Labour's new employment rights

Pat McFadden MP, Minister for Employment Relations, writes exclusively for labour.org.uk on the new employment rights being introduced this month...

When the Labour Government came to power 12 years ago workers had no right to minimum pay, no right to paid leave and the imbalance between work and family life meant workers often had to choose one or the other at a cost to themselves and the economy because, after all, no one gains from forcing talented workers out of the labour market.

We had a mandate and a mission to change that and we did.  We brought in the Minimum Wage and this month marked its 10th anniversary.  We gave full time workers the right to 20 days paid leave.  We extended maternity leave and increased maternity pay and we introduced the right to request flexible working to help parents and carers balance the responsibilities of work and family life.

This month sees us build on that progress.  In line with our manifesto promise, we complete the extension of paid leave from 24 to 28 days for full time workers – meaning workers will now get 20 days plus the equivalent of 8 bank holidays.  The right to request flexible working is extended to parents with children up to the age of 16 and tough new Minimum Wage laws come in meaning automatic fines for employers who don’t pay and a fairer system of paying arrears to workers who are underpaid.  Statutory Maternity Pay is also increased this month from £117 to £123 per week (though workers get 90% of their pay for the first six weeks of maternity leave).

The Labour Government has introduced these rights without damaging the economy.  We understand that employment rights are not simply a policy ATM at which political parties can make endless withdrawals.  So when we introduced the Minimum Wage we asked the independent Low Pay Commission to recommend the rates – rather than set them at an arbitrary level.  When we extended paid leave we did in stages to allow business to adapt.  And similarly, flexible working is a right to request, not a right to demand, with business having the right to say no if there is a good reason.

Of course we must keep a flexible economy and bear down on unnecessary red tape which costs business money and frustrates consumers.  But our belief is that a modern economy should have decent minimum standards to pay and leave and we believe in helping people to balance work and family life.  And since we extended maternity pay and leave and introduced the right to request flexible working, a lot more mothers have chosen to return to the same employer, giving business a great chance of holding on to highly valued staff.

The Conservatives opposed most of Labour’s new employment rights.  Almost every time they were asked to choose, they said no to better pay, better leave, or more support for family life. Whatever David Cameron says, a continuation of Conservative Government after 1997 would never have seen the employment rights settlement that we have today.  So what has Labour done for the workers?  Ask the million workers who have benefited from the Minimum Wage, the six million who will benefit from the extension of paid leave and the up to four and a half million who have new rights to ask for flexible working.

It’s a difference worth having – and one well worth defending.