Significant changes to employment law have recently been unveiled as several legislative amendments relevant to employment law were a key component of the King’s Speech at the State Opening of Parliament on 17th July 2024.
The new UK Labour Government has set out its plans to introduce a new Employment Rights Bill, the “New Deal for Working People” and promised to work in partnership with businesses and workers to deliver the changes.
Labour also pledged to introduce a draft Equality (race and disability) Bill to “enshrine full right to equal pay in law”, extending the right to make equal pay claims to ethnic minority and disabled workers.
What is the Employment Rights Bill?
The new Government has pledged to introduce a new Employment Rights Bill within the next 100 days, which will most likely come into force during the latter half of 2025 or early 2026. The Bill, which is based on Labour’s ‘Plan to Make Work Pay’ is set to include several new or enhanced employment law rights, including the following:
- Ban exploitative zero-hours contracts and include rights to a more predictable contract.
- Provide employees with the right to claim unfair dismissal from day 1, removing the current requirement for a minimum of two years’ service. Sick pay and parental leave rights will also be applicable from the first day of employment. However, the briefing note does confirm that ” employers can operate probationary periods to assess new hires” – although details what this entails have not been confirmed.
- Reform dismissal and re-engagement laws, known as “fire and rehire” and “fire and replace” and replace the current Statutory Code of Practice.
- Remove the lower earnings limit and the three-day waiting period for Statutory Sick Pay.
- Make flexible working the default from day one for all workers, except where it is not reasonably feasible.
- Strengthen protections for new mothers, making it unlawful to dismiss a woman who has had a baby for six months after her return, other than in exceptional circumstances.
- Establish a new single enforcement body (Fair Work Agency) to strengthen enforcement of workplace rights.
- Update trade union legislation, removing restrictions on trade union activity and simplifying the statutory recognition process.
For further and more detailed information about what the Bill will include, you can click the link to read the official briefing notes to the King’s Speech 2024.
What is the Draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill?
The Draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill intends to tackle inequality for ethnic minority and disabled people by:
- Introducing a statutory right to equal pay for ethnic minorities and disabled people.
- Introducing mandatory ethnicity and disability pay reporting for large employers (with more than 250 employees).
These changes are likely to take longer to implement as it is still considered a draft Bill.
Impact for Employers and Employees
Employers and employees need to be aware of several significant points, especially regarding dismissal, parental leave and flexible working. However, any changes to legislation must go through several steps before becoming law, including going through both houses of parliament. It is also likely that changes will be made to the Bill and updates to codes of practice, before it finally reaches the Royal Assent, which is when the Bill is approved by the monarch and becomes a law or an ‘Act of Parliament’.
However, the Government has pledged to “work in close partnership with trade unions and business” to deliver these changes, so it is hoped there will be more explicit guidance and consultations on how these updates will impact businesses and employers and how any changes to employment law will be put into practice. It will also be important to see how these changes will impact an already stretched Employment Tribunal service and how the Government aims to resolve these backlogs.
Once these changes come into effect, employers must ensure that they are ready to update their policies and procedures to reflect the new legal requirements. Employees should also seek further clarification regarding their new rights and entitlements.
Employment Law Solicitors
At Rose & Rose, we provide a full range of employment law services, including pursuing and defending claims on behalf of employers and employees. As the new employment law changes make their way through the legislative process, we will keep you updated of the details as they become clear.
In the meantime, if you would like advice on any of the above or to discuss a current employment law matter, please contact a member of our experienced and understanding team. We are here to help find a solution to ensure the best possible outcome.
This blog post is not intended to be taken as advice or acted upon and information may have changed since publication. If you are seeking legal advice, please contact our team of solicitors.
