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UK small businesses are scared of the
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government's workers rights overhaul
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that's the verdict to be drawn from a
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new survey from the Federation of small
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businesses which found that one in three
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bosses are planning to cut jobs in the
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coming months the Stark finding is
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nearly two times higher than the figure
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from the previous quarters survey and on
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the other side of the same coin just 10%
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of small business bosses are planning to
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take on new staff down from 14% the FSB
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have pointed the finger of blame for
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this Bleak picture at the government
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arguing that some of the more
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contentious changes in its workers
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rights package are putting small
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business owners off hiring the overhaul
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which is currently making its way
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through Parliament includes sweeping
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changes to the relationship between
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bosses and their staff and some of those
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changes like the government's pledge to
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end so-called fire and rehire practices
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have been welcomed by business groups
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workers and unions alike but others
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including the government's plan to give
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workers a suite of Rights from day one
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of employment and changes to statutory
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sick pay have drawn the eye of business
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Lobby groups and as this survey would
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indicate made small businesses start to
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batten down the hatches the FSB argues
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that the UK's smaller firms are uniquely
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vulnerable to the promise to give the
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workers rights from day one and more
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specifically the protection from unfair
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dismissal unlike Big Blue Chip
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businesses smaller firms don't have
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ranks of employment lawyers and HR
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Specialists to call on which would make
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them the target of vexatious lawsuits
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the overriding fear among small firms is
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that should someone decide to sue them
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for unfair dismissal they could be
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sucked into yearslong employment
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tribunals that would be so costly and
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time consuming that it will be tempting
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to settle them that's even if the firms
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feel they've done nothing wrong it's
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important to say that unions and a lot
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of politicians support the contents of
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the overhaul with the TU telling cityam
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that they were a badly needed set of
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reforms and that bosses of small firms
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do not have anything to fear if they
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follow a fair process and meet their
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legal responsibilities but if this
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survey is anything to go by those
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reassurances haven't stopped small firms
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voting with their feet and freezing new
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hires or Worse cutting staff here at
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city am we'd like to know do you think
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the government's workers rights overhaul
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is a Force for good or our small
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business owners right to cut staff ahead
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of it coming in let us know your
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thoughts in the comments
