Government U-turns on day-one unfair dismissal rights

In a press release, ‘An update on the Employment Rights Bill’, the Government has now announced that unfair dismissal protections will indeed only kick in after a 6 month qualifying period, as opposed to on ‘day-one’ of employment.

The announcement comes after Secretary of State for Business convened a series of conversations between trade unions and business representatives, where an agreement had been reached on the unfair dismissal elements of the Employment Rights Bill.

The decision comes after escalating attacks on the Employment Rights Bill’s measures relating to unfair dismissal. The Bill has been stuck in a protracted legislative phase of Parliamentary ‘ping-pong’ with a coalition of Tory and Lib Dem Lords appearing committed to blocking the Bill over a number of key issues – most importantly, the right to guaranteed hours and the former provisions relating to unfair dismissal.

Their protestations aligned with those raised by a coalition of business lobbyists, including the FSB and the CBI. Recently, both the Resolution Foundation and the Tony Blair Institute joined criticisms of the Government’s plans to bring unfair dismissal protection forward to cover all workers from day one, and instead suggested a 6-month qualifying period – a suggestion it appears the Government has now accepted.

In a briefing note on probationary periods published just before Labour’s annual conference in 2024, Institute of Employment Rights (IER) officers and experts warned that precluding crucial protections from unfair dismissals for workers within the first 6 months of their employment would have severe consequences, stating:

There would be an increase in give months fixed term contracts; Seasonal workers would never gain the protection which the New Deal envisaged for workers; Many workers would be induced to accept zero-hours contracts under threat of dismissal within six months; There would be a widespread fear of asserting ‘day one’ rights for fear of dismissal without redress during the first six months; Probationary periods would be likely to become universal.

According to TUC analysis issued one month ago, more than 2 million workers (2,010,946) will be deprived of protection from arbitrary unfair dismissals if  a six-month qualifying period is implemented before those rights kick in, thereby abandoning millions of workers in insecure and precarious circumstances.

Read the full briefing note from the IER on probationary periods and unfair dismissal by clicking here.