Employment Rights Bill confirmed in King’s Speech

In a landmark move, the King’s Speech has confirmed the introduction of the Employment Rights Bill, a key part of the Government’s effort to ‘Make Work Pay’.

This Bill aims to create a new partnership between businesses, trade unions, and working people, focusing on enhancing job security, fairness, and flexibility in the workplace.

The main elements of the Employment Rights Bill include:

1. Banning zero-hour contracts: Workers will have the right to a contract that reflects the number of hours they regularly work, with reasonable notice of any shift changes and compensation for cancelled shifts. This will end ‘one-sided’ flexibility, providing a baseline level of security and predictability in all jobs.
2. Ending ‘Fire and Rehire’ practices: The Bill will reform the law to provide effective remedies against the practice of ‘Fire and Rehire’ and ‘Fire and Replace’, replacing the previous Government’s statutory code.
3. Enhancing worker protections from day one: Parental leave, sick pay, and protection from unfair dismissal will be available from the first day on the job for all workers.
4. Strengthening Statutory Sick Pay: The lower earnings limit will be removed, making Statutory Sick Pay available to all workers, and the waiting period will be eliminated.
5. Flexible working as default: Flexible working will be the default from day one for all workers, with employers required to accommodate this as far as is reasonable, reflecting the modern workplace.
6. Protections for new mothers: It will be unlawful to dismiss a woman who has had a baby for six months after her return to work, except in specific circumstances.
7. Single Enforcement Body: A new Fair Work Agency will be established to strengthen the enforcement of workplace rights.
8. Fair Pay Agreements: A Fair Pay Agreement will be established in the adult social care sector, with a review to assess how similar agreements could benefit other sectors.
9. School Support Staff Negotiating Body: This body will be reinstated to establish national terms and conditions, career progression routes, and fair pay rates.
10. Updating trade union legislation: The Bill will remove restrictions on trade union activity, including the previous Government’s approach to minimum service levels, ensuring industrial relations are based on good faith negotiation and bargaining.
11. Simplifying statutory recognition: The process of statutory recognition will be simplified, and a regulated route will be introduced to ensure workers and union members have a reasonable right to access a union within workplaces.