The Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee¹ (BEISC) has recently released a new report on the UK labour market that, amongst other things, makes recommendations to the government on workers' rights and protections.  These recommendations can be split into eight categories: the impact of AI on the workplace; worker surveillance; flexible working practices; family friendly rights; employment tribunal claims; other worker protections; the potential impact of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill (Retained EU Law Bill); and the projected impact of an ageing population on the labour market. The scope of the recommendations made are far-reaching, touching on some of the most prevalent issues currently facing employers. 

The effect of AI on the workplace

BEISC comments on the effect of AI and automation on the workplace, and the potential impact of these on future workplaces.  BEISC suggests that new technologies should be implemented in partnership with workers and for the government to mandate impact assessments.  Consultations with workers are also recommended, to avoid technology becoming a threat to jobs.

BEISC also believes greater workplace training and digital skills development will be needed to ensure workers are able to use new technologies effectively.  It suggests these could be supported by a "lifelong loans" scheme to fund further education and upskilling.

Worker surveillance

According to BEISC's report, worker surveillance is likely to be facilitated by developments in AI and workplace technology.  Surveillance can have a detrimental effect on workers – around 32% report that workplace surveillance has a negative impact on their mental health and sense of wellbeing at work.  

As a solution, BEISC suggests that the government prepares an enforceable code of practice on the use of surveillance technology in the workplace.  BEISC also points out that surveillance can be helpful if it is used to prevent malpractice rather than in a heavy-handed way, which it suggests could be achieved through consultation with the workforce on surveillance and applying it within agreed parameters.  BEISC also recommends the establishment of a taskforce of relevant enforcement bodies, to assess the implications of technology in the workplace, including surveillance and AI.

Flexible working practices

On 5 December 2022, the government published a response to a consultation on "Making Flexible Working the Default".  As a result of this, the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Bill was introduced. This Bill would give employees a day one right to request flexible working up to twice a year.  It would also shorten the time limit for the employer to respond to two months, remove the requirement for employees to explain how their requested arrangement would impact the business, and require employers to consult the employee if they are going to reject the application.  

BEISC's examination of this Bill concluded that the idea of work being "full time" or "part time" is an outdated legal construction, which prevents people who would otherwise be so from being economically active.  Moreover, BEISC believes that flexible workers are not afforded the same rights or protections that full- or part-time workers are given.  They emphasise the importance of the government considering the need for an Employment Bill which creates more flexible constructions of work and provides for appropriate rights and protections for workers.  BEISC also believes that more good-quality flexible jobs need to be available for those on low pay, and that the government should amend the Flexible Working Bill to give a right to a secure contract after 26 weeks of work, a right to 4 weeks' notice of working schedules and the right to compensation for cancelled shifts.

Family-friendly rights

Tied into flexible working, BEISC's report identified several issues for workers with childcare commitments and proposed new family-friendly rights to try to alleviate them.  It refers to the Chancellor's proposals to increase the free childcare allowance following the Spring Budget, the Conservative manifesto's commitment to "look at ways to make it easier for fathers to take paternity leave" and the Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Act 2023.  This Act will extend protections from redundancy close to a period of pregnancy, adoption leave or shared parental leave and is expected to come into force around 24 July 2023, albeit regulations are required to implement its protections.

BEISC supports these changes, but it suggests that stronger measures may be needed to protect from redundancy when pregnant or on maternity leave.  It requests that the government consult on what more can be done to create conditions to incentivise parents to have children, whilst offering suitable protections at work to stop time out of work from harming workers' future opportunities.

Employment Tribunal claims

The report also discusses the ongoing backlog of claims in the Employment Tribunal and the impact this is having.  BEISC says that this backlog prevents workers from exercising their rights effectively and has called for the government to put out an action plan to reduce the backlog and justify why the deadline for submitting certain types of employment tribunal claims has not been extended from three months to six months.

Other worker protections

Certain other workers' rights and protections are also covered by the report. 

BEISC first discusses umbrella companies, as they fall outside the regulatory framework for agency workers' rights and can deprive workers of rights and remuneration.  The government appears to agree, based on ministerial comments, and BEISC has called for a plan to be set out to regulate umbrella companies.

It highlights the scale of night work and the social and health issues it can cause.  BEISC suggests that the government should commission a report into the health and safety implications of night working and should aim to provide more protection to workers against its damaging effects.

BEISC also covers a proposed "right to disconnect" in home working, which would limit the amount of work which could be sent to employees outside normal working hours.  BEISC was not persuaded that such a right was necessary at the moment but asks the government to monitor the situation and observe the impact of similar rights in Canada, Ireland and elsewhere.

Potential impact of the Retained EU Law Bill

The report also considers the projected effects of the Retained EU Law Bill.  BEISC and some employment lawyers were concerned that the Bill would simply "turn off" many employment laws and protections which are currently in effect in the UK, and that great care must be taken to ensure clarity and consistency in UK labour law.

However, following the government's decision to amend the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill on 10 May 2023, the sunset provisions which it was feared would "turn off" many employment laws have been removed.  Now, only legislation specifically earmarked for repeal will be removed, with this expected to have a relatively minor impact on UK employment law at the time of writing.  

The impact of an ageing population on the labour market

Finally, the report looks at the reasons an ageing population is increasingly leaving the labour market and the effects this might have.  There are several reasons why people may be leaving the workforce earlier: BEISC highlights early retirement; sickness; more beneficial pension schemes; the longer-term impact of coronavirus job retention schemes leading to a "detachment" from work; redundancy; caring responsibilities; a lack of training or skills; recruitment practices; and menopause as factors which may encourage older people to stop working.  

To help those older people who want to continue working get back into the workforce, BEISC recommends making it more obvious when a position can be performed flexibly from the get-go, as well as requesting that the government offers more support for older workers and training for "returnerships".  These are a kind of apprenticeship intended to build up older workers' skills and are run in parallel with skills bootcamps and work academies.

The report and its recommendations are a helpful reminder of some of the key employment issues facing the UK labour market. It will be interesting to see how the government decides to respond to BEISC's recommendations. 

1. Following a change in the machinery of government, the BEISC is now known as the Business and Trade Committee. This change came into effect on 26 April 2023, after the publication of the report.↩