KEIR Starmer has been criticised for a “watering down” of workers’ rights amid calls for Labour to devolve employment law fully to Scotland if they form a government.
In an appeal to big businesses, the Labour leader has been accused of diluting a pledge to ban zero-hours contracts as well as plans for "right to switch off" legislation and proposals for basic workers’ rights from day one of employment.
The "right to switch off" would mean every employee would be able to "switch off" outside their normal working hours, restricting bosses from contacting workers out of hours.
Labour announced plans for this last year but party officials have told the Financial Times it might not now be the subject of legislation and could instead be a “code of practice” as adopted by Ireland in 2021, giving workers the right not to immediately respond to messages.
Labour apparently remain committed to basic workers’ rights from day one of employment, but shadow ministers are telling companies that workers will still need to meet probationary periods and staff can still be dismissed for “fair reasons”.
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Party officials have also clarified that Labour’s promised ban on zero-hours contracts would take the form of a new right to request a contract reflecting workers’ regular work pattern over a 12-week period.
Starmer has sought to reassure business leaders that they will have a say in shaping the party’s workers’ rights plans if Labour win the next General Election, tasking the likes of shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves and deputy leader Angela Rayner with allaying fears that the party would rush into delivering labour market reforms within 100 days of taking office.
Last year at Labour's national policy forum, party leaders watered down a promise to boost the protection of gig economy workers.
Richard Thomson, the SNP’s business and trade spokesperson, insisted the party cannot be trusted to protect workers’ rights.
The MP said: “The Labour Party’s cowardly watering down of their workers’ rights commitments is shameful and a betrayal of their trade union roots.
“Labour cannot be trusted to protect workers rights – especially after working hand-in-glove with the Tories to block the Scottish Parliament from having vital employment rights powers.
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“Sir Keir Starmer would rather leave Scotland under Westminster control, and at the mercy of Tory attacks on workers' rights, than give Scotland's democratically elected Parliament powers.
“With the full powers over employment law, the Scottish Parliament could introduce a Real Living Wage and boost the rights of millions of workers across Scotland.
“If they receive the keys to Number 10 at the next election, the Labour Party must commit to transferring employment powers to Holyrood so that the SNP can offer real change and real hope to Scotland’s workers.”
Earlier this week, think tank the Institute for Public Policy Research published a report stating that partial devolution of employment law risks confusion, complexity and a disjointed system and that, instead, all employment power should be devolved to the Scottish Parliament.
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