King’s Speech July 2024 – News for HR Professionals

Keir Starmer’s Labour government has said in the King’s speech, which opened the new session of Parliament on Wednesday this week, that it would create a new law setting out a new deal for workers.

A series of promised proposals have been set out to strengthen workers’ rights and end racial pay discrimination.

These proposals were previously set out in ‘Labour’s Plan to Make Work Pay: Delivering A New Deal for Working People’, which was published prior to the General Election.

Within the King’s Speech was mentioned the Employment Rights Bill, which is predicted to be introduced within the first 100 days of the Government taking office (so watch this space).

Also noted is the Equality (Race and Disability) Bill, which will allow the right to equal pay for ethnic minorities and disabled people. The briefing notes state that this will make it easier for such individuals to bring pay discrimination claims. This bill will also create mandatory ethnicity and disability pay reporting for employers with more than 250 employees to assist in the ethnicity and disability pay gaps.

The briefing notes on the King’s Speech, which were published by the Prime Minister’s Office, indicate that the Employment Rights Bill will include the following points:

• ensure protection from unfair dismissal is a ‘day one’ right which will mean that the two year current qualification period will no longer exist. It is proposed to be subject to probationary periods to assess new hires so there will be some allowance to end employment during the probationary period
• make parental leave and sick pay also a ‘day one’ right
• ban ‘exploitative’ zero-hour contracts (so not a complete ban), ensuring workers have a right to a contract that reflects the number of hours they work on a regular basis and that all workers get reasonable notice of any changes in shifts with proportionate compensation for any shifts cancelled or curtailed
• end the ‘fire and rehire’ practice by enhancing the law and replacing the current Code of Practice
• removing the lower earnings limit as well as the three-day waiting period for SSP
• make flexible working the default for all workers
• providing protection to make it unlawful to dismiss a woman who has had a baby for six months after she has returned to work (subject to specific circumstances)
• creating a new Single Enforcement Body to be known as a Fair Work Agency to allow enforcement of workplace rights
• create a Fair Pay Agreement in the adult social care sector and consider to what extent such agreements could benefit other sectors
• reinstate the School Support Staff Negotiating Body to create national terms and conditions, career progression routes and fair pay rates
• update trade union legislation, removing unnecessary restrictions on trade union activity. This would include the previous Government’s approach to minimum service levels and ensure industrial relations are based on good faith negotiation and bargaining
• simplify the process of statutory recognition and create a route to ensure workers and union members have a reasonable right to access a union within workplaces.

Contact our employment law solicitors today

It looks set to be a busy time for HR Professionals. If you have any questions regarding any of the issues raised in this article, please do not hesitate to contact our specialist Employment Law team by using our online enquiry form or by calling 0330 191 5713.