Following the Labour Party’s success in the General Election we have today had their first Kings Speech in which the legislative agenda for their first months in government has been set out.
According to the briefing notes which accompany the King’s Speech, a new employment rights bill will be introduced and will include:
- A day one right to:
- Parental leave
- Sick pay
- Protection from unfair dismissal
- Banning Zero-hour contracts and a right for employees to have a contract that reflects their regular hours worked.
- Removing the lower earnings limit and waiting period for Statutory sick pay.
- Making flexible working the default for all workers from day one and requiring employers to accommodate this as far as reasonable.
- Making it unlawful to dismiss a woman who has had a baby for six months after she comes back to work (With certain exceptions).
- Ending ‘fire and rehire’.
- Creating the Fair Work Agency to enforce workplace rights
- Introducing a Fair Pay Agreement in the adult social care sector
- Repealing the law on minimum service levels in relation to industrial action
- Simplifying the process of statutory recognition for trade unions
- Introducing a right for workers and union members to access a union within workplaces.
The Kings Speech also announces a new Equality (Race and Disability) Bill. This proposes to “enshrine the full right to equal pay law” for disabled people and ethnic minorities. The same bill also proposes mandatory ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting for larger employers.
Full details of what these will look like will only become clear once the legislation is finally published however these are significant changes to the legal landscape. The biggest of these will be the day one right of unfair dismissal and the ban of Zero-hour contracts as these will impact upon all employment relationships.
If you have any questions relating to the upcoming changes and what they mean for you or your business please do get in touch with our Employment Team on 0345 646 0406 or complete an online enquiry form, and a member of the team will be in touch.