The Government plans to introduce "a new right to a contract that reflects the number of hours regularly worked, as part of [the Government's] significant and ambitious agenda to ensure workplace rights are fit for a modern economy."

We believe this will be based on a right to regular hours based on a 12-week reference period. It is also expected that there will be a right to compensation for late/no notice cancellation or curtailment of shifts.

We'll cover:

- the proposed new right to regular hours

- how the 12 week reference period is calculated (is it a rolling 12 weeks, which changes weekly?)

- will there be a qualifying period, and if so, how long?

- how will this affect industries with season fluctuations?

 - will workers who wish to retain full flexibility over the hours they work be able to do so?

- for late or no notice shift cancellations, how will 'reasonable notice' be defined? What will be the financial implications for employers?

This initiative aims to set national terms and conditions, ensure fair pay rates, and establish a national living wage by removing existing age-based pay bands.

We’ll cover:

- the implications of the fair pay agreement for employers and employees in the adult social care sector

- how will national terms and conditions affect turnover and vacancy rates in the sector?

- how will the establishment of a ‘genuine’ national living wage differ from the current model?

- how will sector-wide collective bargaining work in practice?

- how might these reforms impact other sectors if the Labour Government decides to extend collective bargaining beyond adult social care (as foreshadowed in the King’s Speech in July 2024).

Now that the Conservative’s Statutory Code of Practice is in force, what will the Labour government do to make dismissal and re-engagement even harder for employers? An outright ban is no longer proposed, but other measures will be introduced.

We’ll cover:

- what are the main requirements for employers under the new Code of Practice on fire and rehire?

- when should employers contact Acas for advice, and how could failing to follow the Code impact compensation awards?

- what additional penalties could employers face for failing to comply with the strengthened Code?

- how do Labour’s proposals compare with the previous government’s approach, and what further changes are expected from the government?

- under what conditions will dismissal and re-engagement be permissible as part of a business restructuring?

Day One rights have been widely floated, covering parental leave, flexible working, and protection from unfair dismissal—subject to probationary periods for new hires. Learn what these changes mean for employers, employees, and workers, and how they will reshape employment practices in the UK.

We’ll cover:

- how will the introduction of day-one protection from unfair dismissal work alongside probationary periods?

- what are the implications for employers regarding the removal of the two-year unfair dismissal qualifying period for existing employees still in their first two years?

- will the rights to parental leave, sick pay, and unfair dismissal be extended to ‘workers’? Is there a shift towards a single employment status framework, and what could this mean for the future of employment law?

- how should employers prepare for the increased scope of parental leave as a day-one right?

- what are the practical requirements for a fair and transparent dismissal process during a probationary period?

- will workers be able to ‘demand’ compressed hours (five day weeks, worked in four days) under the new flexible working rules?

- why do employers need to fear (or embrace) the new flexible working rules?

Contained within the draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill, these proposed new laws introduce measures for pay equality and transparency for BAME and disabled people.

- what are the implications of expanding equal pay claims to cover race and disability, in addition to sex?

- what challenges might arise in developing a meaningful methodology for ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting?

- in what ways might ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting differ from the established gender pay gap reporting framework?

- what practical steps can employers take now to address race and disability pay disparities in anticipation of the new legislation?

Some big changes here, including extended time limits for bringing claims from three months to six months, and increasing compensation for breach of contract claims from £25,000 to £100,000.

We’ll cover:

- how will extending the time limit for making employment claims from three to six months impact tribunal caseload and claimants' rights?

- what does the increase in the breach of contract compensation limit from £25,000 to £100,000 mean for employers and claimants?

- what are the practical considerations for employers now that employment tribunals can hear claims regarding breach of the 48-hour working week limit?

The government is making significant changes to trade union legislation, aiming to simplify statutory recognition, improve workplace access for unions, and remove unnecessary restrictions on union activities. We will only cover these changes briefly, as we focus mainly on individual employment rights:

- how will the simplification of statutory recognition thresholds impact union representation?

- what does the repeal of minimum service levels (MSLs) during strikes mean for employers and sectors like health, transport, and education?

- how will the introduction of electronic balloting change the dynamics of strike action and union decision-making?

- what new rights will trade unions have for accessing workplaces, and what responsibilities will employers bear in this regard?

- how will the removal of strike ballot turnout thresholds introduced in 2016 impact the frequency and validity of industrial action?

- what are the implications of enhanced protections for union representatives and the updated employer duty to inform employees of their right to join a union?