Fire and rehire code of practice ‘tinkering around the edges’, TUC complains
A crackdown on so-called fire and rehire tactics by employers has been criticised as “tinkering around the edges” by the leader of the Trades Union Congress (TUC).
Its general secretary spoke up as the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) confirmed the creation of a new statutory code covering the practice, also known as dismiss and re-engage.
Fire and rehire refers to when an employer fires a member of staff and offers them a new contract on new, often less favourable terms.
It said the code, subject to parliamentary approval, would prevent rogue use of the tactic by employers as employment tribunals would have the power to apply an uplift of up to 25% of a person’s compensation through any unreasonable lack of compliance.
Money latest:
People who rent house out on Airbnb targeted by new law
The DBT said employers must explore alternatives to dismissal and re-engagement and have meaningful discussions with employees or trade unions to reach an agreed outcome.
“The Code makes it clear to employers that they must not use threats of dismissal to pressurise employees into accepting new terms,” the statement added.
“They should also not raise the prospect of dismissal unreasonably early or threaten dismissal where it is not envisaged.”
The draft was put out to consultation last summer and unions maintained their grievances when the code of practice was confirmed on Monday.
They have hit out at several major employers since the pandemic, including British Gas and British Airways, with the TUC suggesting in 2021 that nearly one in 10 workers had been asked to reapply for their jobs since the start of lockdown in March 2020.
However, they were particularly angry in the wake of the P&O Ferries scandal of 2022.
Unions have accused the government of allowing P&O Ferries to escape punishment for its treatment of workers in 2022
In March of that year, almost 800 workers were sacked at the DP World-owned company and replaced with agency staff.
Mr Hollinrake confirmed in his interview that the Insolvency Service was continuing to examine whether civil law was broken in that high-profile case.
He described the mass sackings as “disgraceful” but added: “That was a fire situation, that wasn’t a fire and rehire situation.”
“Since that, we have legislated to say that anyone working in British territorial waters must earn the National Living Wage to reduce the benefit to something like P&O might get from taking those kind of actions.
“Also, of course, workers can take their cases to employment tribunals and make sure they get significant redress for that kind of action.”
He explained that the code had to strike a balance between preventing abuse of employees and preventing job losses, saying that so-called fire and rehire should be a last resort.
“Better than hundreds of people potentially being made redundant… is to look at ways to restructure a workforce if a company hits very difficult economic times,” he concluded.
Read more:
Push to make fire and rehire illegal
Asda co-owner mauled by MPs over fuel and fire and rehire
General secretary of the TUC union organisation, Paul Nowak, said the crackdown was half-baked and failed to protect workers’ rights to the extent Labour was promising.
“This code lacks bite and is not going to deter bad employers like P&O from treating staff like disposable labour,” he responded.
“We need far more robust legislation to protect people at work.
“One in 10 were threatened with fire and rehire during the pandemic – tinkering around the edges is not going to cut it.”
Thousands of job cuts at the NHS will go ahead after the £1bn needed to fund the redundancies was approved by the Treasury.
The government had already announced its intention to slash the headcount across both NHS England and the Department of Health by around 18,000 administrative staff and managers, including on local health boards.
The move is designed to remove “unnecessary bureaucracy” and raise £1bn a year by the end of the parliament to improve services for patients by freeing up more cash for operations.
NHS England, the Department of Health and Social Care, and the Treasury had been in talks over how to pay for the £1bn one-off bill for redundancies.
It is understood the Treasury has not granted additional funding for the departures over and above the NHS’s current cash settlement, but the NHS will be permitted to overspend its budget this year to pay for redundancies, recouping the costs further down the line.
‘Every penny will be spent wisely’
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to make further announcements regarding the health service in the budget on 26 November.
And addressing the NHS providers’ annual conference in Manchester today, Mr Streeting is expected to say the government will be “protecting investment in the NHS”.
He will add: “I want to reassure taxpayers that every penny they are being asked to pay will be spent wisely.
“Our investment to offer more services at evenings and weekends, arm staff with modern technology, and improving staff retention is working.
“At the same time, cuts to wasteful spending on things like recruitment agencies saw productivity grow by 2.4% in the most recent figures – we are getting better bang for our buck.”
Health Secretary Wes Streeting during a visit to the NHS National Operations Centre in London earlier this year. Pic: PA
Mr Streeting’s speech is due to be given just hours after he became entrenched in rumours of a possible coup attempt against Sir Keir Starmer, whose poll ratings have plummeted ahead of what’s set to be a tough budget.
Mr Streeting’s spokesperson was forced to deny he was doing anything other than concentrating on the health service.
Read more from Sky News:
Russian troops in Mad Max-style video
Shamima Begum ‘should be repatriated’
He is also expected on Wednesday to give NHS leaders the go-ahead for a 50% cut to headcounts in Integrated Care Boards, which plan health services for specific regions.
They have been tasked with transforming the NHS into a neighbourhood health service – as set down in the government’s long-term plans for the NHS.
Those include abolishing NHS England, which will be brought back into the health department within two years.
Watch Wes Streeting on Mornings With Ridge And Frost from 7am on Sky News.
-
Sports2 years agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports3 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Sports3 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment1 year agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024