The BBC reported that using "settlement agreements" would allow more staff to agree to go without the need to go to employment tribunals.
The move comes amid disagreement between Conservatives and Liberal Democrats over proposals to make it easier to sack poor quality employees. But a government source said the two ideas were "separate".
The UK has re-entered recession and the coalition says its priority is a return to growth, with current employment law cited as one of the restrictions on this.
The Lib Dem minister announced in Parliament that he intends to add a clause to the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill to make it quicker and easier to use settlement agreements, allowing staff to leave the company in return for a payment. This would act as an alternative to going to an employment tribunal, which can be costly and time-consuming, and, according to businesses, make bosses less inclined to hire new people.
COLLECTIVE REDUNDANCIES: CONSULTATION ON CHANGES TO THE RULES
21 June 2012
A new package of proposals to reform rules for consulting staff about large scale redundancies has been published.
The new measures, outlined in a consultation, are aimed at improving the ability of companies to respond to changing economic conditions and improving the quality of the collective redundancies process. The process will also help to relieve the impact of uncertainty suffered by all employees over a long period of time. Effective consultation over large-scale redundancies helps to ensure that employers make better decisions and that employees have a chance to have their say about the proposals. However, a recent Call for Evidence on the current rules on collective redundancy consultation showed that they are confusing, do not fit the current labour market and are contributing to bad quality consultation. The proposals on which we are consulting look to address these issues. improve the ability of employers to respond to changing market conditions; and to balance the interests of the employees who are made redundant with those who remain. To achieve this, we believe an effective collective redundancy regime must have three components: A straightforward legislative framework; A good relationship between employer and employees’ representatives; Mechanisms to allow appropriate Government intervention. To create a more effective collective redundancy regime, we are consulting on a package of reforms, based around: Reducing the 90-day minimum period for large redundancies; Issuing a new, non-statutory, Code of Practice which will address a number of key issues affecting redundancy consultations; and Improving guidance for employers and employees on the support on offer from Government The proposals on changes to the collective redundancy rules aim to: improve consultation quality;
CIPP Policy News Journal
12/04/2013, Page 312 of 362
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