Responding to the Government’s Roadmap for the Employment Rights Bill, Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, said:
“We welcome the publication of the Roadmap, particularly the clarity it provides around timescales for consulting on and implementing various policies within the Employment Rights Bill. It is critical this includes quality engagement with the large employing sectors where implementation will have significant consequences.”
“Retailers remain concerned about some of the proposals. The industry has lost 350,000 jobs since 2015. Currently provisions around Guaranteed Hours in particular could threaten the availability of local flexible part-time jobs. 1.5 million of the 3 million people in retail currently work part-time, which allows them to work as much or as little as they need, and to balance work with their other life commitments.
“We look forward to engaging with Government and other stakeholders to ensure effective solutions are designed to address these concerns so the Bill tackles the unscrupulous employers, without penalising responsible ones and actually delivers benefits for retail employees.”
