The Workers (Predictable Terms and Conditions) Act, which gives workers the right to request a predictable working pattern, has just received royal assent.
According to the government, the new law will encourage workers – including those on zero hours contracts - to begin conversations with their employers about their working patterns as it is “unfair for anyone to have to put their lives on hold to make themselves available for shifts that may never actually come”.
The new law states that if a worker’s existing working pattern lacks certainty in terms of the hours they work, the times they work, or if it is a fixed term contract for less than 12 months, they will be able to make a formal application to change their working pattern to make it more predictable.
Once a worker has made their request, their employer will be required to notify them of their decision within one month. Employers will only be able to reject the request if they consider that one or more of the following grounds applies:
- The burden of additional costs
- Detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand
- Detrimental impact on the recruitment of staff
- Detrimental impact on other aspects of the employer’s business
- Insufficiency of work during the periods the worker proposes to work
- Planned structural changes, and
- Such other grounds as the Secretary of State may specify by regulations.
ACAS, the conciliation service, has said that it is currently producing a new Code of Practice to provide guidance on making and handling requests and that the draft code will be available for public consultation in the coming weeks.
The government has said that it expects the measures in the act and secondary legislation to come into force in about a year in order to give employers time to prepare for the changes.
Rachel Ellis of Thompsons Solicitors commented that: “While on the face of it this is a step forward, in reality it appears to be another ‘right to request’ with very limited rights if that request is then refused. The act sets out far reaching grounds for employers to reject the requests. As such, this act appears in reality to do little to address the issue of the gig economy and the precarious financial reality for those whose livelihoods rely on casual work and zero hours contracts.”
To read the provisions of the legislation in full, click here.