Labour drops day-one protection against unfair dismissal in latest betrayal of workers

Labour has now dropped the guarantee of day-one unfair dismissal protections from its Workers’ Rights Bill. The weakening of the Bill is a clear breach of Labour’s manifesto pledges, which vowed ‘day one’ protection against unfair dismissal.

The move, announced 27 November, instead lowers the threshold for unfair dismissal claims from 2 years to 6 months. The press release stated that it will also maintain existing day one protection against discrimination, which would:

benefit millions of working people who will gain new rights and offer business and employers much needed clarity. To further strengthen these protections, the Government has committed to ensure that the unfair dismissal qualifying period can only be varied by primary legislation and that the compensation cap will be lifted.

That part about primary legislation is significant – it makes it much harder for a right-wing party (Conservatives, Reform, Labour in a year’s time) to reverse the protections once they’re in place. The six-month threshold also replaces a more nebulous nine-month probation period, which previously accompanied the day-one protections.

Reportedly, the government, unions and business lobby groups agreed upon the changes reluctantly in order to speed the Bill through the House of Lords. However, the Bill has already been watered down three times by Tory and Liberal Democrat peers. The fact that it’s now been diluted further has understandably led to strife within union factions.

‘It will be in by Christmas’

One union higher-up told the Guardian:

The Tories cannot come back in and just extend the period to two years.

Bluntly, the biggest thing is there is no threat to delay the legislation – it will be in by Christmas and employers have to get behind that.

Likewise, another showed favour for the change because it increased the chance of passing the Bill quickly:

If ping pong had gone beyond Christmas, sick pay from day one would have been lost from April, and other new rights could have been delayed beyond April 2027.

Trade Union Congress general secretary Paul Nowak stated:  

The Employment Rights Bill is essential to better quality, more secure jobs for millions of workers across the economy.   

The absolute priority now is to get these rights – like day one sick pay – on the statute book so that working people can start benefitting from them from next April.  

Following the government’s announcement, it is now vital that Peers respect Labour’s manifesto mandate and that this Bill secures Royal Assent as quickly as possible.

This marks something of a U-turn for the TUC itself. As recently as October, the Congress had stated that a 6-month threshold threatened unfair dismissal for 2 million workers.

‘Constant rowbacks’

Sharon Graham – Unite’s general secretary – was less enthused:

These constant row-backs will only damage workers’ confidence that the protections promised will be worth the wait. Labour needs to keep its promises.

She also called the Bill a “shell of its former self”.

Regarding the 6-month threshold, an anonymous union representative also told the Guardian: 

They’ve capitulated and there may be more to come.

That would be in no small part thanks to Labour’s business secretary, Peter Kyle. He stated that:

The voice of business, the voice of people who work in business, will be heard when we get down into the weeds of implementing those key parts of the employment rights bill. And yes, I’m talking about zero-hours contracts and day-one rights.

Kyle also vowed at a Confederation of British Industry conference that he would hold a series of 26 consultations with businesses to ‘make their voice heard’  after the Bill becomes law. He also stated that:

I will not allow it to become zero-sum, [you] give one to the other, the other loses … This has to be got right.

However, with the day-one protection manifesto pledge broken, workers are already losing out on rights that Labour promised them back when they were elected. And, with protections already being weakened within the Bill time and again, there’s little more ground that the party could give without losing its pro-worker credibility entirely. If, that is, it hasn’t already been lost.

Featured image via the Canary