Industry trade bodies give cautious welcome to employment bills
Recruitment industry leaders welcomed in general the 40 draft laws and ambitious growth agenda referenced in yesterday’s [Wednesday 17 July 2024] King’s Speech.
However, they also warned of the need for greater clarity around the government’s definition of ‘exploitative’ behaviour in recruitment and potential ramifications of the proposed ‘day one’ rights for employers of flexible workforces.
“The prime minister is right in wanting to ‘take the brakes off Britain’,” said Michael Stull, UK managing director of global recruiter ManpowerGroup. “[Today’s] ONS [Office of National Statistics] numbers, however – which, in all probability, will show a further uptick in unemployment and economic inactivity numbers – will likely add a further note of urgency to the legislative priorities announced yesterday [Wednesday, 17 July 2024].
“Acute skills and people shortages remain evident across multiple industries. Better skills, leading to better quality jobs that provide sustainable earning potential, work-life balance and wellbeing – done in ways that can be equitably accessed and are affordable to businesses – are, in our view, what’s needed to ensure the future growth and prosperity for our country and its people.”
Speaking exclusively to Recruiter on the King’s Speech, Tania Bowers, global public policy director at the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo) commented: “We’ve seen already that the new Labour Government has clear plans to move forward at speed with its initial manifesto proposals – and the recruitment sector is front and centre of its attention. The plans announced in today’s speech demonstrate that staffing firms will face greater scrutiny and regulation, however, if approached in a fair and appropriate way, these proposals can provide a significant boost for recruitment.”
Bowers went on to say: “There’s a wealth of detail that we will work through, but at APSCo one of the core points we are keen to keep at the top of the agenda in all consultations is the necessity to differentiate the highly skilled professional workforce with those more at risk of employment exploitation. The protections that are needed for agency workers and those more exposed to zero-hour contract abuse vary significantly from the high-skilled contract and self-employed segment of the market. A broad-brush approach will not work in legislating the entire workforce and APSCo will be engaging with all relevant consultations on this matter.
“The King did confirm in his speech that an Employment Rights Bill will be brought forward to implement the Make Work Pay Plan outlined by Starmer earlier this year,” Bowers continued. “This will reshape worker rights in the UK and is likely to increase the costs of temporary recruitment for the staffing sector, which will need to be passed on to end hirers. There are still significant questions around the Bill that have to be answered. For example, clarity is required around what is classified as ‘exploitative’ behaviour in recruitment. Our members are also concerned about the implications of the proposed ‘day one’ rights on their flexible workforces, including umbrella employees.”
Bowers added: “We do welcome the creation of the Fair Work Agency, and we will continue to engage with the director of labour market enforcement [Margaret Beels] as she will have a key role in the watchdog.”
Neil Carberry, REC CEO, described the King’s Speech as setting out “an ambitious programme” for the new government. “Businesses share the view that getting economic growth going should be our priority – and are ready to help,” he said. “We welcome the commitment to a new partnership with business. Only growth can deliver the individual prosperity and funding for public services we all need.”
However, he added: “We have to be clear – businesses are worried that the government will rush reforms to the labour market and do more harm to workers than good. Our focus should be on improving the daily lives of workers while helping firms grow, not ticking things off a list quickly. From the National Minimum Wage to Pensions Automatic Enrolment, Labour governments have shown that big changes can be successfully delivered when a proper partnership with business is created. Think-tank and trade union discussions are important – but not a substitute for proper engagement and discussion with the private sector on employment relations.
“Businesses are not opposed to the government’s plans – but the failure of the Apprenticeship Levy shows what happens when government imposes solutions that don’t work in reality. We welcome today’s commitment to reforming the Levy, which is long overdue,” he said.
Also, he emphasised: “Flexibility matters to millions of workers across the UK. Changes that restrict choice and opportunity for workers must be avoided as they will undermine both the fight against inactivity and the quest for growth. A collaborative approach with business on these policies can ensure changes are grounded in people’s daily lives, so they are pro-worker and pro-business.”
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