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What does the Employment Rights Bill change?

Employment

On 10th October 2024, the government introduced a new Employment Rights Bill (‘the Bill’) to enact many of Labour’s manifesto commitments to improve the employment rights of workers and employees.

This article sets out some of the Bill’s key provisions.

  • Day-one right to unfair dismissal protection – The Bill achieves this by removing the current requirement that employees must have two years’ service to bring an unfair dismissal claim.
  • Day-one right to paternity, parental and bereavement leave – Employees currently require 26 weeks’ service to qualify for those rights.
  • Day-one right to sick pay – The Bill will remove the current 3-day waiting period for entitlement to SSP, so that it becomes payable from day one of absence. The Bill will also remove the lower earnings limit (currently £123 per week) to be entitled to statutory sick pay.
  • Day-one rights to flexible working – Employees will have the right to work flexibly unless the employer can prove that this is not reasonably feasible.
  • New restrictions on zero-hours contracts – To ensure a baseline level of security and predictability, there will be a new right for workers to a contract which reflects the number of hours they regularly work. It also introduces new provisions designed to give workers reasonable notice of shifts and to proportionately compensate them when shifts are cancelled with insufficient notice.
  • ‘Fire and rehire’ – Employers will only be able to offer to re-engage workers on new terms as part of a business restructuring where there is no alternative, to ensure the viability of the business.
  • Protection from harassment – From 26th October 2024, the Bill enhances the duty to prevent sexual harassment by requiring employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent harassment.
  • Reforms of trade union legislation – Among other changes, the Bill repeals many of the industrial relations reforms introduced by the last government and places a new requirement on employers to remind workers that they have the legal right to join a trade union. It also provides trade unions with new rights to access workplaces in a regulated and responsible manner, in order to meet, represent, recruit and organise members in the workplace.
  • The Fair Work Agency – The Bill provides for the creation of a new single enforcement body which will have strong powers to inspect workplaces and undertake targeted and proactive enforcement work.
  • Protection for new mothers and those on family friendly leave – The Bill will strengthen the existing protections during pregnancy and following periods of family-friendly leave.  This protection is expected to last six months following their return to work.
  • Tipping policy – The Bill contains changes to the new regime for the fair and transparent distribution of tips.

The Government is currently consulting on the above proposals and most will likely come into force over the next two years.

This is a major piece of legislation which, once passed into law, will provide some significant changes to employment rights. We are here to help you navigate those changes, so please do not hesitate to contact us at 029 2034 5511 or employment@berrysmith.com if you would like more information about the changes raised in this Bill.