The Institute of Employment Rights launches a new podcast series

The Institute of Employment Rights (IER) is today launching an important, new podcast series, covering a range of employment rights themes including the New Deal for Working People and the Labour government’s Employment Rights Bill.

In this 6-part series, the IER’s labour law experts will be dissecting the new employment legislation brought forward by Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour government.

The IER have been informing the debate on improving and strengthening labour laws for workers over the last 30 years. This body of work (undertaken on a voluntary basis by our labour law academics and lawyers) provided the blueprint for Labour’s green paper on employment rights, New Deal for Working People document, their National Policy Forum document, and now their ‘Making Work Pay’ proposals, which are being brought to life by the Government’s proposed Employment Rights Bill.

In the podcast series, IER experts will consider how the proposals in the Bill measure up and will highlight the pitfalls and the possibilities the Bill may pose for the UK’s 33 million workers.

The IER Podcast is kindly supported by Thompsons Solicitors.

Episode one:

What will Labour’s new employment legislation bring for workers and trade unions?

In this insightful episode, Carolyn Jones, Senior Vice President of the Institute of Employment Rights is joined by Lord John Hendy KC and Professor Keith Ewing to discuss the imperative need for comprehensive reforms in UK labour laws.

Reflecting on changes since the Thatcher era, they explore critical issues such as sectoral collective bargaining, the establishment of a Ministry of Labour, and alignment with international legal standards.

Key topics include the Labour Party’s new Employment Rights Bill, the impact of weakened trade unions, the controversial nine-month probation period, and specific cases like the P&O Ferries dismissals.

The discussion emphasises the importance of effective enforcement mechanisms, protecting workers’ rights, and the political dynamics influencing these legislative changes.

Listeners are encouraged to engage in the debate over these pressing labour law reforms via social media.

New episodes in the series will be released regularly over the coming weeks, each one covering a different theme within labour law and employment rights.

You can listen to Episode one now, via the IER’s website, or listen to them on the Spotify and Apple platforms. Details here.