In our last update, we said that the Bill was about to have its second reading as part of the parliamentary process. This second debate took place on 8 November and on 21 November, Opposition parties tabled amendments to the Bill for it to be further debated in the House of Commons on 22 November.
Key amendments include:
- Delaying when the ‘sunset clause’ expires. The ‘sunset clause’ is a clause within the Bill that sets out when the EU law that is intertwined with UK legislation is abolished. Currently the Bill sets a date of December 2023, but there is an amendment for the date to be 2026.
- Further amendments tabled focus on protecting key worker rights relating to health and safety, annual leave and maternity.
Every clause within the Bill will require agreement, change or deletion. Should the amendments that are already put forward by the Opposition parties be accepted, the Bill will get re-printed before the next stage, which is the report stage. It is at this point; the Bill returns to the House of Commons for further debate and further amendments proposed.
This Bill, when implemented, will bring the most significant changes to UK employment law for many years. We are running a free webinar in May 2023, by which time, we hope to have more clarity on the changes we can expect to see. You can register for our free event here. You can also visit our events page to see what other free webinars we have scheduled for the coming months.
Your dedicated hub
As things stand, we expect to see many significant changes to UK employment law over the coming year, and to keep you informed and share guidance on what steps your business should take, we will be posting news updates, and subject matter articles so that you can quickly stay updated, all conveniently in one place.
You can access the European Law Reform Hub here.
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If you require any further support with your business including your HR, Payroll or Health and Safety, please contact us and speak to a member of the team.
