forthcoming employment law and health and safety legislation

Human Resources Management

Park City Consulting can provide value for money, commercial business advice on any aspect of employment law or health and safety legislation. Here is our employment law timetable for the next 3 years.

The following legislation is due to be made UK law between 2007 and 2012.

Women and Work Commission The commission was created in July 2004 to examine the problems of the gender pay gap and other issues affecting women’s employment. It is due to report shortly, when it is expected to recommend further changes to sex discrimination and equal pay legislation.	During 2006
Equalities Review and Discrimination Law Review In March 2005, the Government announced a "root and branch" review to investigate the causes of persistent discrimination and inequality in British society. This involves the establishment of two reviews - an Equalities Review and a Discrimination Law Review - which will support the development of the new Commission for Equality and Human Rights (see below) and the creation of a Single Equality Act. The Equalities Review is chaired by Sir Trevor Phillips. Its interim report was published in March and it is due to present its final report to the Prime Minister in early 2007. The Government's Women and Equality Unit has announced that it expects to publish a green paper outlining its proposals on the Discrimination Law Review 'around the turn of the year' and confirming its commitment to introducing a Single Equality Bill during this Parliament.	January/February 2007
Information and Consultation of Employees Regulations 2004 are extended The Regulations, which implement the Information and Consultation Directive in Great Britain, are extended to cover undertakings with 100 or more employees. The Regulations can be viewed on the HMSO website.	6 April 2007
Maternity leave is extended to nine months The Government intends to extend paid maternity leave from six to nine months. An extension to 12 months, some of which will be transferable from the mother to the father, has been promised by 2010. Details of the proposals can be viewed on the Department of Trade and Industry website. Statutory maternity pay rises to £112.75 from 1st April 2007 from £108.85).	April 2007
Data Protection Act 1998 comes fully into force Manual filing systems in existence before 24 October 1998 are now required to comply fully with the Data Protection Directive (95/46/EC).	24 October 2007
Ban on smoking in the workplace comes in to force A ban on smoking in enclosed public places, including most workplaces, comes into force. There will be separate rules for licensed premises and some premises will be exempt from the ban. The Government intends to make all government departments and the NHS smoke-free by the end of 2006 and to have arrangements for licensed premised in place by the end of 2008. The proposals were outlined in the White Paper Choosing Health: making healthier choices easier (on the Department of Health website), which states that the Government plans to consult before drawing up detailed legislation.	Summer 2007
Institutional Reform: Single equality body This date has been set for establishment of the Commission for Equality and Human Rights (CEHR), a new single equality body bringing together the work of the Equal Opportunities Commission, the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) and the Disability Rights Commission (it will not take over the functions of the CRE until April 2009). The CEHR will also take responsibility for new laws outlawing workplace discrimination on the grounds of age, religion or belief and sexual orientation. In May 2004, the DTI published a white paper seeking views on the proposed structure and role of the new commission.	October 2007
Consultation on pension scheme changes New regulations will place a duty on employers to consult scheme members before making changes to an occupational or personal pension scheme. The making of certain types of change will be prohibited without consultation of the affected employees. The new rules will come into force in stages, applying to businesses with over 150 employees from 6 April 2006, those with over 100 employees from 6 April 2007 and those with over 50 employees from 6 April 2008.	During 2006
Work and Families Act The Work and Families Act 2006 contains the government's next round of 'family friendly' reforms, many of which will take effect in relation to employees whose expected week of childbirth, or expected date of adoption, is on or after 1 April 2007. Amongst other things, the period of paid maternity leave will be increased to nine months and all pregnant employees will be entitled to 12 months' maternity leave regardless of their length of service. In addition, the right to request flexible working is being extended to carers. The DTI has also been consulting on plans to introduce additional paternity leave and pay, so that fathers will be entitled to take up to six months' leave (three of which will be unpaid) if the mother returns to work at the end of her first six months of maternity leave. This is to be introduced ‘before the end of this Parliament’, at the same time as statutory maternity pay is extended to 52 weeks. The DTI has confirmed that this will not be before April 2008.	01 April 2007
Holiday Entitlements to Rise The Government is pushing through proposals to increase workers statutory holiday entitlement from 20 days to 28 days. Under the DTI proposals, statutory entitlement will be increased in two stages rising from 20 to 24 days on 1 October 2007 and from 24 to 28 days on 1 October 2008. This has been lobbied for by trade unions, unhappy that employers are not legally required to give workers time off for Bank Holidays.	01 October 2007 01 October 2008
Work At Height (Amendment) Regulations Proposals to bring workers paid to lead or train others in climbing and caving activities in the adventure activity sector within scope of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. This will complete implementation of the Work at Height Directive (2000/45/EC). Further information on the HSE Falls from Height Programme, is available at www.hse.gov.uk/falls/index.htm. From April, guidance accompanying these amendment regulations on the application of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 to persons instructing climbing and caving will be available on this website.	06 April 2007
Construction Design and Management Regulations A single set of key construction Regulations, mainly revising, simplifying and consolidating the Construction (Design & Management) (CDM) Regulations 1994 and the Construction (Health, Safety & Welfare) (CHSW) Regulations 1996. CDM 2007 will increase the focus on effective planning and management of construction projects, to improve risk management by ensuring responsibility is placed with those best placed to influence or manage it; reduce bureaucracy; and simplify and clarify the law for dutyholders, so they can easily understand what they (and other members of the construction project team) are required to do. As with the current CDM/CHSW Regulations, CDM 2007 will implement the Temporary or Mobile Construction Sites (TMCS) Directive. The UK (along with other Member States) has been liaising with the EC on its review of the Directive.	06 April 2007
Biocidal Products (Amendment) Regulations These amendment regulations will make adjustments called for by three European Commission Regulations in switching on the provisions in the Biocidal Products Directive (98/8/EC) for certain classes of products. They also update and correct other references in the existing regulations.	06 April 2007
Coal Mines (Inhalable Dust) Regulations The Regulations are being introduced to control dust in coal mines. They will replace the Coal Mines (Respirable Dust Regulations) 1975 and will also implement requirements of the Chemical Agents Directive in relation to coal mine dust. These regulations appeared in a previous statement, as they were due to come into force in October 2006. However, due to a delay in the approval and subsequent manufacture of sampling equipment that is essential to meet the requirements of the regulations, the coming-into-force date was deferred.	01 October 2007
Indicative Occupational Exposure Limit Values (IOELVs) - Implementation of 2nd IOELV Directive Implementation of the second list of Indicative Occupational Exposure Limit Values (European Directive 2006/15/EC). This Directive contains a list of 33 substances with IOELVs. Member States are required to establish domestic occupational exposure limits for these substances. Proposals for setting new and revised Workplace Exposure Limits ( WELs) in order to comply with the Directive were contained in a Consultative Document; the consultation period for which ended on 27 September 2006.	01 October 2007
Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Bill The draft Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Bill was published for consultation by the Department for Constitutional Affairs in July, with a closing date for responses of 22 September 2006. The Bill continues the government's ongoing process of bringing all the various tribunals, including employment tribunals, together into a single unified system. However, the provisions with most significance for employment law are those designed to help tribunal claimants enforce their judgments in the civil courts. When the Bill is eventually enacted, claimants will not be required to register unpaid tribunal awards in the courts and will instead be able to proceed immediately to enforcement.	2007
Corporate Manslaughter The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Bill was introduced into Parliament on 20 July. It will reform the law on when companies can be convicted of corporate manslaughter (known as corporate homicide in Scotland), introducing the concept of 'serious management failure'. Consultation on a previous draft version of the bill was carried out in spring 2005. The Bill applies to the whole of the United Kingdom, rather than just England and Wales as had been previously proposed.	2007
Information and Consultation of Employees Regulations 2004 are extended The Regulations, which implement the Information and Consultation Directive in Great Britain, are extended to cover undertakings with 50 or more employees. The Regulations can be viewed on the HMSO website.	6 April 2008
Weekly working time limits for doctors in training reduced to 48 hours The Working Time (Amendment) Regulations 2003 amend the Working Time Regulations 1998 to provide for the 48-hour working time limit for doctors in training to be phased in over a period ending on 31 July 2009. After initially restricting weekly working time limits for doctors in training to 58 hours from 1 August 2004, then to 56 hours from 1 August 2007, the Regulations make a further reduction to 48. The Regulations can be viewed on the HMSO website.	1 August 2009
Maternity Leave is extended to 12 months The Government intends to extend paid maternity leave to 12 months, some of which will be transferable from the mother to the father. This follows an extension to nine months from April 2007. Details of these proposals can be viewed on the Department of Trade and Industry website.	During 2009 or 2010
Working Time - Junior Doctors Final part of phased introduction of junior doctors hours limit – 48 hour maximum week	August 2012

This is not an exhaustive list – This update is only intended as a general statement of the new law and does not constitute legal advice. No action should be taken in reliance on it without our specific legal advice.

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