Following an in-depth review, the government set out in December 2018 its employment law reforms under the Good Work Plan in response to the Taylor review which was commissioned to address concerns regarding employee and worker rights in the UK. The aim was to review existing legislation, ensuring the law accurately reflects changing labour markets and protect workers’ rights in the UK.
Many of the changes identified take effect from April 2020:
- The right to a basic written contract will take effect from day 1 of employment, (currently employers have 2 months to provide one) for employees. The right is also extended to workers too, (those who have a contract or arrangement to do work or provide a service
- The reference period for calculating an average week’s pay will increase from 12 to 52 weeks, which is an important change for those working variable hours. Currently the rate of pay a worker receives may differ when on holiday, depending on how many hours they worked in the previous 12 weeks.
- All agency workers will have the right to receive the same pay and basic employment terms as comparable permanent employees after 12 weeks, even those employed directly by employment agencies.
Our HR solutions
Here at Smith Cooper, our specialist HR consultancy service provides businesses access to professional employment support, without the need for a permanent HR function.
With a wealth of experience and a straightforward approach to HR matters, we offer our clients a comprehensive and pragmatic HR consultancy that is cost effective and aligned with their bespoke needs. If you require any further information or support on the issues raised in this article or whether you need to review your workplace policies, you’re facing complex employee situations, or you’d like to talk to us about wider HR support, we can help.
If you would like to know more about the solutions our HR consultancy can offer your business, please get in touch.
