But CIPD survey hears some laws are poorly drafted and difficult to apply
Most employers do not believe a ‘bonfire’ of employment legislation is necessary post-Brexit, a report published today has found.
In a survey of 508 employers carried out by the CIPD and law firm Lewis Silkin, the majority of respondents rated 28 aspects of employment law as necessary.
Unfair dismissal laws topped the list as most indispensable, with 93 per cent saying they were necessary. This was followed by the national minimum wage (87 per cent), parental rights at work (82 per cent), agency workers laws (75 per cent) and the Working Time Regulations (74 per cent). TUPE laws, at 32 per cent, were deemed the least necessary.
TheEmployment regulation in the UK: burden or benefit? report also found that some businesses wanted even more red tape around some aspects of employment law, with more than a third (36 per cent) noting wellbeing issues such as stress should be better legislated for and 30 per cent saying technology should be a focus.
Meanwhile, more than half (52 per cent) went beyond what was required of them, while 44 per cent said they met minimum requirements.
Employers recognised the positive impact of employment law too, with more than two-thirds (68 per cent) agreeing that it increased employees’ sense of fairness and trust in their employer, and 69 per cent saying employment law improved the quality of employees’ working lives.
“This research shows that, in many ways, the rhetoric around employment law simply does not match the reality,” said Rachel Suff, employment relations adviser at the CIPD. “While much has been written about the need to roll back important aspects of our employment law framework to free businesses of red tape, it is clear that businesses themselves recognise its value.”
Suff added that, as the future of employment regulations are debated during the general election and Brexit negotiations, it is vital that “we don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater by making sweeping changes to employment legislation that businesses may not want”.
However, the research also found that employers often felt laws were poorly drafted and potentially difficult to implement. The laws surrounding agency workers were rated as necessary by three-quarters (75 per cent) of businesses, but only a third (36 per cent) said they were well-drafted and easy to apply.
Meanwhile, whistleblowing laws were deemed necessary by 83 per cent of businesses, but only 41 per cent said they were well-drafted and easy to use.
And employers were less enthusiastic about keeping the status quo for tribunal fees. Only a third (34 per cent) wanted the existing level of employment tribunal fees maintained, while 15 per cent said fees should be abolished, 11 per cent agreed they should be substantially reduced and 19 per cent supported a single £50 fee for all claims.
James Davies, divisional managing partner and joint head of employment at Lewis Silkin, said that, however well-intentioned they may be, there were a number of existing regulations that “business feels need revisiting to ensure that they are clear, more straightforward to implement and truly fit for purpose”.