Minister defends 'pragmatic' U-turn on workers' rights

PA Media

The education secretary has defended Labour's U-turn over offering all workers the right to claim unfair dismissal from their first day in a job.

Instead, ministers now plan to reduce the qualifying period from the current two years to six months, in line with a deal agreed by some unions and industry groups.

Bridget Phillipson told the BBC the climbdown was a "pragmatic" move to ensure "wider benefits" in Labour's employment rights bill could be delivered on time - and not a breach of a promise made last year in Labour's election manifesto.

The decision has been welcomed by business organisations, but has faced criticism from some MPs on the left of the Labour Party.

Currently, after two continuous years in a job workers gain additional legal protections against being sacked.

Employers must identify a fair reason for dismissal - such as conduct or capability - and show that they acted reasonably and followed a fair process.

Under Labour's original plan, this qualifying period would have been abolished completely, with a new legal probation period, likely to have been nine months, introduced as a safeguard for companies.

But business groups argued the plan could prove unworkable, and voiced concerns that day-one unfair dismissal rights would discourage firms from hiring.

In a surprise announcement on Thursday, the government confirmed it will now bring in unfair dismissal protection after six months, and ditch the new legal probation period.

Ministers are continuing to insist the move does not breach Labour's election manifesto - even though that document clearly committed to create "basic rights from day one to parental leave, sick pay, and protection from unfair dismissal".

They are also arguing the move would unblock the passage of its wider employment rights bill through Parliament, after the House of Lords twice voted for a six-month period, delaying its progress.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Phillipson said the deadlock over unfair dismissal could have "jeopardised" the bill, which also contains new worker benefits, such as immediate rights to sick pay and paternity leave.

The move to lower the unfair dismissal qualifying period from two years to six months was still a "big step forward," she added.

"Sometimes in life, you have to be pragmatic to secure wider benefits".

So far, the reaction to the manifesto breach has been reserved to MPs on the left Labour Party.

However, the Labour leadership will be less comfortable if former deputy PM Angela Rayner - the architect of the initial proposals - expresses criticism. She has not responded to requests for comment.

The business department confirmed on Thursday that it still plans to bring in day-one sick pay and paternity leave rights from April 2026.

However, it is yet to confirm a start date for the new 6-month period. The previous plan to implement the right from day one had already been delayed to 2027.

The government does not need to pass the employment rights bill to change the qualifying period - it already has powers to do this under existing legislation, which the coalition government used in 2012 to up the period to the current two years.

But writing the changes into a full Act of Parliament was meant to prevent the new rights being easily unpicked by a future government.

On Thursday, the business department said it was still committed to doing this, as a means to "further strengthen" the new protections.