The Employment Bill has recently completed its review by the House of Lords Standing Committee and been given its third reading and passed in the House of Commons. It will now be considered by the full House of Lords. A summary of the Bill can be found in the update dated 12th November 2001, also available on our website at www.herbertsmith.com.
One major change to the Bill agreed by the Standing Committee was the insertion of a clause introducing the new right to request flexible working. This right was announced in November 2001 (see update dated 23rd November, also available on our website) but the new clause in the Bill sets out further detail of how it is to operate. In particular, the Bill fleshes out the terms and conditions of employment that an employee can apply to change and also adds new grounds on which an employer can refuse the request.
