The outcome of the upcoming general election could have a large impact on employment law, with various proposed changes appearing in party manifestos. A key potential change would be the devolution of the Employment Tribunal system in Scotland, draft provisions for which are contained in the Scotland Bill 2015 following the report of the Smith Commission. It remains to be seen whether these provisions will become law. If they do, it means that the potential exists for there to become greater differences between the Employment Tribunal in Scotland and those in England and Wales.
This is generally not mentioned in the manifestos of the various parties, but proposals regarding a number of employment law issues are. Looking at the manifestos of the Conservatives, Greens, Labour, the Liberal Democrats, the SNP and UKIP, issues which tend to feature are the minimum wage, changes to zero hours contracts, discrimination and employment tribunal fees.
Minimum and Living wage
The minimum wage is a much discussed topic, as well as the “living wage”, which also features in the manifestos of a number of parties. All parties have pledged to enforce or raise the minimum wage. The Green party are aiming the highest, with the aim of making the minimum wage a living wage by targeting an increase to £10 per hour by 2020. Both Labour and the Conservatives are aiming to raise the minimum wage to £8 or more by 2020, with the SNP targeting £8.70 in the same timescale. Labour have pledged increased fines for failure to pay, while the Conservatives have stated they will take further steps to eliminate non-payment. Neither the Lib Dems nor UKIP have specified a target for raising the minimum wage. The Lib Dems have stated they will look at raising it without damaging employment opportunities. UKIP have stated they will enforce the minimum wage and reverse cuts to the number of inspectors in England and Wales.
There is also a general trend towards encouragement of the living wage.
The Conservative party have stated they will encourage businesses to pay the living wage where they can afford it. Other parties have specified some steps towards this, with Labour intending to introduce ‘Make Work Pay’ contracts which would give a tax rebate to employers who sign up to pay the living wage in 2015. They would also require listed companies to report on whether they pay the living wage. The SNP seek to ensure that 500 organisations sign up to the Living Wage Accreditation Scheme. The Lib Dems would conduct a review of how to set a living wage across all sectors and by 2020 require publishing of the number of people paid less than the living wage.
Zero hours contracts
Amid increasing controversy and press coverage over the use of zero hours contracts, all parties have included measures in their manifestos generally aimed at a reduction in their use.
The Conservative party have stated they will remove exclusivity clauses, presumably by bringing into force the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015, which was passed before the dissolution of Parliament. Labour also intend to remove such clauses, as well as introducing a right for workers to be given a regular contract where they work regular hours for more than 12 weeks. They also intend to create a right for zero hours workers to receive compensation where their shifts are cancelled at short notice. Similarly, UKIP intend to introduce a binding Code of Conduct which would require businesses with 50 or more employees to give workers a secure contract after one year if they request it, as well as removing exclusivity clauses. They will also require zero hours workers to be given 12 hours notice of work, following which they must be paid regardless of whether or not they are actually required to work.
In a similar vein, the Lib Dems intend to create a formal right to request a fixed hours contract as well as to consult on a right to make regular patterns of work contractual after a period of time. Both the Greens and the SNP pledge to support ending exploitative zero hours contracts. The SNP have stated they would do so in consultation with businesses and trade unions. The Green party also plan to ensure unpaid internships last no longer than 4 weeks.
Discrimination and Family Friendly Rights
The manifesto pledges of most parties in relation to discrimination issues are targeted towards equal pay and family friendly rights.
In terms of equal pay, both the Greens and SNP have stated they will take action towards securing equal pay for men and women. Both the Labour and Conservative parties intend to require large companies to publish the difference in average pay between male and female workers.
Labour and the Lib Dems have made more specific pledges regarding family friendly rights. Labour has stated it will double paternity leave from 2 to 4 weeks and increase paternity pay to more than £260 per week, in order to make paternity leave more affordable. They also state they will strengthen the laws prohibiting maternity discrimination, although they have not specified how this might be done.
The Liberal Democrats aim to encourage flexible working and to make paternity leave and shared parental leave ‘day one’ rights, so employees will not require any length of service before they are entitled to take such leave. They have also put forward a pledge of expanding the new shared parental leave system to include a month’s leave for fathers on a ‘use or lose it’ basis, to encourage the taking of more leave.
Employment Tribunal fees
The Conservative party, perhaps unsurprisingly given they introduced the current system, are proposing no changes to Employment Tribunal fees. Other than UKIP, whose manifesto makes no mention of tribunal fees, all other parties are proposing changes to or a review of the system. The Green party have pledged to reduce fees, but not gone into specific detail on the level of reduction. Both the Liberal Democrats and the SNP intend to review fees to ensure they are not a barrier to justice. As noted above, however, employment tribunals may be devolved to Scotland so the Scottish position may ultimately differ from that in the rest of the UK.
Labour have gone further and stated they will abolish the employment tribunal fee system, stating their aim is to ensure affordability is not a barrier to justice but also to ensure employers get a quick resolution and the costs to tax payers do not rise. It is therefore not clear whether Labour intend to abolish fees altogether or to abolish only the current system and introduce a different system of fees.
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