Events and briefings

In this briefing, our lawyers Tom Bray and Jen Mann review provisions which have important repercussions for employers seeking to change employees’ contractual terms, including through dismissal and re-engagement (“fire and rehire”). Key points include: • Changing terms, including dismissal and re-engagement • What does the Bill say? • Practical implications for employers

The Employment Rights Bill is currently progressing through its parliamentary stages and is expected to be finalised this summer, with a staged implementation during 2025 and 2026 (and potentially beyond).

In this briefing, our lawyers review the provisions that are expected to change how employers manage collective redundancy consultation, and the risks of not complying. This briefing covers:

• What does the Bill say?
• Practical implications for employers
• Who needs to be consulted?
• How to approach diverse consultation exercises?

Welcome to our December UK labor law quarterly update. This edition contains the following content:

News round-up

• Compensation uplift for breaching collective consultation: January 2025 implementation
• The Employment Rights Bill: focusing on the new union right of access and statutory recognition changes

UK labor case law

• Tesco Stores v USDAW: dismissal and re-engagement
• RMT & Unite v Tyne & Wear Passenger Transport Executive t/a Nexus: mistakes in collective agreements
• Secretary of States v PCS: unions enforcing check-off arrangements

Eversheds Sutherland labor law podcasts, publications, events and training

• The Labor Exchange podcast: In our latest Labor Law Exchange podcast, Stephen Chegwin and Clare Ward review three significant UK labor law cases, with additional details provided in this edition's labor law update below.  Listen on: Apple, Spotify and Twenty Three.
• Our Collective labor, trade unions and IR - UK law and best practice training, Birmingham and virtual, February 2025

In our recent briefing for education institutions on the Employment Rights Bill we set out what we thought were the key forthcoming changes. We mentioned that a number of consultations would be forthcoming in due course and the first four of these have now been published concerning:

• collective consultation and fire and re-hire
• creating a modern framework for industrial relations
• the application of zero hours contracts measures to agency workers
• strengthening Statutory Sick Pay

Consultation on the first three of these closes on 2 December with the one on statutory sick pay closing on 4 December. Read this article as we will explain what they cover.

The UK Government has confirmed it intends to bring forward a Pensions Schemes Bill in the first session of this Parliament. The Bill will implement changes to the regulatory regime for private pensions to deliver further consolidation, address the growing number of small deferred pension pots and enhance value for members. It will also seek to broaden pension investments to help drive economic growth. Our Speedbrief outlines the specific measures that will be included in the Pensions Schemes Bill and highlights other Bills likely to be of interest to the pensions industry.