On 17 July the new Labour Government published the King’s Speech in which it announced that the government is committed to securing economic growth by a new partnership with business and working people and is committed to make work pay and will legislate to introduce a new deal for working people to ban exploitative practices and enhance employment rights. Two bills have been introduced to deliver this promise: The Employment Rights Bill and Draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill. It is proposed that the former will be introduced within the first one hundred days marking a significant step towards delivering this ambition.

The Employment Rights Bill

The Employment Rights Bill will reflect policies set out in the Plan to Make Work Pay that require primary legislation to be implemented. The Bill includes the following provisions:

  • Ban exploitative zero-hours contracts: The background to the Bill sets out that the number of  people subject to zero hours contracts has risen sharply to over 1 million in the last decade. To strengthen protection, all ‘exploitative’ zero-hour contracts will be banned. This is to ensure that all workers are subject to a contract that reflects the number of hours they regularly work and receive reasonable notice of any changes in shift with proportionate compensation for those cancelled or curtailed. This is to end ‘one sided’ flexibility, ensuring all jobs provide a baseline level of security and predictability.
  • End the practice of Fire and Rehire: To end the grievances associated with ‘Fire and Rehire’ the law will be reformed to provide effective remedies and replace the previous government’s statutory code.
  • Change to basic day one rights. This includes making parental leave, sick pay, and protection from unfair dismissal available from day one on the job for all workers. The proposal is included on the basis that extending protections to workers from day one will encourage more workers to switch jobs, which is associated with higher wages and growth in productivity.  The caveat is included that this will be subject to probationary periods to assess new hires.
  • Strengthen Statutory Sick Pay (SSP): To protect the current 1.5 million people that earn below the lower earnings limit of £123 per week, SSP will be strengthened by removing this lower earnings limit to make it available to all workers and to remove the three-day waiting period. This is to ensure that the lowest paid workers working part time or in low paid multiple jobs are not disproportionately affected.
  • Family friendly rights and flexible working:  To strengthen protections for new mothers, it will be made unlawful to dismiss a woman who has had a baby for six months after her return to work, except in specific circumstances. Additionally, to reflect the flexibility of the modern workplace, flexible working will be made the default for all workers, with employers required to accommodate this as far as is reasonable.  Although the right to request flexible working is already a day one right, this proposal goes further to require it to be a default.
  • Enforcement of Workers Rights:  A new Single Enforcement Body, known as a Fair Work Agency, will be established to strengthen enforcement.
  • Adult Social Care:   A Fair Pay Agreement will be established in the adult social care sector, and following review, assess how and to what extent such agreements could benefit other sectors.
  • School Support:  The School Support Staff Negotiating Body will be reinstated to establish national terms and conditions, career progression routes, and fair pay rates.
  • Trade Union Legislation:  To ensure it is fit for a modern economy, trade union legislation is to be updated or unnecessary restrictions removed. An example given includes the previous government’s approach to minimum service levels. This is also to ensure that industrial relations are to be based around good faith negotiation and bargaining.
  • Statutory recognition:  The process of statutory recognition is to be simplified and a regulated route to ensure workers and union members have a reasonable right to access a union within workplaces is to be introduced.

In addition to the introduction of the Employment Rights Bill, the government is set to deliver a living wage that accounts for the cost of living and removes discriminatory age bands.

Draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill

In addition to the Employment Rights Bill, the Kings Speech includes reference to a draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill.  This will enshrine proposals that there will a full right to equal pay for ethnic minorities and disabled people, which the briefing notes claim will make it easier for them to bring pay discrimination claims.  Currently the right to bring a claim under the equal pay provisions is limited to differences based on sex.  The draft bill will also introduce mandatory ethnicity and disability pay reporting for employers with 250+ employees to help close the ethnicity and disability pay gaps.  Ethnicity pay gap reporting has already been subject to significant consultation and it is expected that further consultation will be required as to how such mandatory reporting will work.

What is missing?

It is interesting to note that some pledges included in the Plan to Make Work Pay, such as the proposal to introduce a single status of worker and the “Right to Switch Off “are not included in the Employment Rights Bill.  The single status proposal will require consultation with stakeholders and this will be something that may be implemented in the future.  

If you would like further information on the new Labour Government plans for workers rights and employment law, please join us for our webinar What now for employment lawyers and HR professionals?  on 18 July.