Amendments to Employment Rights Bill

The Employment Rights Bill was published in October 2024 (see our blogs on this here and here). In late November the Government published an amendment paper containing a number of proposed changes.

Extending the time limit for Tribunal Claims: from the current 3 months to 6 months (subject to extensions for early conciliation through ACAS). This is a significant change which will likely increase the number of claims, as employees have longer to act.

Day 1 unfair dismissal – defining the ‘initial period of employment’ as somewhere between 3 and 9 months (the exact period to be confirmed): This is the period of employment (usually called probation) during which the (proposed) day 1 unfair dismissal rights are more ‘light touch’. Employers will likely be able to follow a simpler dismissal procedure during this period and compensation for unfair dismissal claims will likely be reduced.

Changes relating to guaranteed hours of work: Including:

- A duty to provide ‘certain information’ (to be defined later);
- Clarification of the meaning of ‘short notice’ in relation to when a shift is moved or curtailed;
- Providing Tribunals with discretion to decide whether to award compensation and, if so, the amount, when shifts are cancelled or moved at short notice. To be based on the ‘seriousness of the matter’.

Equality Action Plans: The Bill allows the Government to produce secondary legislation requiring employers to create ‘equality action plans’ to promote gender equality. The Government has now added an additional requirement for the equality plans to include an explanation of how employers are supporting workers experiencing menstrual problems/disorders.

Trade Union Access to Workplaces: This is clarified to exclude workplaces that are also private homes.

Other proposals:

Non-disclosure agreements: The Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran has proposed a clause which will void any non-disclosure agreement that purports to prevent workers from disclosing any type of harassment, including sexual harassment.

Prohibition on ‘substitution clauses’: The Conservative MP Nick Timothy has proposed a clause which will prohibit the use of ‘substitution clauses’ in agreements between employers and employees, workers, or dependant contractors.

The next step is for the Public Bill Committee to debate the Bill, as amended, over the next two months. The Committee will hear evidence from a number of academics, industries and trade unions during that time, with a view to reaching a conclusion on the Bill on 25 January 2025.

Amendments to Employment Rights Bill

The Employment Rights Bill was published in October 2024 (see our blogs on this here and here). In late November the Government published an amendment paper containing a number of proposed changes.

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