The Employment Rights Bill – further amendments?

The Employment Rights Bill (Bill) is currently passing through Parliament. It has been at the House of Commons Committee Stage since 26 November 2024, where it has been analysed and numerous amendments considered. The Committee Stage came to an end on 16 January 2025, and Parliament has now published an updated version of the Bill incorporating the amendments that have been accepted during the Committee Stage. Should you wish to remind yourselves of the Bill’s key provisions, please read October's Employment Eye, or you can find a summary of the Committee Stage Amendment Paper published in November 2024 in our previous Spotlight post.

Last month, a further Amendment Paper was published during the Parliamentary Report Stage, the contents of which will be scrutinised as the Bill passes through that Stage and then onto the Third Reading Stage. Below is a summary of the key proposals from that paper. 

1. Domestic abuse victim’s leave

This amendment entitles workers, who are victims of domestic abuse, to the right to take leave from work. If this amendment is adopted, draft regulations will be required to determine exactly how this new right will work in practice, although it is expected that leave will be for a minimum of 10 working days. In addition, whilst the worker is on leave, their normal terms and conditions of employment will continue to apply, although it is not clear if that will include pay. A worker that has been, or is suspected to have been a victim of domestic abuse, or affected directly by domestic abuse, will also have protection against detrimental treatment and dismissal.

The amendment also states that employers will be required to take all reasonable steps to prevent their workers from experiencing domestic abuse in the course of their employment, and employers with five or more employees will be required to have a policy outlining the support offered. 

2. Carer’s leave - remuneration

Last year employees became entitled to one week's unpaid carer’s leave per year. This amendment extends that provision to include pay, meaning that employees will be entitled to one week’s paid leave (at the employee’s usual rate of pay). 

In addition, “caring” will become a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010, meaning that someone caring for a person* with a long term care need** would be protected against discrimination. 

* a spouse, civil partner, child or parent; or lives in the same household as the worker or reasonably relies on them to provide or arrange care.

** someone with an illness or injury (whether physical or mental) that requires, or is likely to require, care for more than three months; has a disability under the Equality Act; or requires care for a reason connected with old age.

3. Protected paternity or parental leave

Protected paternity or parental leave will be introduced. However, consultation to assess the period of leave, employer costs and discrimination risk will be required. Regulations will determine how the provisions will work in practice, but no concrete timetable has been given.
 
The amendment paper also includes provisions that will see employers with 250+ employees being required to publish information about their parental leave and pay policies.

4. Whistleblowing

The circumstances in which an employee would be considered as being unfairly dismissed after making a protected disclosure will be extended. If this amendment is adopted, a whistleblowing claim would be easier for individuals to win because the protected disclosure would need to be the reason (or one of the reasons) for the dismissal. Currently the protected disclosure must be the reason (or principal reason) for the dismissal. 

5. Statutory family related leave payments

There will be significant increases to the weekly rate of statutory pay for statutory family related leave*. The weekly rate of pay will increase from £184.03 to £368.06. There will also be new hourly rates for statutory maternity pay for those that live in London. In addition, statutory adoption leave pay will be extended to the self-employed and to contractors.

* Maternity Pay, Paternity Pay, Adoption Pay, Shared Parental Pay and Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay.

6. Kinship care leave

This amendment introduces the right to “kinship care leave.” Kinship is described an arrangement where a child is raised by a friend, relative or extended family member other than a parent. Employees providing eligible* kinship care to a child would be entitled to at least 52 weeks’ leave under the proposed amendments. Whilst on leave, employees will benefit from the same terms and conditions of employment (with the exception of pay) and will be entitled to return to the same or similar role.

* there must be a kinship care arrangement that is intended to last at least one year, and until the child being cared for attains the age of 18. The arrangements are described as: special guardianship, a kinship child arrangement, a private fostering arrangement, or a private family arrangement.

7. Disciplinary and grievance hearings

This amendment permits the employee the right to be accompanied at hearings by a “certified companion.”*

*  a person who has been reasonably certified in writing by a Professional Body as having experience of, or as having received training in, acting as a worker’s companion at disciplinary or grievance hearings.

8. Duty to prevent violence and harassment in the workplace

There are also proposed amendments to the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The amended provisions place a duty on employers to protect all those working in their workplace from violence and harassment.* Employers will be required to prepare and revise, as required, risk assessments to identify potential risk hot spots. In addition, employers will be required to implement appropriate policies and procedures (as well as provide training to employees, with a focus on gender-responsive approaches**) to eliminate these risks so far as is reasonably practicable. Guidance to assist employers meet this new duty will be published, but there are no timeframes in place yet.

*including: gender-based violence; sexual harassment; psychological and emotional abuse; physical and sexual abuse; stalking and harassment, including online harassment; threats of violence.

** taking into account the various needs, interests, and experiences of people of different gender identities, including women and girls, when designing and implementing policies and procedures.

9. Pregnancy loss

Our Spotlight post from 21 January focused on the report from the Women and Equalities Committee, which called for amendments to the Bill to extend parental bereavement leave (and pay) to those that experience pregnancy loss. This amendment will extend the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 to ensure that those entitled to statutory parental bereavement pay also includes parents bereaved by pregnancy loss.* 

*a pregnancy that that ends as a result of: a miscarriage; an ectopic pregnancy; a molar pregnancy; a medical termination conducted in accordance with section 1 of the Abortion Act 1967; an unsuccessful attempt at in vitro fertilisation due to embryo transfer loss. 

Key takeaways

As stated above, the Bill is now at the Report Stage and will then progress to a Third Reading, where the House of Commons will consider these proposals. There is nothing for employers to do right now, but it is advisable to keep an eye on the developments and to start thinking about internal policies and procedures, and possibly board/leadership team briefing papers in case the amendments are adopted.   

We will of course keep you updated, but if you require any assistance, please do not hesitate to contact Kelly Simpson or Sarah Lamont.