Employees could be entitled to a four-day workweek sooner than expected, under new rights set to be granted under employment law reforms coming this Autumn.
As reported by The Telegraph, the Labour government’s plan to improve rights for workers is to include provisions for workers to demand a system of “compressed hours.”
Labour has promised major improvements to worker rights including extensive reforms to employment laws, championed by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner.
Rayner has been consulting with trade unions and business leaders while putting together “Labour’s Plan to Make Work Pay: Delivering A New Deal for Working People,” known as the ‘New Deal.’
Will employers need to offer a four-day workweek? What we know so far
Employers will not have to operate a four-day workweek as standard under the new law.
However, it appears companies and HR teams will be legally obliged to offer flexible working, and honour employee demands for flexibility.
Earlier this year, workers were given the right to request flexible working from day one of employment, having previously had to have been employed for a minimum of 26 weeks before making a flexible work request.
But at present, employers have no obligation to agree to the request for flexible working – only to respond in a “reasonable manner” – something that looks set to change under the new law.
The proposed legislation will give employees more power to request a four-day workweek model under which they would complete all working hours in the first four days of the week, giving them Friday off.
This “compressed hours” system reportedly part of Labour’s employment rights package differs from other popular four-day workweek formats, including the widely used ‘100:80:100™’ model, which refers to “100% pay for 80% of your time while maintaining 100% output.”
Nicholas Le Riche, Partner at employment law firm BDB Pitmans, suggested that the proposals shouldn’t ring too many alarm bells for those in HR.
“I wouldn’t expect employers to be ‘petrified’ by these proposals given that working compressed hours is not unusual and businesses are now well accustomed to dealing with flexible working requests,” he reflected.
“However, what employers will want is clarity on their ability to refuse these types of requests and how tough it will be to show that compressed working isn’t ‘feasible’… What this change is likely to do is force employers to show why flexible working can’t be accepted rather than require the employee to show why it should.”
Should HR prepare for flexibility as a “genuine default”?
It appears workers would still be expected to work the same number of hours over the week by starting and finishing later Monday through Thursday, rather than condensing their work into a smaller number of hours.
A similar law was pioneered by Belgium in February 2022, under which employees have the option to work a full week’s worth of hours in four days instead of the conventional five, without any loss of salary.
A Labour source told the Telegraph that the Government hopes to “ensure flexibility is a genuine default.”
However, they clarified that there may be some exceptions where it is “not reasonably feasible for employers to agree.”
At present, there is not much clarity over how the law will work in practice, but given Labour’s condensed 100-day timeline, changes are coming quickly for which employers must prepare.
According to Labour’s self-appointed schedule, draft legislation is due in parliament in mid-October.
With the specific wording of any legislation not yet set in stone, it’s not clear how much scope employers will have to reject flexible working demands such as a four-day workweek, or how any requirement to comply with worker requests for “compressed hours” will translate into legal wording.
Ben Willmott, Head of Public Policy for the CIPD, praised the possibility of more flexibility for workers, but recognised the need for close partnership with businesses to make sure any regulatory changes can realistically be followed.
“The UK Government has indicated they will adapt and build on the existing right to request flexible working to try and ensure flexibility is the genuine default. This is likely to apply to all types of flexible working, not just a compressed four-day working week,” he explained.
“Flexible working arrangements such as compressed hours, job sharing and term-time working can help people balance their work and home life commitments, while also supporting employer efforts to recruit and retain staff. However flexible working has to work for both the business and workers if it’s to be sustainable and this needs to be recognised in any changes to regulation.
“It would make sense for the government to take stock of the impact of recent changes introduced only in April, to enable people to request flexible working from day one of employment, before seeking to make further changes.”
Government source says four-day workweek entitlement could “boost productivity”
A Labour source, speaking to the Telegraph, reiterated the party’s plans to make flexible working a mandatory requirement for employers.
“The Conservatives pledged to make flexible working the default then failed to do so. We’ll build on their existing legislation to ensure flexibility is a genuine default, except where it is not reasonably feasible for employers to agree,” they explained.
The source emphasized the Government’s belief in the value of flexible working to employers, referring to studies that show flexibility can improve productivity.
“Flexible working options such as compressed hours and term-time working can support more people to stay in the workforce and boost productivity, whether keeping parents in their jobs or helping those juggling caring responsibilities for older relatives,” they said.
Commenting on the proposed legislation, Conservative shadow business secretary Kevin Hollinrake said legally obligating employers to comply with flexible working requests such as a four-day workweek could prove costly to UK businesses.
“Despite warning after warning from industry, Angela Rayner is pressing ahead with her French-style union laws that will make doing business more expensive in the UK,” he stated.
“Labour must listen to businesses who are petrified about day one employment rights and bringing in the four-day week through the back door. It will be businesses and consumers who pay and growth that suffers if they don’t listen.”
Groups opposing the four-day workweek have criticised the model growing in popularity across the UK and Europe, arguing it could lower productivity.
The UK launched a four-day workweek trial with over 60 countries in 2022. Following positive results on productivity, wellbeing, and even profitability, 92% of firms decided to make the change permanent.
What else can HR expect from Labour’s ‘New Deal’?
The new Labour government are planning a swathe of improvements to worker rights in their ‘New Deal.’
In recent weeks, the conversation has focused heavily on the “right to switch off for employees.” Despite initial plans to implement legislation that would give employees the right to ignore out-of-hours contact from employers, the government has now said it will consider a ‘code of practice’ that will give employers guidelines on out-of-hours communications.
Legal experts and employment groups have also highlighted other likely changes under the ‘New Deal,’ including obligations to address the gender pay gap, improve whistleblower rights, and reduce harassment in the workplace.
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Adapted from: HR Grapevine Benjamin Broomfield. 31.08.24