So, the UK has a new prime minister. Her 'to do' tray is brimming with an array of important and pressing matters, but we do expect some developments on the HR and employment law front. These are neatly summarised in this article by People Management.
Whilst her pledges during the election campaign were at times vague, some of the key areas include:-
- NICs - Liz has always maintained that the 1.25% increase on national insurance contributions would be reversed.
- Trade unions - strike action is on the up: tube, trains, postal workers… even barristers. Liz has suggested that an immediate task would be to reform the rules in this area, which will likely make lawful striking harder.
- EU laws - Liz has suggested that a review of the retained EU laws should be carried out to ensure that nothing in them is holding the UK economy back. It will be interesting to see what this means (for example) in relation to working hours, holiday arrangements and TUPE which all derive from EU legislation.
- "IR35" - a contractor's favourite thing(!) -Liz has previously indicated that there would be further reviews in this complex area.
- Seasonal Worker visas - Liz says that she is supportive of new immigration routes to plug labour shortages in certain areas (for example in agriculture).
As always, the devil is in the detail - let's watch this space...
Another substantial leadership promise is Truss’s pledge to introduce a new law on minimum staffing levels during strikes within the first 30 days of becoming prime minister – with a threshold set individually for each industry, including transport, education, healthcare, postal workers and energy.
https://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/article/1798075/prime-minister-liz-truss-does-appointment-mean-hr
