PM wants to fight the EU employment law to get SMEs hiring
18 October 2013
Prime Minister David Cameron appears to have lent his support to proposals in a new business-led report to exempt small companies from EU employment law.
Fri, 18 Oct 2013Prime Minister David Cameron appears to have lent his support to proposals in a new business-led report to exempt small companies from EU employment law.
Available online, the report ‘Cut EU red tape’, is authored by six senior UK business leaders, including the chief executive officer of Marks & Spencer and the recently-departed CEO of Diageo, drawing on responses from over 100 business organisations.
A statement from the PM’s office says Cameron “thought the report was excellent”, noting that small companies are critical in driving growth.
However, he did not make clear if he supported the specific employment law proposals, adding that it was important to cut red tape for companies of all sizes. No Downing Street spokesperson was immediately available to comment.
The report reads: “European employment law issues are a key concern for business. We have heard consistently from businesses, in particular SMEs and micro-enterprises, that they are struggling to cope with the unnecessary burdens placed on them by EU laws.”
Specific employment law issues the business taskforce highlights suggests include withdrawing pregnant workers proposals, retaining the Working Time Directive opt-out and not extending certain existing legislation to micro employers.
It also argues that the Agency Workers Regulations “should give greater flexibility for individual employers and workers to reach their own arrangements that suit local circumstances and give clarity to companies that they only need to keep limited records”.
Reducing regulation is frequently cited as a priority for businesses of all sizes, especially with regards employment law.
This last week has seen recruiters face up to new proposals, which would appear to increase the burden on supplying staff employed offshore. Meanwhile, the industry continues to wait on new legislation governing the industry as a whole.
Available online, the report ‘Cut EU red tape’, is authored by six senior UK business leaders, including the chief executive officer of Marks & Spencer and the recently-departed CEO of Diageo, drawing on responses from over 100 business organisations.
A statement from the PM’s office says Cameron “thought the report was excellent”, noting that small companies are critical in driving growth.
However, he did not make clear if he supported the specific employment law proposals, adding that it was important to cut red tape for companies of all sizes. No Downing Street spokesperson was immediately available to comment.
The report reads: “European employment law issues are a key concern for business. We have heard consistently from businesses, in particular SMEs and micro-enterprises, that they are struggling to cope with the unnecessary burdens placed on them by EU laws.”
Specific employment law issues the business taskforce highlights suggests include withdrawing pregnant workers proposals, retaining the Working Time Directive opt-out and not extending certain existing legislation to micro employers.
It also argues that the Agency Workers Regulations “should give greater flexibility for individual employers and workers to reach their own arrangements that suit local circumstances and give clarity to companies that they only need to keep limited records”.
Reducing regulation is frequently cited as a priority for businesses of all sizes, especially with regards employment law.
This last week has seen recruiters face up to new proposals, which would appear to increase the burden on supplying staff employed offshore. Meanwhile, the industry continues to wait on new legislation governing the industry as a whole.
