The much awaited Taylor Review into modern working practices has been released. It aims to tackle “one-sided flexibility” in favour of employers in the labour market. The key recommendations include:
- A new category known as “dependent contractor” for workers who are not employees (rather than the current “worker” status);
- Giving agency workers the right to request a contract with the end-user after 12 months;
- Giving workers on zero-hours contracts the right to request guaranteed hours after 12 months;
- Statutory sick pay and holiday pay for dependent contractors;
- Allowing claimants to bring a tribunal claim (without fee) to determine employment status, with the burden of proof on the employer to prove the worker in question is not an employee/dependent contractor;
- Aggravated penalties for employers who don’t apply an ET ruling on employment status to similar groups of workers
The Prime Minister has stated that the government will take the report’s recommendations seriously, however the government is under no obligation to implement any of them. Trade unions have been critical of the report, believing it does not go far enough. Our upcoming article will take a more comprehensive look at these recommendations and their potential implications for employers – watch this space!