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ARTICLE · 22 NOVEMBER 2024

Zero Hours Contracts - What Is The Government Proposing?

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The UK Employment Rights Bill introduces protections for zero and low-hours workers, requiring employers to offer guaranteed hours based on prior work patterns, with implementation expected post-2026.

United KingdomEmployment and HR
Melissa Paz
Melissa Paz
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As we have reported previously, the UK Employment Rights Bill (the 'Bill') is the most ambitious set of employment law reforms for more than a generation covering (amongst other things) unfair dismissal, fire and rehire and collective redundancies.

The Government has begun consulting on aspects of the reforms, anticipating that the majority of them will take effect no earlier than 2026, giving employers time to plan.

One of the key areas addressed by the Bill is what the Government has called 'exploitative zero hours contracts'. In the King's Speech, the Government promised to ban them. The Bill falls short of an outright ban but grants certain workers significant new protections.

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