As promised, the Labour government has published details of its plans for reform of employment rights within its first 100 days.

Although a lot of detail is still to be confirmed, some things are known and there are steps that employers can take now to prepare and mitigate the effects of what is being billed as the biggest reform of employment law in decades.

Key areas of proposed reform include the:

• introduction of guaranteed hours and the right to reasonable notice of shift changes for those on zero or low hours contracts (which will include casual staff such as bank workers)
• removal of the two-year qualifying period for unfair dismissal and introducing an “initial period of employment” (potentially nine months) during which employers may only need to carry out a proportionate assessment of an employee’s suitability for a role (so a lower threshold to achieve a fair dismissal)
• requirement, when contracting out services, to include an obligation that the new provider shall not treat transferring employees less favourably than they were treated prior to any transfer and that the new provider’s existing employees shall be treated no less favourably than the transferred employees 
• introduction of employer’s liability for third party harassment of employees unless the employer can demonstrate that it has taken all reasonable steps to prevent such harassment occurring.

What can your organisation do now?

Step 1: get up to speed

Get up to speed with what is proposed (we recommend starting with our insight and webinar and keep yourself updated. Things are moving fast. Look out for our future insights and updates.

Step 2: participate

Have your say and try to influence what the law will look like in the future. You can do so by getting involved with, and contributing to, the:

• House of Commons Public Bill Committee’s analysis of the Bill by submitting written evidence for consideration (see here for details). The Committee’s first sitting expected to be on Tuesday 26 November 2024 and the Committee is scheduled to report by Tuesday 21 January 2025.
• The Business and Trade Committee’s inquiry into the Bill to investigate what its impact will be on workers, businesses, economic growth and wealth creation. The deadline for submissions is 6 December 2024.
• Various government consultations. So far, there are four in progress and all close on 2 December 2024:
  
  • Extending zero hours contracts measures to agency workers
  • Creating a modern framework for industrial relations
  • Strengthening collective redundancy and fire and rehire remedies
  • Statutory sick pay rate for low earners.

Step 3: audit and identify

In order to prepare effectively, you will need to understand the potential areas of risk, what you have in place already and the likely impact. For example, the proposed new rights to guaranteed hours will have a significant impact on existing casual / bank work arrangements. We recommend that you undertake audits (e.g. to determine the way in which notice of shifts is currently provided, and the number and frequency of hours regularly undertaken by each casual/bank worker), review current policies, practices, contracts and training, and explore any proposed changes with all relevant stakeholders.

Consider what resources you have and what additional resources you may need in order to be able to undertake all the work required, for example, legal advice and/or HR/admin support.

Step 4: analyse the results and identify the action required

It may be helpful to set up a working group (or groups) to consider each proposed reform.

We anticipate that key action points will include the following:

• Implementation of robust probationary policies, together with training for managers on the new processes, to ensure that any new test is met for dismissals during the initial period of employment.
• Preparing for a significant change in the way that bank arrangements operate, whether at a local or system level.
• Identifying where third parties have the opportunity to harass your employees and identify reasonable steps you could take to ensure that this does not happen - for example, through enforcement of codes of behaviour for patients/visitors and inclusion of (indemnity and other) clauses in agreements with contractors in relation to harassment.
• Amending existing policies and procedures to take account of the proposed reforms. For example, the proposed changes to sick pay, paternity leave, parental leave and bereavement leave entitlements and flexible working rights.
• Identifying areas where training may be required and conducting training for relevant staff in advance of the law changes.
• Engaging with managers, staff and other key stakeholders to ensure they are aware of the key changes and have the opportunity to have their say.
• Seeking to strengthen relationships with unions and reviewing your recognition agreements with unions to ensure that they are up to date.

Step 5: make the necessary changes

All the analysis, engagement and planning will be ineffective if the necessary changes are not implemented before the new laws come into force. You will need to ensure that timeframes for the action points identified are set and progress is kept under regular review.

What to take away

It is understood that little will change before 2026. However, it is important that employers do not underestimate the size of the task ahead of them. Although the detail of the reforms is still to be determined (following consultations and further legislation), there is plenty to work on. We encourage all employers not to wait: start work now to ensure you will have enough time to consider the best options for your organisation and put them in place before the reforms come into effect.

How Capsticks can help

Capsticks has significant experience of supporting employers to navigate changes in employment law and policy, from conducting audits, reviewing current policies, contracts, practice and implementing change, to delivering training to employees at all levels. We can also deal with any complaints or specific issues that may arise in individual cases, by conducting investigations, supporting decision makers and HR, and defending any employment tribunal claims.

We can help by working with your HR team to undertake an audit of existing practices, policies and contracts to establish where changes need to be made, or where new policies need to be introduced. We can provide training to your HR team and managers to ensure that they are fully up to speed with the new changes. 

For further information on how we might assist your organisation, please contact Nicola Butterworth, Sian Bond or Claire Shaw.