Cutting through the red tape
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In May last year, the new coalition government pledged
to get rid of the red tape surrounding employment law to make life
easier for employers.
Fast forward one year and are we any closer to a streamlined
employment law system?
Collective redundancy periods, compensation for discrimination
claims and the Transfer Undertakings Protection of Employment
Regulations (TUPE) have all been tagged as areas for change
including a limit to compensation levels for discrimination claims,
a shorter consultation period for collective redundancy situations
and a simplification of the TUPE rules.
Other proposals include increasing the qualifying period of
unfair dismissal claims from one to two years, sending all
employment claims for mediation with ACAS before they can be lodged
with the tribunal, increasing the number of cases that can be heard
by a single judge and introducing a fee (suggested to be in the
region of £500) for submitting a tribunal claim.
Increasing the qualifying period for unfair dismissal claims
would clearly be advantageous for employers. This is likely to
lessen the number of claims but there is a danger that it might
cause more claims for whistleblowing or discrimination.
Time and costs will be saved by allowing more cases to be heard
by a single employment judge. Similarly, lodging all claims for
mediation with ACAS first should be welcomed as an improvement on
the current system. However there is a risk this will increase the
workload on an already over-stretched ACAS service, potentially
prolonging the litigation process as a side-effect.
Introducing a fee for claimants to lodge claims with the
tribunal will be a positive step towards preventing weak and
unmeritorious claims. Further, limiting compensation for
discrimination claims may result in a reduction in the number of
vexatious claims brought by employees with unrealistic expectations
of a high pay-out.
Reducing the collective redundancy consultation period would
allow employers to restructure their businesses more efficiently
and reduce the cost of undertaking such an exercise and the
proposed changes to TUPE regulations may lessen the burden of
regulatory compliance upon employers in this complicated area of
law.
So when will these changes be introduced? At the moment the
government's review is just that - a review. The above proposals
are not definite and consultation remains open in relation to many
of the above ideas.
One thing is certain, there is change ahead.
n If you have any questions or would like to discuss any of
these proposals and the impact they might have on you contact
Richard Thompson on 01622 690691.
Wednesday, September 07 2011
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