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The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed several chinks in the armour of public health infrastructure across the world. However, the impact of the pandemic has been assessed primarily from the perspective of the 'privileged' members of society. The experiences of the 'other' world inhabited by the marginalised communities, who have had their livelihoods crushed under the weight of the pandemic, have been scarcely documented. As thousands of migrant workers were more scared of death caused by hunger rather than the disease itself, the various steps taken by different countries to curb community transmission have unveiled the ugly side of these measures. For example, as several states such as the US, the UK, Singapore, Hong Kong, and India/Bharat imposed lockdowns, border closures, quarantines, inter alia, the most vulnerable section of the human population has been the migrant workers, especially those individuals who were employed in the unorganised sector. Thus, the global health crisis has unravelled deep-rooted deficiencies, racial biases, and an overall lack of concern and empathy for the lesser privileged, apart from the growing socio-economic divide between the rich and the poor. This research paper aims to explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on migrant workers in the informal sector by exploring the measures imposed by the US, the UK, Singapore, Hong Kong, and India/Bharat and analyse how their fundamental rights, including the right to development, were compromised. Through this paper, the author provides a five-point strategic framework that can be adopted globally to prevent such instances in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has shown that trade unions have resorted to a number of rhetorical tools to make their arguments and ensure the voice of their members was heard. In a time in which union membership is declining and many have questioned trade unions' representation role, the recourse to figurative language – e.g. metaphors – might contribute to getting unions' messages through, restoring trust among affiliates. Against this backdrop, this paper examines the metaphorical devices employed in trade union discourse, with a view to appreciating the way they are utilised in employee relations and highlighting the values unions intend to promote through these figures of speech. To this end, discourse analysis is carried out on a data corpus consisting of documents issued by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in a given timeframe, in which metaphorical language is employed. The analysis focuses on a specific topic, i.e. platform workers and the protection of their rights. The findings reveal that metaphors are used by trade unions to convey different meanings, which are intended to generate narratives aimed at safeguarding the rights of platform workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]