Sean Garmory is a Solicitor at specialist employment law firm, Collingwood Legal. Sean details the recent Employment Law legislation passed which employers should be aware of.
In 2019, the Government proposed a range of Employment Law reforms in the form of the Employment Bill. Although this Bill was eventually dropped by the Government, a range of Private Member’s Bills covering the areas initially set out in the Bill have since been supported by the Government and have led to a range of new Employment Laws of which employers should be aware.
Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act
The current flexible working regime is to be made more flexible with the introduction of a number of changes which include:
allowing employees to make two requests in any 12-month period;
removing the requirement for employees to explain the impact the request would have on the employer; and
reducing the period for the employer to make a decision from three months to two months.
Employers are now also required to consult with an employee before a flexible working request is rejected.
It is expected that flexible working will become a “day one right” through secondary legislation.
We expect this Act to come into force in July 2024.
Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act
While not included in the Employment Bill, changes in this area have been anticipated for some time. The amendments in this Act create a new active duty on employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees. Employment Tribunals will also have the power to award a 25% uplift to sexual harassment compensation where this duty is breached.
Amendments to reintroduce a duty for employers to prevent third-party harassment were rejected during the parliamentary process.
This Act will come into force in October 2024.
Workers (Predictable Terms and Conditions) Act
Similar to the regime for requesting flexible working, workers and agency workers will be able to request a predictable working pattern. This will exist where there is a lack of predictability in relation to work carried out for the employer, the change requested relates to the work pattern and the purpose of the application is to receive a more predictable pattern.
“Predictability” is not defined in the Act (other than a presumption that a fixed-term contract of less than a year is unpredictable). Workers on zero-hours contracts or casual arrangements will likely be covered by this new regime.
Workers will be able to make 2 applications in a 12-month period. If a flexible working request is for the purpose of receiving a more predictable working pattern, this request will count towards the cap. The employer has 1 month to make a decision on the application and cannot reject the application unless a “prescribed ground” applies (such as the burden of additional costs or detrimental impact on other aspects of the employer’s business).
The Act contains protections for workers should the employer fail to comply with the statutory regime, if workers are subjected to unlawful detriment or they are dismissed for exercising or seeking to exercise this right.
We expect further regulations in this area (including an expected length of service requirement), it is expected that this Act will come into force in September 2024.
Keep aware of further changes
These reforms are not the only pieces of legislation passed in recent months. For example, the introduction of an entitlement to one week’s unpaid carers leave, the provision of paid neonatal care leave and the extension of protection for those on maternity leave (and other forms of family leave) from redundancy. Legislation enacting these changes are expected in both 2024 and 2025 and employers should be wary of the constantly changing Employment Law landscape.
Collingwood Legal is a specialist employment law firm and we provide bespoke training and advice to organisations on all areas of employment law.
www.collingwoodlegal.com
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