Following the election on 4th July, yesterday marked the formal State Opening of Parliament with the King’s Speech.

As we discussed previously in our blog covering the Labour Manifesto, the incoming government had vowed to overhaul employment rights, with a promise to introduce a new Employment Rights Bill within the first 100 days of a Labour government. The manifesto pledged to implement measures from ‘Labour’s Plan to Make Work Pay: Delivering A New Deal for Working People’, which contains 100 pages of policy detail.

What wasn’t clear from the manifesto or plan however was which measures would from part of the Employment Rights Bill, and which measures would be introduced later in their term. The King’s Speech yesterday morning provided further details on what we can expect within the new Employment Rights Bill. Measures include:

• Banning ‘exploitative’ zero hours contracts, ending ‘one sided’ flexibility, and ensuring workers have the right to a contract which (i) reflects the number of hours they regularly work and (ii) that they get reasonable notice of any changes in shift with proportionate compensation for any shifts cancelled or curtailed;
• Ending the practice of ‘fire and rehire’ by reforming the law and replacing the previous statutory code;
• Making parental leave, sick pay and unfair dismissal day one employment rights;
• Making flexible working the default from day one for all workers; and
• Strengthening protections for new mothers by making it unlawful to dismiss a woman for six months after her return to work, except in specific circumstances.

In addition to the Employment Rights Bill, the King’s Speech also revealed plans for a new Race Equality Bill which will enshrine in law the full right to equal pay for ethnic minorities and disabled people, as well as introducing mandatory ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting.

Employment Matters Webinar

Whilst the King’s Speech has provided further details beyond the manifesto pledges, there are still many unanswered questions which we will expect to be answered upon publication of the draft bills.

Our popular Employment Matters webinar returns later this year for a special edition, ‘Labour’s first 100 days in power: What has changed in employment law?’. By that time the Employment Rights Bill will have been published, and we can expect to have a clearer idea of the steps employers will have to take to meet new obligations.
Our webinar takes place on Wednesday 23rd October 2024 from 8:45 – 10:00 and will be held online via Teams. 

For those interested you can register via the following link: https://hubs.la/Q02GWNJm0.