![[UK] Royal assent for right to predictable working hours](http://gpa.net/cdn/shop/articles/bigstock-The-Palace-Of-Westminster-Serv-422990771_3_1200x.jpg?v=1695356287)
A law granting temporary and agency workers in the UK the right to request more predictable hours has received Royal Assent, Personnel Today reports.
The Workers (Predictable Terms and Conditions) Act 2023 passed through the House of Lords on September 18. When enacted, it will give people in atypical work - such as zero-hours or temporary contracts - the right to ask for a more predictable working pattern.
Labour peer Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent reportedly said the Act will give workers greater predictability and security in their hours and income at a time when people are struggling to cope with the rising cost of living.
She said, “Workers will be better able to secure employment that suits their individual circumstances, helping them to feel more satisfied at work.
“Workers will be empowered and encouraged to talk to their employers about their working patterns, safe in the knowledge that starting this conversation will not result in any detriment.”
The right will function in a similar way to the right to request flexible working which was given Royal Assent this summer.
Employers will reportedly be able to refuse a request based on one of six statutory grounds:
- Additional cost
- Ability to meet customer demand
- Impact on recruitment
- Impact on other areas of the business
- Insufficiency of work during the proposed periods
- Planned structural changes.
Kate Palmer - HR advice and consultancy director at Peninsula - told Personnel Today that the law introduces a brand-new right but “does appear to contradict recent calls for employees to have more flexibility in how they work”.
“The procedure for dealing with a request for a predictable working pattern is on a par with flexible working requests. But there is one big difference as such requests for a predictable working pattern must be dealt with by the employer within one month,” she said.
“Arguably, the biggest impact of this new right will be on employers who have zero-hours workers and so it will hit some employers more than others.”
Christopher Hitchins - London managing partner and employment lawyer at Katten UK - said, “This change in the law is another tinkering to address the new types of working patterns that are associated with the ‘gig economy’, to try to give workers a bit more certainty over their hours of work and income.
“These developments in the new law are an iterative process, for example starting with the ban on exclusivity clauses for zero-hours workers a few years back. This new law is another ‘right to request’ - like the right to request flexible working from day one, which is due to come in some time in 2024 - which can be turned down by an employer with appropriate reasoning, not an outright right.”
Source: Personnel Today
(Links and quotes via original reporting)
A law granting temporary and agency workers in the UK the right to request more predictable hours has received Royal Assent, Personnel Today reports.
The Workers (Predictable Terms and Conditions) Act 2023 passed through the House of Lords on September 18. When enacted, it will give people in atypical work - such as zero-hours or temporary contracts - the right to ask for a more predictable working pattern.
Labour peer Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent reportedly said the Act will give workers greater predictability and security in their hours and income at a time when people are struggling to cope with the rising cost of living.
She said, “Workers will be better able to secure employment that suits their individual circumstances, helping them to feel more satisfied at work.
“Workers will be empowered and encouraged to talk to their employers about their working patterns, safe in the knowledge that starting this conversation will not result in any detriment.”
The right will function in a similar way to the right to request flexible working which was given Royal Assent this summer.
Employers will reportedly be able to refuse a request based on one of six statutory grounds:
- Additional cost
- Ability to meet customer demand
- Impact on recruitment
- Impact on other areas of the business
- Insufficiency of work during the proposed periods
- Planned structural changes.
Kate Palmer - HR advice and consultancy director at Peninsula - told Personnel Today that the law introduces a brand-new right but “does appear to contradict recent calls for employees to have more flexibility in how they work”.
“The procedure for dealing with a request for a predictable working pattern is on a par with flexible working requests. But there is one big difference as such requests for a predictable working pattern must be dealt with by the employer within one month,” she said.
“Arguably, the biggest impact of this new right will be on employers who have zero-hours workers and so it will hit some employers more than others.”
Christopher Hitchins - London managing partner and employment lawyer at Katten UK - said, “This change in the law is another tinkering to address the new types of working patterns that are associated with the ‘gig economy’, to try to give workers a bit more certainty over their hours of work and income.
“These developments in the new law are an iterative process, for example starting with the ban on exclusivity clauses for zero-hours workers a few years back. This new law is another ‘right to request’ - like the right to request flexible working from day one, which is due to come in some time in 2024 - which can be turned down by an employer with appropriate reasoning, not an outright right.”
Source: Personnel Today
(Links and quotes via original reporting)
