Labour admits workers’ rights overhaul may take two years

Labour’s Employment Minister has defended the government’s major new push for employment rights after it emerged it would not be implemented until 2026.

The Employment Rights Bill has been unveiled in Parliament today, forming the centrepiece of the party’s manifesto pledge to ‘make work pay’.

Among other commitments, the current version of the legislation would give workers protections from unfair dismissal from day one in their new job.

It would also remove age bands for the minimum wage, while also tying the figure to the cost of living so it rises as goods and services become more expensive.

But the Bill has been criticised by Unite the Union, with general secretary Sharon Graham describing it as having ‘more holes in it than Swiss cheese that hostile employers will use’.

Meanwhile, Tina McKenzie of the Federation of Small Businesses said the legislation was ‘clumsy, chaotic and poorly planned’, with the extent of the plans sending employers ‘scrambling to make sense of it all’.

The new rights are set to come into force in autumn 2026.

In an exclusive interview with Metro, Employment Minister Alison McGovern said: ‘There are things in here that I and many other politicians, actually of different parties, have been trying to do for a long time.’

Responding to the criticism, she said the Bill will ‘have a long period in parliament to get through all of those legislative stages’ and that the government would work with bodies including the FSB during the process.

The general secretaries of the TUC and the Fire Brigades Union have praised the legislation, with both describing it as a positive step towards improving the lives of working people.

Among the 28 ‘individual employment reforms’ that currently feature in the legislation is a guarantee that workers on zero-hour contracts would be offered a contract with set hours if they work regular shifts over a defined period.

McGovern said she ‘spent 14 years in opposition campaigning for zero-hour contracts to be banned’ – something the Bill does not do.

Speaking at an event encouraging young people into work, she said: ‘Some young people might want a zero-hours contract because they really want flexibility, but if you work regular hours, you should have a regular contract.

‘There is too much exploitation out there, and if you want regular hours you should get it.

‘Now, this Bill today, after 14 years of campaigning, is going to help put it in the law.’

Much of the substance of the legislation won’t come into effect straight away, and will rely on extensive consultations that could put off action until 2026.

Asked how she would reassure workers that the top-billed policies in the Employment Rights Bill would not be watered down over that time, McGovern said: ‘We made a manifesto commitment, and this Bill is part of delivering that.

‘Legislation does take time, and you’ve got to work with people to go through line-by-line to get it right.

‘But we made those manifesto commitments, we said we’d bring the Bill in within 100 days, we’re doing that today, and we will get there.’

What’s in the new Employment Rights Bill?

The Government has published the Employment Rights Bill, promising the biggest overhaul in workers’ rights in a generation.

Here’s a roundup of what’s in the new bill.

Flexible working

Large employers will be required to create action addressing gender equality, including supporting employees through the menopause, and protections against dismissal will be strengthened for pregnant workers and those returning from maternity leave.

Sick pay

Sick pay will be paid from the first day of absence rather than the fourth, and removing the lower earnings limit to make it available to all employees.

Day-one rights

The Bill will establish rights to bereavement and paternity and parental leave from day one, and strengthen statutory sick pay, removing the lower earnings limit for all workers and cutting out the waiting period before sick pay kicks in.

Probation

A new statutory probation period for companies’ new hires is going to be put into place. This will allow for a proper assessment of an employee’s suitability for a role as well as reassuring employees that they have rights from day one.

Zero-hours contracts

The has also pledged to ban ‘exploitative’ zero-hours contracts. Those who are on zero-hours contracts will have the right to a guaranteed-hours contract if they work regular hours over a defined period, which Labour’s original proposal said would be 12 weeks. They can also stay on zero-hours contracts if they want to.

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