Government Reforms (1): Flexible working and family-friendly legislation

The Government has announced that it is backing several Private Members’ Bills in respect of family-friendly and flexible working rights. This generally means that the changes within the bills are likely to become law. Here’s a summary:

Changes to Flexible Working Regulations:

The changes proposed include:

Allowing employees to make two flexible working requests in any 12-month period;
Reducing the time limit for an employer to respond to a flexible working request from three to two months;
Requiring employers to consult with an employee about other available options (when it intends to refuse their original request);
Removing the requirement for employees to set out the effects of their flexible working request. (The intention is to make it a joint responsibility for the employer and employee to understand the impact of the flexible working request).

Importantly, the Government also plans to introduce separate legislation to give all employees the right to make a flexible working request from day-one of their employment.

Although the timetable for introducing these changes is not yet confirmed, the Private Members’ Bill which is likely to introduce the majority of the reforms (except making it a day one right) is due to have its third reading on 24 February 2023, so the Bill could well become law in the near future.

In respect of make flexible working a day one right, the Government has said it will do so by secondary legislation ‘when parliamentary time allows’. However, it is likely that the Government will aim to match the timing of this with the rest of the reforms.

We therefore recommend that employers schedule a review of their flexible working policies in the coming months, to ensure your policies and practices align with these changes.

Extending protection from redundancy for pregnant employees (and new parents):

If an employer makes an employee’s role redundant while they are on maternity leave it will need to give her priority when offering alternative roles. The employee must be offered any suitable alternative vacancies which exist within the employer or associated employer, without requiring her to apply or go through any selection process (even if there are better candidates).

Currently this protection only lasts for as long as the employee is on maternity leave. However, the aim of the Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Bill is to extend this protection from the date the employee notifies the employer of the pregnancy, to six months after the end of the leave. It will also apply to protect employees returning to work after periods of adoption or shared parental leave.

Unpaid leave for carers:

The Carer’s Leave Bill will introduce a new, flexible entitlement to one week’s unpaid leave per year for employees who are providing or arranging care for dependant family members or friends. This right will be available to employees from their first day of employment and there will be specific protection against detriment and dismissal for having taken unpaid carer’s leave.

Leave for parents of children who require neonatal care:

The Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Bill will introduce a right to up to 12 weeks’ leave for parents of children who require neonatal care. This right will be available to employees from their first day of employment. Employees with more than 26 weeks’ service at the time of the leave will also qualify for the right to weekly pay during their leave, at the statutory rate (currently £156.66 per week, and rising to £172.48 from April 2023).

Government Reforms (1): Flexible working and family-friendly legislation

The Government has announced that it is backing several Private Members’ Bills in respect of family-friendly and flexible working rights. This generally means that the changes within the bills are likely to become law. Here’s a summary:

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