The Government has published consultation on reforms to Working Time, holiday pay and TUPE. It has said that it has no intention of removing important protections people enjoy under the Working Time Regulations or the TUPE regulations. It says that it wants to use the consultation as part of its ongoing dialogue with businesses and workers to set out an employment rights framework that will allow the UK labour market economy to grow and retain UK’s global position as a dynamic, vibrant, and flexible economy.
The consultation will run until 7 July 2023 (https://ditresearch.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_06Sa8wldAZYeGTs)
The questions that are being asked of employers are set out below.
WORKING TIME RECORD KEEPING
- Do you agree or disagree that the Government should legislate to clarify that employers do not have to record daily working hours of their workers?
- How important is record keeping under the Working Time Regulations to either enforcing rights (for workers) or for preventing or defending disputes (for employers)? • Very important • Important • Neither important nor unimportant • Unimportant • Don’t know
- What is your experience of record keeping under the Working Time Regulations? Beyond the proposal above, how, if at all, do you think they could be improved?
- Do you keep records to specifically meet the requirements set out in the Working Time Regulations? • Yes • No • Don’t Know
- Do you keep working time records that go beyond the existing requirements set out in the Working Time Regulations? • Yes • No • Don’t Know
- Do you currently have a system in place that records the daily working hours of all your staff? • Yes • No • Don’t Know
HOLIDAYS
SINGLE LEAVE ENTITLEMENT
- Would you agree that creating a single statutory leave entitlement would make it easier to calculate holiday pay and reduce administrative burden on businesses? • Strongly agree • Agree • Neither agree nor disagree • Disagree • Strongly disagree • Don’t know
PAY RATE
- What rate do you currently pay holiday pay at? • 5.6 weeks of statutory annual leave at normal pay (including certain types of overtime, commission, and bonuses) • 4 weeks of statutory annual leave at normal pay and 1.6 weeks of statutory annual leave at basic pay • Don’t know
- What rate do you think holiday pay should be paid at? • 5.6 weeks of statutory annual leave at basic pay • 5.6 weeks of statutory annual leave at normal pay • Don’t know • Other
LEAVE IN A WORKER’S FIRST YEAR OF EMPLOYMENT
- Would you agree that it would be easier to calculate annual leave entitlement for workers in their first year of employment if they accrue their annual leave entitlement at the end of each pay period? • Strongly agree • Agree • Neither agree nor disagree • Disagree • Strongly disagree • Don’t know
CHANGE TO CARRYING OVER LEAVE DUE TO COVID
- Are there any unintended consequences of removing the Working Time (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 that allow workers to carry over up to 4 weeks of leave due to the effects of COVID? • Yes • No • Don’t know
ROLLED-UP HOLIDAY PAY
- Do you think that rolled-up holiday pay should be introduced? • Yes, rolled-up holiday pay should be introduced as an option for employers in relation to all workers • No, rolled-up holiday pay should not be introduced • Don’t know • Other
- Would your existing payroll system be able to calculate holiday pay using the rolled-up holiday pay calculation as well as the 52-week holiday pay reference period? • Yes • No • Don’t know
TUPE
- Do you agree that the Government should allow all small businesses (fewer than 50 employees) to consult directly with their employees on TUPE transfers, if there are no employee representatives in place, rather than arranging elections for new employee representatives? • Yes • No
- Do you agree that the Government should allow businesses of any size involved with small transfers of employees (where fewer than 10 employees are transferring) to consult directly with their employees on the transfer, if there are no employee representatives in place, rather than arranging elections for new employee representatives? • Yes • No
- What impact would changing the TUPE consultation requirements (as outlined above) have on businesses and employees?
- What is your experience of the TUPE regulations? Beyond the proposals above, how, if at all, do you think they could be improved?
