The Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill last week completed its passage through parliament and has now received royal assent.
According to a press release from the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills the following provisions are likely to come into force on 25 June:
- Ensuring that the two-year qualification period for employment will not apply where the main reason for dismissal is the employee’s political opinions or affiliation
- New provisions on whistleblowing which will only allow individuals to whistleblow in matters of public interest
- Abolition of the Agricultural Wages Board for England and Wales, (although the current Agricultural Wage Order will remain in place until 1 October)
The government has said that most other provisions are planned to come into effect in either October 2013 or April 2014 and it will publish a detailed implementation timetable shortly.
There is therefore no clear indication as to when the following provisions will come into force:
- Introducing new procedures for deciding tribunal cases
- Fees for bringing tribunal claims (draft Order laid, expected introduction end of July 2013)
- Enabling the Secretary of State to cap unfair dismissal awards
- Introduction of employee shareholder employment status
- Introduction of settlement agreements
- Making pre-termination negotiations inadmissible in unfair dismissal claims
- Introducing penalties on employers who have breached employment rights where the breach has aggravating factors
- Introduction of reforms to the TUPE regulations
- Giving employment tribunals the power to order an employer to carry out an equal pay audit where there has been an equal pay breach
- Repeal of Equality Act provisions on third party harassment and discrimination questionnaires