Employment Rights Bill Update: Report Stage Amendments
On Monday 07 July, the government tabled amendments to the Employment Rights Bill. We have listened carefully to the feedback given during previous stages and the Government has therefore tabled amendments which seek to address concerns raised by Peers across the House, as well as those raised by stakeholders.
As is standard practice for a Bill in Report Stage, the Government tabled amendments one week before the beginning of Report stage (which is scheduled to run over 4 days on Monday 14, Wednesday 16, Monday 21, and Wednesday 23 July). The Government has separately set out its plans for the Bill’s implementation in our published roadmap on GOV.UK. We remain committed to continued consultation throughout the Bill’s implementation to ensure it delivers effectively in practice.
Among measures tabled yesterday are amendments to the Social Care Negotiation Bodies provisions. As a courtesy we wanted to notify you of these amendments which will be debated during Report Stage and have set out a brief explanation of the purpose and effect below for your information.
Amendments to clause 47 (p.47): these amendments ensure that any guidance or codes of practice with consequences for non-compliance are subject to proper parliamentary scrutiny under a specified procedure. We are responding to a report by the Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee which recommended that powers to issue guidance and codes of practice with legislative effect were removed (see paragraphs 20-27).
Amendments to clauses 44, 45, 46, 49 (pp.46-48): these amendments set out that a social care worker cannot be made worse off as a result of an agreement made by a Social Care Negotiating Body, or regulations made by the Secretary of State where the body has been unable to reach an agreement; and that employers may employ social care workers on terms and conditions that are more favourable than those provided for by an agreement. This means a workers’ existing terms and conditions will not be affected if they are better than those in a new FPA. When a Fair Pay Agreement is ratified, employers must retain current terms if they are more favourable, and are still free to offer more favourable terms. We are responding to feedback from parliamentarians that that the Bill as currently drafted leaves room for a future government to change employee contracts to their detriment (see non-government amendments 193, 194, 197, 199)
If you have any questions about these amendments or would like to speak with the team about them, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Olivia Dye
Engagement Adviser – ASC Workforce Department of Health and Social Care