The original proposals had caused much concern among business owners, as reflected in their responses to multiple Quarterly Economic Surveys over the past 12 months and during various Liverpool Chamber member events.

Experts from some of Liverpool Chamber’s patrons and strategic partners give their views below on what the latest changes mean and whether they are the right decision for employers and employees.

Peter Waller-Flynn, CEO at Privilege HR, said:

“The government’s decision not to bring in day-one unfair dismissal rights appears to be a sensible move. It strikes a better balance between giving people fair protection at work and giving employers the flexibility they need, especially when things remain economically uncertain.

“A six-month qualifying period feels more practical and gives all those involved the time to make sure a new role is the right fit. We will be keeping a close eye on how the Employment Rights Bill develops, and we are keen to see changes that support both good businesses and good jobs.”

Laura Evans, CEO of Glass Ceilings Change Management, said:

“Whether the qualifying period is day-one or six months, it still reduces the timeframe, which will likely lead to more claims. The day-one proposal sought to bring all workers in line, offering greater protections from unfair dismissal to those who cannot rely on ‘automatically unfair’ reasons.

“The main problem with reducing the period from the current 2 years was therefore not so much whether it was the right thing to do, more that there are already massive backlogs in the Employment Tribunals system for which there seems to be no tangible plans to fix. Alongside any announcements on timescales, there needs to be significant investment in tackling the existing backlogs.”

“Last week’s Budget didn’t mention funding for the justice system and we are aware of cases being listed as far away as 2029. That is a long time for businesses to have issues hanging over them or to have to budget for potential payouts in successive years’ financial planning, and for litigants to have their lives on hold waiting to resolve cases. We support our clients to implement a progressive approach whilst remaining productive with the flexibility to take action when something goes seriously wrong.”

Charles Millett, employment law partner at Morecrofts Solicitors, said:

“Although a watering down of the original proposals, the effect of giving unfair dismissal rights to an employee with only six months’ service is nevertheless groundbreaking.

“Employers will now have to evaluate the suitability of employees for long-term employment within the first six months or risk complex processes for dismissing those employees. This is a dramatic change from the current situation, which requires two years’ service to claim ordinary unfair dismissal.

“We have been advising attendees at our quarterly training sessions to await the detail of the legislation before panicking about how to respond. This has been somewhat vindicated by the latest announcement. We must continue to assess the details of what is eventually made law, but it seems clear the nightmare scenario many businesses feared will now be less impactful because of this change.”