Since Labour’s victory in the election, HR professionals have been eagerly awaiting to see if they will deliver on their manifesto promises of a “New Deal for Working People to Make Work Pay” and how this would be implemented.
We got a first look at the future of employment in this government late last week. The Government, in keeping with their promise to bring legislation to Parliament within 100 days after entering office, introduced a bill that seeks to introduce at least 28 new laws.
Employments Rights Bill represents the first step in the implementation of the radical changes included in the “Plan to Make Work Pay”. This is a confirmation of the future of employment law in Great Britain.
What are the changes in the Employment Rights Bill?
The Employment Rights Bill contains 28 reforms that cover nearly all areas of employment laws.
The Bill’s purpose is to shift the balance in favor of employees when it comes to flexibility. The current employers’ flexibility will be reduced by a variety of means, including the introduction of a right that allows zero-hours employees to switch to a contract with guaranteed hours if they work regularly.
This will not only mean that employers must guarantee a certain number of hours each month and pay for them, but that employees are also entitled to other benefits such as parental leave, unfair dismissal and redundancy.
The right to flexible work will be extended even further, compared to the April update. In the Employment Rights Bill employers who refuse to accommodate flexible requests will have to prove that they had a reasonable reason for refusing.
Parental Leave
This is good news, because parental leave will be a right from day one. It’s a major change as, under the current legislation, employees can only take parental leave after a year.
A second important update detailed in this bill is the plan to introduce a right of unfair dismissal protection from the first day. This is a major change, as currently, employees need to have completed two years of continuous service in order to be eligible for unfair dismissal. The question that everyone is asking is whether or not a probationary period applies and how they will work together.
Unfair dismissal
The government has committed to consult about a statutory trial period. It is likely that it will be nine months in length. Early indications suggest that unfair dismissal protections will not be in place during this time. However, we still await more details.
The bill will also ban “fire-and-rehire” dismissal practices. The practice, which is often used to change employee contracts when negotiations with representatives have failed, is not currently illegal. However, employers must adhere to the new statutory code for it.
The practice is prohibited under the new law, except in extreme cases.
The Employment Rights Bill also introduces updated sick pay legislation that will now be paid on the first day instead of the 4th, and statutory bereavement leaves.
When will the changes be implemented?
The bill has been dubbed by the government as “the biggest upgrade in workers’ rights for a generation” and with good reason. Employers will have to prepare extensively, including reviewing their contracts, policies, and procedures to ensure that they are in compliance with the updated legislation.
The changes won’t be implemented overnight, so employers have plenty of time to prepare. The bill is now going to be discussed in Parliament, and will then go through the legislative process.
It is unlikely that the bill will become law before mid-2025. Many of the rights won’t be able to take effect until the Secretary of state issues further regulations, which isn’t expected to happen until 2026.
Employers should monitor its progress to stay ahead of the game and be aware of any actions that will be required in the near future to remain compliant.
First phase
Remember that the Employment Rights Bill represents only the first phase in Labour’s “Plan to Make Work Pay”.
In its “Next Steps” strategy, the Government has already begun evaluating the next phase in employment law. It will be focusing on certain areas. The right to switch off is one of them, as well as a move toward a single worker status.
Staying informed is key to successful implementation.
