Today the Government has published the Low Pay Commission’s (LPC) recommendations to tackle one-sided flexibility. In addition to our usual brief recommending the minimum wage rates, the LPC was also asked to undertake some additional tasks in relation the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices. These were to review the scale and nature of the issue of ‘one-sided flexibility’, to assess the impact of introducing a higher minimum wage for non-guaranteed hours and consider alternative policy ideas.

We found evidence of one-sided flexibility as identified in the Taylor Review: the misuse by some employers of flexible working arrangements creating unpredictability, insecurity of income and a reluctance among some workers to assert basic employment rights. However, we also found evidence of positive examples of flexibility and believe it is important to preserve genuine two-way flexibility.

Commissioners thought that the higher minimum wage for non-guaranteed hours did not address one-sided flexibility effectively and had the potential to create many unintended consequences. We did not hear unqualified backing for the premium from any of the stakeholders we spoke to. We have therefore recommended an alternative package of measures.

• A right to switch to a contract which reflects your normal hours. This is not about a worker requesting a change to the amount of work they do, but rather proper recognition of their normal hours. We believe this will help to tackle the fear of employer retaliation by providing a guarantee of the worker’s normal hours. Workers already worried about raising issues in the workplace are less likely to raise a ‘request’ so the right needs to be stronger than this.
• A right to reasonable notice of work schedule – to encourage employers to provide workers with their work schedule in advance so that individuals can plan their lives.
• Compensation for shift cancellation or curtailment without reasonable notice –to discourage employers from cancelling shifts at the last minute or partway through a shift.
• Information to workers – the written statement of terms from employers should detail the rights we are proposing here.

We also recommend that the Government considers ways to specifically measure the scale of one-sided flexibility.

Chair of the LPC Bryan Sanderson said:

We agree that one-sided flexibility is a problem and have recommended a package of measures to address the issue. We found the problems were not specific to one form of contract but can happen across of range of working arrangements.

We are pleased to see that the Government will consider our recommendation for a right to switch to a contract that reflects normal working hours as it develops legislation on the ‘right to request a more stable contract’, and that it will consult on our other proposals.

Notes:

1. The Low Pay Commission is an independent body made up of employers, trade unions and experts whose role is to advise the Government on the minimum wage. The National Living Wage is the legally binding pay floor for workers aged 25 and over. The other minimum wage rates comprise: the 21-24 Year Old Rate, the 18-20 Year Old Rate, the 16-17 Year Old Rate and the Apprentice Rate.

2. The LPC’s extended remit from Government was to ‘assess the nature and extent of the issue identified in the Review; and to assess the impact of introducing a higher minimum wage for non-guaranteed hours. This assessment should consider any alternative policies that they consider address the same issue, including relevant international comparisons and evidence provided by stakeholders.’

3. The LPC provided its recommendations to the Government by 31 October, in line with the timetable set out in its remit.

4. The Government responded to the LPC’s recommendations in it’s Good Work Plan, also published on 17 December 2018. It said: “We welcome the Commission’s work and recommendations which are published alongside this document. As set out in this Good Work Plan, the Government remains determined to tackle one-sided flexibility while retaining the flexibility that many people find so valuable. For example, we are taking action by introducing a right to request a more stable contract. The Commission had specific views on this policy, which we will consider as we develop legislation. Alongside this, we will consult on the Low Pay Commission’s other proposals.”

5. The LPC refer to the higher minimum wage for non-guaranteed hours as the ‘premium’.

• Pacific Islands, including Fiji, Vanuatu, and the Marshall Islands are on the frontline of climate change and are already facing rising sea levels that could undermine livelihoods, security and human rights.
• the UK is playing a leading role at the UN Secretary General’s climate conference in 2019 to accelerate the transition to a climate resilient planet.
• to date, the UK has invested over £70 million in the Pacific, focusing on strengthening climate resilience and addressing security issues.

Energy and Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry has emphasised the UK’s commitment to support the Pacific Islands in combating climate change.

Opening the UK/New Zealand Wilton Park Forum on Climate Change and Resilience in the Pacific yesterday (16 December 2018), Claire Perry championed climate vulnerable nations and reminded governments, businesses, and international organisations everywhere of their absolute duty to tackle the biggest threat of our time.

The event, jointly hosted by the UK, New Zealand and the Pacific Island Forum, turned discussions and recommendations into practical solutions in areas including multilateral negotiations, oceans, plastics, finance, risk assessment and migration, deepened engagement between the UK and Pacific Island leaders and promoted new stakeholder partnerships to enhance future collaboration.

Speaking at the Forum, Energy and Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry said:

The Pacific Islands are small, but they are mighty. Despite hardly contributing to climate change, they are driving international action to reduce emissions and building the resilience of their communities. We can learn so much from them.

With the UK’s world-leading expertise in tackling climate change and the Pacific Islands’ determination, we will work closely together to find practical solutions and drive transformational change.

The UK has a longstanding relationship with the Pacific Islands and a shared agenda on Climate Change. During the COP24 summit in Poland last week, Claire Perry launched the UK’s new Capacity Building for international negotiations Programme (CaBIN). The £15.6 million technical assistance programme will increase the capacity of low income and climate vulnerable countries to become leading voices in international climate negotiations.

In addition, the government is providing £1.2 million in funding to support a Pacific Regional Nationally Determined Contributions Hub to support these countries in implementing their Paris Agreement commitments.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister responsible for Climate Change, Mark Field, welcomed the delegates at the beginning of the Forum:

The countries of the Pacific are at the forefront of the fight against climate change and we have much to learn from one another.

Failure to recognise that these challenges are coming down to the line, and to find ways to mitigate them, or to sufficiently adapt to them, in advance, is no longer an option.

Throughout COP24, the UK cemented its position as a global leader in tackling climate change and achieved:

• driving genuine climate action to ensure a level playing-field for every country and doing its bit to secure a robust rulebook that applies to all nations
• urging higher global ambition, by ensuring the Talanoa Dialogue, which takes stock of collective global efforts to reduce emissions in line with the Paris Agreement, results in a firm commitment from all countries to review and update their international Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)
• continuing to play an active role in the negotiations while promoting UK experience and showcasing the scale and impact of UK International Climate Finance (ICF)
• since 1990 the UK economy has grown by 71 per cent while emissions have fallen by 43 per cent – the fastest progress on decarbonisation in the G20 since 2000

We have revised how we value properties in England where occupiers use two or more separated spaces within a building. We can now value separate but adjoining areas (occupied by one individual or company) as a single property when it is appropriate.

Ratepayers can ask us to reconsider when we have previously split a property into more than one.

• For current valuations, use the check and challenge process and follow the guidance to notify us that the check is related to the ‘Mazars’ case.
• For valuations that were split between 1 April 2010 and 31 March 2017 inclusive, use our revised 2010 appeal form. You can do this from 17 December 2018 to 31 December 2019.

Until we have reviewed the decision, you should continue to pay any additional business rates liability to your council. We will automatically let the council know about any changes to the valuations we make. The decision in the Supreme Court case ‘Mazars vs Woolway’ meant we were legally obliged to treat different areas of the same building (which are accessed through communal areas) as separate premises for business rates purposes. The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced, in the Autumn Budget 2017, his commitment to alter the rating law in England to enable us to treat these as a single property when appropriate. This legislation came into effect on 1 November 2018. The regulations that allow us to amend the 2010 list came into effect on 17 December 2018.

We have updated the Rating Manual section 2 part 5 and section 7 part 2 to reflect this change in legislation.

The previous guidance on how we value some non-domestic properties with more than one occupier still applies in Wales.

Published 17 December 2018

New legislation comes into force which means the UK data protection watchdog, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), can now hold company bosses directly responsible. Previously some had liquidated their firms to avoid big penalties.

Minister for Digital Margot James said:

There is now no hiding place for the small minority of rogue directors who have previously tried to escape justice. We are determined to stamp this menace out and this new law is the latest in a series of measures to rid society of the plague of nuisance calls.

Estimates by Ofcom show British consumers were bombarded with 3.9 billion nuisance phone calls and texts last year. Previously it was only the businesses themselves that were liable for fines of up to £500,000 rather than individuals. Some directors escaped paying by declaring bankruptcy only to open up again under a different name. Now the ICO can hold company directors directly responsible with further fines of up to half a million pounds.

Andy Curry, who heads up the nuisance call enforcement team at the Information Commissioner’s Office, said:

We welcome this amendment to the law which will increase the tools we have to protect the public. It will mean we can recover the fine more easily and also make it much harder for unscrupulous operators to set up in business again.

This new legislation is the latest in a long line of measures designed to put an end to unwanted calls and texts. Complaints to the ICO and Ofcom about nuisance calls have fallen for the second year in a row suggesting the action taken is working.

The Government has already:

• Introduced a measure in the Digital Economy Act 2017 to make it a requirement for the Information Commissioner to issue a statutory code of practice on direct marketing;
• Amended the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) to require all direct marketing callers to provide Caller Line Identification;
• Lowered the legal threshold at which the ICO may impose a monetary penalty on organisations breaching PECR;
• Made it easier for the ICO to more effectively share information with Ofcom in relation to nuisance calls through an amendment to the Communications Act 2003;
• Given the ICO the power to issue monetary penalty notices up to £500,000 for serious breaches of PECR;
• Introduced a ban on cold calling in relation to claims management services through the Financial Claims and Guidance Act 2018, except where the receiver has consented to such calls being made to them. The 2018 Act also includes powers to ban cold calls from pension providers; and
• Given £500,000 to Trading Standards to help install call blocking devices installed in the homes of vulnerable people.

Further Information:

1. For more information call DCMS Press Office on 0207 211 2210
2. ICO will consider the level of fine based on evidence- (whether it applies to company, director or both).
3. If a firm has multiple directors, each could be liable for a fine.
4. In 2016/17, the Information Commissioner issued 23 companies with more than £1.9million of fines for nuisance marketing.

Published 17 December 2018

The government will today set out the biggest package of workplace reforms for over twenty years (Monday 17 December), with ambitious reforms to ensure the UK leads the world in meeting the challenges of the changing world of work.

Building on our commitment to promote high quality work, the package of new legislation and measures, set to be unveiled by the Business Secretary Greg Clark, will ensure workers can access fair and decent work. They will provide and give businesses greater clarity on their obligations and ensure the enforcement system is fair and fit for purpose.

Today’s announcement takes forward 51 of the 53 recommendations made by Matthew Taylor in his review, some of which we have gone further than review, of Modern Working Practices. Our reforms will cement the UK’s status as a world leader in workers’ rights now and well into the future and will be the first country in the world to address the opportunities and challenges of the gig economy and the changing world of work, and its impact on a modern economy.

They form a key part of the government’s modern Industrial Strategy, a long-term plan to build a Britain fit for the future by helping businesses create better, higher-paying jobs in every part of the UK.

The new legislation introduced today will:

• closing a loophole by repealing the Swedish derogation – which currently allows agency workers to be employed on cheaper rates than permanent counterparts
• extend the right to a day one written statement of rights to workers, going further to include detail on rights such as eligibility for sick leave and pay and details of other types of paid leave, such as maternity and paternity leave
• quadruple maximum employment tribunal fines for employers who are demonstrated to have shown malice, spite or gross oversight from £5,000 to £20,000
• extend the holiday pay reference period from 12 to 52 weeks, ensuring those in seasonal or atypical roles get the paid time off they are entitled to
• lower the threshold required for a request to set up Information and Consultation arrangements from 10% to 2%

The government is also committing to legislate to improve the clarity of the employment status tests to reflect the reality of the modern working relationships.

Business Secretary Greg Clark said:

The UK has a labour market of which we can be proud. We have the highest employment rate on record, increased participation amongst historically under-represent groups and wages growing at their fastest pace in almost a decade.

This success has been underpinned by policies and employment law which strikes an effective balance between flexibility and worker protections but the world of work is changing, bringing new opportunities for innovative businesses and new business models to flourish, creating jobs across the country and boosting our economy. With new opportunity also comes new challenges and that is why the government asked Matthew Taylor to carry out this first of a kind review, to ensure the UK continues to lead the world, through our modern Industrial Strategy, in supporting innovative businesses whilst ensuring workers have the rights they deserve.

Today’s largest upgrade in workers’ rights in over a generation is a key part of building a labour market that continues to reward people for hard work, that celebrates good employers and is boosting productivity and earning potential across the UK.

I would like to thank Matthew Taylor and Sir David Metcalf for their leadership. Today’s reforms build on our pledge to build an economy that works for everyone.

As part of our major reforms to upgrade workers right and improve the quality of work the Government is also today responding to the Labour Market Strategy set out by Sir David Metcalf, the Director of Labour Market Enforcement, with detailed plans to tackle exploitation of low paid workers, including:

• bringing forward proposals in early 2019 for a single enforcement body to ensure vulnerable workers are better protected
• more resource for the Employment Agency Standards (EAS) Inspectorate
• creating new powers to impose penalties for employers who breach employment agency legislation like non-payment of wages
• consulting on Salaried Hours Work and Salary Sacrifice Schemes to ensure National Minimum Wage rules do not inadvertently penalise employers
• bringing forward legislation to enforce holiday pay for vulnerable workers
• consulting on the recommendations on non-compliance in supply chains

Sir David Metcalf, the Director of Labour Market Enforcement, said:

I welcome the government’s response to my UK Labour Market Enforcement Strategy for 2018 to 2019. I am extremely grateful to the 3 enforcement bodies for their engagement and help during the development of the Strategy and for the constructive approach they have taken throughout with a view to strengthening Labour Market Enforcement across the UK.

I am pleased that the vast majority of my 37 recommendations have been accepted, including my recommendations regarding a shift to more proactive enforcement and improving joint working between the 3 enforcement bodies under my remit and wider organisations within labour market enforcement.

The plans set out today in the Good Work Plan, the government’s response to the independent Matthew Taylor review of the impact of modern working practices, and the response to the Director of Labour Market Enforcement’s Strategy, build on the government’s record of action to build a fairer economy for everyone, including:

• ensuring tips left for workers go to them in full
• ensuring workers are paid fairly by providing agency workers with a Key Facts Page when they start work, including a clear breakdown of who pays them, and any costs or charges deducted from their wages
• enforcing vulnerable workers’ holiday pay for the first time
• introducing a list of day-one rights including holiday and sick pay entitlements and a new right to a payslip for all workers, including casual and zero-hour workers
• introducing a right for all workers, not just zero-hour and agency, to request a more predictable and stable contract, providing more financial security for those on flexible contracts
• Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy taking a new responsibility to the ensure the “quality of work”
• revising the GLAA licensing standards to ensure that they reflect current worker rights and employer obligations
• introducing a new naming scheme for employers who fail to pay employment tribunal awards
• taking further action to ensure unpaid interns are not doing the job of a worker

The government is also committing to legislate to improve the clarity of the employment status tests to reflect the reality of the modern working relationships. In addition, the government has published the Low Pay Commission’s letter on potential options to address the issue of ‘one-sided flexibility’, which the Taylor Review described as the issue where some businesses have transferred too much business risk to the individual.

The reforms announced today reflect the views expressed by Matthew Taylor in his review into Modern Working Practice that:

• banning zero hours contracts in their totality would negatively impact more people than it helped
• that the flexibility of ‘gig working’ is not incompatible with ensuring atypical workers have access to employment and social security protections
• platform based working offers welcome opportunities for genuine two way flexibility and can provide opportunities for those who may not be able to work in more conventional ways

Measures outlined in the package form part of the government’s modern Industrial Strategy, published last year, which sets out how the whole of the UK can build on its strengths, extend them into the future, and capitalise on new opportunities.

The Good Work Plan comes as the latest response to the independent Taylor Review of impact modern working practices (2017). The review found that the strength of the UK’s labour market is built on flexibility but that a clearer focus was needed on quality of work as well as the quantity of jobs.