Employers have a big enough challenge keeping abreast of existing employment laws to think about things that are not in force yet - right? Well, possibly not, when a Labour government has set out proposals for sweeping changes to the employment landscape in the form of the Employment Rights Bill.
The Bill was introduced to the House of Commons in October 2024. Consultation is proposed in 2025. Most reforms will take effect no earlier than 2026. Some of the headline proposals include:
- Banning zero hours contracts by introducing rights to guaranteed hours, reasonable notice of shifts, and compensation for short-notice cancellation of shifts.
- Ending 'fire and rehire' and 'fire and replace' practices by considering any dismissals for failing to agree to a change in contract as automatically unfair, except where businesses genuinely have no alternative.
- Providing a day one right to protection from unfair dismissal (while allowing statutory probation periods in which a lighter-touch dismissal process applies).
- Strengthening collective redundancy rights by ensuring the employer obligations to consult on and notify 20 or more redundancies applies across a workforce, not just at a single establishment.
- Making existing entitlements to Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental leave available from 'Day 1' of employment.
- Enabling parents to take their Paternity Leave and pay after their Shared Parental Leave and pay.
- Introducing a new right to unpaid Bereavement Leave, allowing employees to take leave from work to grieve the loss of a loved one.
- Introducing new protections from dismissal for a woman who is pregnant and for six months after her return to work.
- Strengthening the existing 'Day 1' right to request flexible working, by requiring employers to explain the grounds on which they have denied a request.
- Adding sexual harassment to the list of issues that workers can make protected disclosures on.
- Strengthening gender pay gap reporting to reflect outsourced workers.
- Strengthening trade unions' right of access.
- Simplifying trade union recognition process.
- Introducing new rights and protections for trade unions representatives.
- Introducing a duty for employers to inform workers of their right to join a trade union.
Establishing the Fair Work Agency to bring together existing state enforcement functions including:
- regulations for employment agencies and employment businesses
- the unpaid employment tribunal award penalty scheme
- enforcement of the National Minimum Wage and Statutory Sick Pay.
Employers should take specialist advice to ensure that they keep up to date as to the progress of these changes and are prepared to implement them if they come into force.
To discuss this or any other employment matter, contact us.