If employers are living under the threat of them then bringing claims of unfair dismissal against the company, it could make them more reluctant to hire, thereby stifling growth and opportunity – the exact opposite of what the government is hoping to achieve.
And the impact on the tribunal system will mean that those who have genuinely been treated poorly will have a significantly longer wait until their claim is heard.
Labour has been very vocal about their desire to ban bullying fire and rehire practices, but it is likely that the process of re-engaging employees on new terms and conditions will still be an option for employers if the alternative is insolvency. This is a much higher bar than under current laws.
Anti-union legislation introduced under the previous administration will be repealed, including the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act and related regulations, and a new Fair Work Agency will be established to bring together different government enforcement bodies, enforce holiday pay and strengthen statutory sick pay.
Pregnant women and new mothers returning to work will be given more protection from dismissal while pregnant, on maternity leave and within six months of returning to work – a further extension to existing enhancements introduced in April 2024.
Time off
Much has been made of flexible working becoming the default position, but this does not appear to be the sweeping change we had been led to believe.
Employers will be able to reject flexible working requests where the changes being requested are not reasonably practical, and it appears the process for managing requests will remain the same.
Employers will, however, now have to demonstrate why it would be unreasonable to make the change, as well as showing which of the eight reasons for refusing the request applies.
It's also important to note here that flexible working does not just mean working from home, it is any alternative to the traditional 9-5. This can include hybrid working, flexible start or finish times, part-time working or even job sharing.
Paternity leave and parental leave will become day one rights, and there will be a new right to bereavement leave from day one. This will replace parental bereavement leave but give exactly the same provisions – that is, two weeks' leave to be taken separately or together.
Contracts
Exploitative zero-hours contracts will be banned, with those working on zero-hours or low-hours contracts having the right to be offered guaranteed hours if they work regular hours over a defined period. They will have the right to remain on their original contract if preferred.
