budget process, we write to draw your attention to the impact of proposed National Insurance changes on charities and other voluntary organisations. You... Read more