19/07/2024 

The new Labour Government is in place and the King’s Speech confirmed that significant changes to employment law are afoot. With this in mind, we have a detailed plan setting out key steps Make UK recommends HR take now to prepare for changes to employment law - see here. We also set out below a brief summary of some of the new Government’s plans.

What changes to expect?

The new Labour Government has committed, both in its election manifesto and in the King’s Speech, to implementing “in full” ‘Labour’s Plan to Make Work Pay: Delivering A New Deal for Working People’ (the “New Deal”), meaning HR can expect an array of employment law reforms. 

Employment Rights Bill

According to the King’s Speech briefing notes, an Employment Rights Bill will be introduced to Parliament within the new Government’s first 100 days in office. This does not mean however that the new measures will be implemented within 100 days, as the process of a passing a bill takes time and some measures may require consultation and secondary legislation.  The King’s Speech briefing notes state that the Bill will include the following:

  • Banning exploitative zero-hour contracts, ensuring workers have a right to a contract that reflects the number of hours they regularly work and that all workers get reasonable notice of any changes in shifts with proportionate compensation for any shifts cancelled or curtailed.
  • Ending ‘Fire and Rehire’ and ‘Fire and Replace’ by reforming the law to provide effective remedies and replacing the previous Government’s statutory code.
  • Making parental leave, sick pay and protection from unfair dismissal available from day 1 for all workers – but employers will continue to be able to operate probationary periods to assess new hires.
  • Strengthening statutory sick pay by removing the lower earnings limit to make it available to all workers, as well as removing the three day waiting period.
  • Making flexible working the default from day-one for all workers, with employers required to accommodate this as far as is reasonable.
  • Strengthening protections for new mothers by making it unlawful to dismiss a woman who has had a baby for six months after her return to work, except in specific circumstances.
  • Establishing a new Single Enforcement Body, also known as a Fair Work Agency, to strengthen enforcement of workplace rights.
  • Updating trade union legislation, removing certain restrictions on trade union activity and simplifying the process of statutory trade union recognition. 

Equality (Race and Disability) Bill 

In addition, we know from the King’s Speech that a draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill will enshrine in law the full right to equal pay for ethnic minorities and disabled people, as well as introducing mandatory ethnicity and disability pay reporting for larger employers (i.e. those with 250 or more employees) to help close the ethnicity and disability pay gaps. It seems likely that these changes will be subject to more extensive consultation before being introduced to Parliament.

Genuine living wage

The Government has committed to delivering a genuine living wage which accounts for the cost of living, as well as removing the age bands which currently apply.  This commitment was expressly referenced in the King’s Speech, as well as in the Labour Party’s earlier manifesto and the New Deal.

Other changes?

The Government has also indicated that it plans to make other changes (and as yet it is unclear whether any of these would also be included in the Employment Rights Bill), including the following:

  • Requiring large employers to publish “Menopause Action Plans” setting out how they will support workers going through the menopause.
  • Introducing the “right to switch off”, allowing workers to disconnect and not be contacted by their employer outside of working hours.
  • Introducing a new statutory right to bereavement leave.
  • Updating protections for those who report sexual harassment at work and strengthening the legal duty for employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment.
  • Conducting a review of the parental leave system within the first year of Government. We assume such a review will cover all family-related leave, and that any proposed changes would be subject to consultation before coming into force.
  • Moving towards a single status of worker (i.e. merging “worker” and “employee” into one) and transitioning towards a “simpler two-part framework” for employment status. 
  • Lengthening employment tribunal limitation periods from three to six months.
  • Changing the rules that currently apply to the triggering of statutory collective redundancy consultation obligations, so that employers are required to take into account proposed dismissals across their whole business rather than treating each ‘establishment’ separately.
  • Strengthening rights and protections for workers transferred under TUPE (although we don’t yet know how).
  • Making it easier for employees collectively to raise grievances to ACAS.
  • Encouraging employers and trade unions to sign up to the Dying to Work charter to support terminally ill employees.

 

HR action points

The new Labour Government’s plans are extensive and there is a lot for HR to get to grips with. With this in mind, we recommend reading our detailed HR action plan - see here – which highlights some key steps HR should take now to prepare for likely changes ahead.

How we can help

In discussions with the Labour Government, the Make UK Policy team has flagged that our subscribers would value a better understanding of what is most likely to change in the short to medium term, to assist with business planning. We have been liaising closely with Government so as to better understand its proposals and will keep Make UK subscribers up to date with any developments.

We will be discussing the latest on these proposed legislative changes in more detail in our Autumn Employment Law Updates. Click here to book. 

If you are a Make UK subscriber, you can speak to your regular adviser with any queries you may have about these various employment law proposals and to request further consultancy support. Make UK subscribers can also access guidance on a wide range of employment law topics, including template policies and drafting guidance, in the HR & Legal Resources section of our website.

If you are not a Make UK subscriber, our expert HR and legal advisers can offer guidance on a consultancy basis. For further information, contact us on 0808 168 5874 or email [email protected].