Employment Rights Bill

Introduction

The government has finally published its much-heralded Employment Rights Bill, and my general reaction is a shrug. Don’t get me wrong; much could be done to improve the world of work, business practices and organisational effectiveness. However, I am struck by how this first draft may end up pleasing nobody.

Given all the briefing on its contents, it’s better than many businesses feared and may not satisfy those advocating for change to employment practices. There will also be much more consultation, consideration and political wrangling before this becomes law, providing an opportunity for voices on either side to be heard. Even on the current draft, most of it won’t be live till 2026. I’ve been in enough Business Change Initiatives to spot a “soft launch” when I see one.

What is Changing  

But there are some real changes to note. Changes to Sick Pay seem modest, with Statutory Sick Pay being available from the first sick day rather than the fourth day and the lower earnings limit of £123 a week removed. Paternity leave becoming a day-one right rather than after 26 weeks and Parental leave being a day-one right rather than after a year feels a real change and will add real cost to businesses. However, these changes also signify a step towards a more employee-friendly work environment, which could lead to increased productivity and job satisfaction.  

On Flexible working, Employers can only refuse a request for flexible working where it is reasonable to do so concerning one of the statutory reasons for refusal. For the moment, they remain as wide as they always have been.

Pause for thought

Proposed changes to Probation periods and unfair dismissal need to be clarified as they are messing with a working solution. Currently, everyone understands the concepts of probation and unfair dismissal. However, it’s important to note that probation has limited legal enforceability and is usually nothing more than a management tool. The Right to claim unfair dismissal is only eligible to those with two years of service unless the individual can rely on an Equality law based on “protected characteristic”. The new Bill proposes a day-one Right to claim unfair dismissal and a new statutory probationary period. But unhelpfully, he has yet to determine how long this new statutory probationary period is to be but has hinted that this might be nine months. At best, it is an overly complicated legal solution to a problem that did not exist. A simpler, cleaner solution would be to amend unfair dismissal to earlier come-in and not mess with probationary periods.  

The Right to disconnect is conspicuous by its absence, and Zero-hour contracts will be the subject of further consultation. Which I think is code for “We need to think about this a bit more.”

The Union   

What has received less air time but gets multiple references is the changes to Union rights. Including a right for workers to have written statements advising that they have the right to join a trade union, access agreements confirming unions have the right to enter workplaces and changes to the recognition process for unions. There is even a reference in the consultation plans to seek views on measures to remove the 10-year ballot requirement on political funds. Who would benefit from that?

I’m an HR consultant who writes about Employment matters, the world of work and business leadership. More examples of my musings can be found here.