View from the Foyle: Stormont’s proposed Employment Rights Bill

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The Labour Government introduced its Employment Rights Bill in October, marking the start of its ‘Plan to Make Work Pay.’

While the Bill only applies to England, Scotland, and Wales, Stormont’s Department for the Economy has proposed its own ‘Good Jobs - Employment Rights Bill’, in a massive 160-page set of proposals to reform workplaces, released over last summer’s holidays. Despite its potential impact, most business owners seem entirely unaware of the Bill, prompting FSB NI to urge all employers to familiarise themselves with the proposals as they enter critical legislative stages.

FSB NI submitted its response to the consultation last September. The Assembly’s Economy Committee began its scrutiny work on the Bill last Wednesday when it questioned Departmental officials on last summer’s consultation, and called for more concrete proposals from the Minister and the Department.

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Tina McKenzie, FSB’s UK Policy and Advocacy Chair, has already warned that the UK Government’s Bill will fail to motivate small businesses to hire more workers and, with growth flat-lining, that the economy is in no fit state for a “war on work”.

Alan Lowry, FSB`s NI Policy Chair.Alan Lowry, FSB`s NI Policy Chair.
Alan Lowry, FSB`s NI Policy Chair.

The Department’s ambition to foster good jobs is commendable, and certain updates to employment laws are welcome, however, the proposals risk overburdening businesses with bureaucracy and cost, deterring investment and growth. Specifically, reducing the threshold for trade union recognition from 21 employees to 10, alongside introducing sectoral collective bargaining, has caused alarm especially among those family businesses who are aware of the proposals.

FSB has engaged with members to understand their views and recommend measures to offset potential burdens. Businesses here already lag behind their counterparts in terms of Government support, such as the 75% rates discount for retail, hospitality, tourism, and leisure sectors in England, but denied to those here.

FSB also urged the Department to apply SAMBITs (Small and Micro Business Impact Tests) to evaluate the impact on small firms. While the Department published some impact assessments alongside the draft Bill, they lacked depth, particularly on the cumulative burden of multiple new regulations.

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The Executive needs to ensure they get the balance right to help create more good jobs across Northern Ireland; but the proposals, as they stand, could have a massively negative impact on businesses, crushing growth and hindering the economy at precisely the time we need business to be unleashed.

Alan Lowry,

FSB`s NI Policy Chair.

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