The King’s Speech 2024 – Employment Implications
Please note there may have been some updates since this article was published. Please see our latest employment law guide for updated information and news.
The 2024 King’s Speech reminded us of childhood letters to Father Christmas – a lot of hopes and expectations but no guarantee the presents will be under the tree on Christmas morning.
Signalled for progression within the first 100 days of the new Government does not translate that everything will be law in that time frame. Keir Starmer has made clear he intends ‘partnership’ between business, working people, and the unions. Consultation on key issues means some may take a couple of years to roll through.
The speech contained details of 39 Bills. That’s a massive amount of proposed legislation. But it was a detail-light overview. This commentary relies heavily on detail gathered elsewhere e.g. a briefing note issued by the Prime Minister’s Office.
An Employment Rights Bill is one of the 39. However, several more have considerable employment impact.
The Employment Bill
Here are some key ingredients to expect:
- Banning exploitative zero hours contracts – Contracts would need to reflect hours regularly worked. The emphasis here is on the word exploitative. It’s not saying all ‘gig work’ contracts will be banned. But it’s announcing an end to ‘one sided flexibility’.
- Day one rights to challenge unfair dismissal – There’s recognition that probation needs special attention. But what will apply to temporary, seasonal, and casual work?
- Parental leave and sick pay from day one – There are various flavours of parental leave. It’s not clear what exactly is intended. Statutory sick pay is expected to apply from day one with no lower earnings threshold.
- Making flexible working the default from day one – This is about the opportunity to apply. It may be impossible for some roles to access forms of flexible working, home working for bar staff or nurses, for example. However, asking for part-time, family friendly or care orientated work schedules may be possible.
- Ending ‘fire and rehire’ and ‘fire and replace’ – Following public outrage at the way P and O Ferries treated its UK staff, it’s unsurprising to see this. There was initial Government enthusiasm for action back in 2022 but the eventual Code was widely considered inadequate. Changes to a contract should already be agreed between the parties. But what if you can’t agree? The devil will be in the detail here.
- Protecting new mothers – It will be unlawful to dismiss a maternity returner within six months, excluding ‘exceptional circumstances’. Again, the devil will be in the detail.
- A fair pay agreement for the adult social care sector – As many of our clients already know, contracts are often simply not viable. Hopefully, this proposal starts a dialogue regarding proper funding, in turn facilitating better pay for staff and assisting retention.
- National school support staff negotiating body – The aim is for national terms and conditions, career progression, and fair pay rates. It remains to be seen exactly what – and who – would be covered.
- Removing restrictions on trade union activity – Cancelling some of the previous Government’s legislation such as minimum service levels during strikes. Encouraging ‘good faith negotiating and bargaining’. Principally affects the public sector and large companies where unions concentrate their organising activity.
- Statutory recognition – Seeks to provide a reasonable right to access a union within workplaces. A worker already has the right to join a union. And, individually, to be accompanied, for example at a disciplinary hearing. This is about wider collective bargaining rights. This is only likely to impact large organisations where unions concentrate activity.
- A single enforcement body – The Fair Work Agency – to strengthen enforcement of workplace rights. Links to ACAS, Employment Tribunals etc. are unclear.
Beyond the Employment Bill
The Digital Information and Smart Data Bill – Could include measures e.g. to regulate use of Artificial Intelligence in employment. The previous Government had a ‘maximum flexibility’ approach and did not favour legislation. In Europe, specific legislation has already been adopted. It would be unsurprising to see a legislative approach for the UK.
Elsewhere in the King’s Speech reference was made to seeking a closer working relationship with European neighbours (but not revisiting Brexit). Europe already raised anxieties that the UK was straying from current GDPR ‘adequacy’ provisions, jeopardising the current agreement. For clients based in or doing business with Europe, that would have created the nightmare of two data protection regimes! This is but one possible example.
Skills England Bill – Since the adoption of the apprenticeship ‘levy’ some years ago, there has been widespread disquiet with statutory apprenticeship provisions. This is just one angle that this legislation may address. It may also embrace re-profiling the wider (and older) 21st century workforce to embrace emerging technologies. We’ll see.
Equality (Race and Disability) Bill – Providing a full right to equal pay for ethnic minorities and disabled people with mandatory pay reporting (presumably for employers with over 250 staff).
Pension Schemes Bill – This is a far-reaching rationalisation of workplace pension schemes. It suggests that it will beneficially impact 15 million people and result in contributors benefitting by up to an extra £11,000 over their working life.
What about the hangovers?
In the last year or two, a considerable number of Private Members’ Bills were enacted with Government support. Some, such as Carer’s Leave and improvements to Paternity provisions, made it through and are now operational. Others required secondary legislation, codes of practice, statutory guidance etc. before taking effect.
In certain cases, such as the ‘Tipping Act’, final implementation was deferred (supposedly to October 2024). And its envisaged statutory guidance still hasn’t emerged. In other cases, a longer period for employers to plan was announced, such as the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) harassment legislation. But, pre-election, Labour indicated an intention to re-introduce provisions such as third-party harassment. And the Equalities and Human Rights Commission recently produced draft guidance reflecting the impact of third-party harassment. So just what is intended? It’s simply not clear!
As most of this legislation has received Royal Assent, it may be possible to fast-track anything that remains by ministerial sign-off. However, it remains to be seen exactly what is intended. Have any previous proposals fallen with the dissolution of Parliament? Will some provisions be changed? Or repealed? At this stage nobody really knows.
