14 March 2025 – British Safety Council comments on third reading of the Employment Rights Bill
Commenting on the third reading of the Employment Rights Bill earlier this week, Mike Robinson, Chief Executive of British Safety Council, said:
“While we welcome the Employment Rights Bill and the significant change that it could bring, it’s important that this legislation creates workplaces that are fit for the future and in which workers can be kept safe and healthy. This can only happen through clarity of communication, a published framework for implementation and continued consultation with businesses of all sizes and within all sectors.
“Just as this Bill represents a comprehensive upgrade in employment rights and provides valuable new protections, it also could create confusion where there is ambiguity. It will require significant amounts of secondary legislation and future consultation before the full impact of the changes can be realised. In turn, this creates confusion for businesses and employers who are already operating within an uncertain economic landscape.
“Without this clarity, the Bill risks years of legal dispute in which the courts are forced to interpret legislation before resolutions can be reached. This is a worst-case scenario for employers, employees, and the taxpayer. That’s why British Safety Council is calling on all Peers, through the next stage of scrutiny, to keep the practical application of new provisions in mind – especially for small businesses who may lack the resource or legal expertise to navigate all 199 pages of legislative change.
“The scale of changes contained within the Bill, quite rightly called the biggest shift to workers’ rights in a generation, lacks a timeline for implementation which could leave employers overwhelmed and without adequate time to prepare.
