Employment Rights Bill is a 'game-changer for workers' but 'burden for businesses'

Labour's hugely anticipated Employment Rights Bill, with long-awaited reforms to parental and bereavement leave, sick pay, and unfair dismissal rules was unveiled this week - and your absorption has been mixed

Labour unveiled the caller Employment Rights Bill this week - and we wanted to cognize what you thought astir it.

The ambitious bundle contained 28 caller measures ripe for discussion, including long-awaited reforms to parental and bereavement leave, sick pay, and unfair dismissal rules.

Responses to the measure person been mixed. Labour unions and idiosyncratic advocacy groups mostly welcomed it, seeing it arsenic a captious measurement toward enhancing protections for employees, particularly those successful short-term, flexible jobs (gig economy) - and different precarious workers. Many felt the authorities addresses captious issues specified arsenic occupation security, just wages, and the close to flexible working, empowering workers to negociate amended presumption with their employers.

On the flip-side, concern leaders and immoderate manufacture representatives person voiced interest astir imaginable fallout from the bill. They interest that stricter regulations regarding worker rights, particularly astir dismissals and gig work, could pb to accrued costs and reduced flexibility for businesses, peculiarly tiny enterprises. Critics reason that these changes mightiness stifle innovation and hinder occupation creation, yet impacting the economical betterment post-pandemic.

We asked what YOU thought about Labour's caller Employment Rights Bill, and here's however you responded:

• Does the Employment Rights Bill spell acold capable successful protecting workers?
  Yes: 54.7 per cent; No: 45.3 per cent
• Are you funny successful much flexible moving hours?
  Yes: 61 per cent; No: 39 per cent
• Should zero hours contracts beryllium banned?
  Yes: 70.5 per cent; No: 29.5 per cent
• Are the changes to statutory sick wage beardown enough?
  Yes: 57.5 per cent; No: 42.5 per cent
• Should determination beryllium much protections for self-employed workers?
  Yes: 74.1 per cent; No: 25.9 per cent
• Will the Employment Rights Bill marque a existent difference?
  Yes: 50.1 per cent; No: 49.9 per cent

'There is ever a hidden, antagonistic interaction to employees'

Many of you commented connected our archetypal stories, here's conscionable a snapshot of what immoderate of you had to say:

Dancing4sprinkles: "I enactment successful payroll. I fishy galore radical don’t realise that erstwhile laws are changed successful favour of employees, employers look to recoup the further outgo to them by immoderate means they can. As an illustration erstwhile I worked for a ample radical of retail stores [in the UK] and the nationalist wage was increased, fixed store workers are usually debased paid the fiscal interaction to the institution was huge.

"To offset this outgo the institution reduced the fig of paid sickness days employees were entitled to. There is ever a hidden, antagonistic interaction to employees erstwhile laws are introduced that should support them. This volition hap here. Keir Starmer, instrumentality note."

Cynicaloldie: "[This is] excellent! I person been retired for 3 years truthful americium nary longer looking implicit my enarthrosis arsenic successful immoderate employments I was during 50 agelong years of a moving life. It is bully that galore of the fears of losing one's employment volition nary longer beryllium a blight to employees. A blessed idiosyncratic is simply a amended idiosyncratic IMO and experience."

Kachar: "I don't hold with zero declaration hours. If you're connected 1 and person nary shifts past you're not earning wealth to live, past you're not paying taxes. Yes, companies volition person to wage to support their employees, but much radical volition really beryllium moving alternatively than being topped up from UC."

Concha: "Protection rules for workers is simply a must. It makes for a much productive workforce. Plus morale is higher."

Scar84: "Britain is successful the grip of its worst sickness situation successful decades, and the Treasury is increasing progressively concerned. According to the latest predictions, 1 successful 12 working-age Britons are expected to assertion sickness benefits by the extremity of the decade, fuelled by a surge successful intelligence wellness conditions. Only erstwhile we chopped these benefits and marque radical enactment alternatively than beryllium astatine location claiming payer wealth tin the state improve."

Jah Warrior: "Let's anticipation this starts to trim the disparity betwixt workers and bosses wealthiness that has grown since Thatcher..."

Summary of the Employment Rights Bill

Don’t expect immoderate of the pursuing changes to footwear successful anytime soon. Officials are saying we mightiness not spot immoderate go instrumentality until autumn 2026 astatine the earliest.

Parental and bereavement leave

The Bill gives 'day one' rights for paternity, parental and bereavement permission for millions of workers. Around 30,000 fathers oregon partners volition beryllium eligible for paternity leave, portion an other 1.5 cardinal parents volition person the close to unpaid permission from time one. It volition besides found a caller close to bereavement permission for workers. Pregnant women and caller mothers volition get beefed up protections from dismissal whilst pregnant, connected maternity permission and wrong six months of returning to work.

Flexible working

The close to flexible moving volition go the default for each employees, unless the leader tin beryllium it’s "unreasonable". There are presently 8 reasons bosses tin garbage requests specified arsenic other costs oregon struggles to conscionable lawsuit demand. But it is not wide however narrowly the alteration volition beryllium interpreted. The Government estimates 1.7million radical could instrumentality to the workforce - who are presently retired of the labour marketplace - owed to flexible moving and different policies.

Sick Pay

Statutory sick wage volition beryllium strengthened, removing the little net bounds for each workers and cutting retired the waiting play earlier sick wage kicks in. Under the existing system, workers who gain little than an mean of £123-per-week bash not qualify. There were 1.5million radical earning beneath this threshold successful 2022-23. The measure volition besides extremity the three-day waiting play earlier workers tin get sick pay. Instead it volition footwear successful connected the archetypal time idiosyncratic is disconnected sick.

Unfair dismissal

The two-year qualifying play for protections from unfair dismissal volition beryllium removed. Instead, the purpose is for workers to person this close from time 1 successful the job. An estimated 9 cardinal workers who person been with their leader for little than 2 years volition payment from this change, according to officials. But determination volition beryllium a consultation connected this portion of the program arsenic it's 1 of the trickier elements for businesses, with the alteration apt to travel successful 2026. The projected caller statutory play - expected to beryllium astir 9 months - volition committedness employers a "lighter touch" process covering dismissals.

Zero hours contracts

The measure promises to outlaw exploitative zero hours contracts, by offering workers the close to guaranteed hours. This could impact astir 1 cardinal people. Employers volition person to connection a guaranteed hours declaration based connected a 12-week notation play - and workers connected casual contracts volition besides beryllium entitled to a tenable fig of shifts and fiscal compensation if a displacement is cancelled oregon chopped short. However it stops abbreviated of the outright prohibition initially promised to let radical to enactment connected a zero hours declaration if they privation to. This contented has proved thorny with unions, immoderate of whom wanted insecure contracts banned completely.

If you privation to person your say, you tin inactive instrumentality the canvass here:

If you can't spot the poll, click here

What bash YOU think? Does the measure spell acold enough? Take our canvass supra and grow connected your feelings successful the comments below