The government has today issued a press release setting out its 'Good Work plan' in response to last year's Taylor Review on what impact modern working practices are having on the world of work. Four consultations are planned but there will be no immediate changes to the law.

What is the government proposing to do?

The press release is brief. It lists the following proposals without giving further details or proposed timescales. A number of the measures appear to envisage improved guidance and information rather than legislative changes.

  • Help enforce vulnerable workers' holiday and sick pay (addressing the current uncertainty for gig economy workers);
  • Introduce day-one rights such as holiday pay and sick pay entitlements and a new right to a payslip for all workers, including casual and zero-hour workers;
  • Introduce a right to request a 'more stable contract' for all workers including those on agency and zero-hour contracts;
  • Ensure unpaid interns are not doing the job of a worker;
  • Provide all agency workers with a clear breakdown of who pays them, and any costs or charges deducted from their wages;
  • Ask the Low Pay Commission to consider the impact of higher minimum wage rates for workers on zero-hour contracts;
  • Consider repealing the laws which allow agencies to employ workers on cheaper rates;
  • Define 'working time' for flexible workers who find jobs through apps or online so they know when they should be being paid;
  • Launch a task force with business to promote awareness and take-up of the right to request flexible working;
  • Make sure new and expectant mothers know their rights;
  • Launch a new campaign to encourage more working parents to share childcare through shared parental leave;
  • Introduce a new naming scheme for employers who fail to pay employment tribunal awards; and
  • Quadruple employment tribunal fines for employers showing malice, spite or gross oversight to £20,000 and consider increasing penalties for employers who have previously lost similar cases.

What consultations are going to take place?

Four separate consultations will be published on:

  • Employment status – examining options, including new legislation, to make it easier for both the workforce and businesses to understand whether someone is an employee, worker, or self-employed and determine which rights and tax obligations apply to them;
  • Enforcement of employment rights;
  • Agency workers; and
  • Measures to increase transparency in the UK labour market.

Are all of the recommendations in the Taylor Review being implemented?

The Taylor Review ran to over 100 pages with recommendations on a wide range of topics. Read our summary here.

Today's press release states that all but one of Matthew Taylor's 53 recommendations will be implemented. The only one which is not being taken forward is the proposal to equalise national insurance for employees and the self-employed. National insurance contributions for the self-employed will, therefore, not be increased.

What next?

The government states that it is committed to reforming employment law and practices to keep pace with modern ways of working. However, we are still not much further forward in knowing how and when this will happen in practice. The devil will be in the detail.

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