The government’s Work Rights Bill is set to bring some deep and welcome reforms. But the underlying issues of health, well-being, presenteeism and productivity will still need to be addressed, argues Karl Bennett.

Of the government the new labor rights law proposes some of the biggest changes to UK jobs seen for decades.

With an agenda centered on the importance of economic growth, the new government has focused on improving productivity and unlocking the potential of employees, which can be achieved by increasing engagement and motivation.

The raft of ‘rights’ involved is seen as important to reinvigorating the workplace contract – but there are questions about what they will mean for some of the underlying issues that have been a growing problem for productivity.

These include rising levels of absenteeism and long-term absenteeism, serious problems with stress, burnout and mental illness. In other words, will major jobs plans do anything for employee health and well-being?

Among the 28 reforms in the labor rights bill, there are a number aimed at protection and security.

One proposal would eliminate the two-year qualifying period for unfair dismissal protection; others ensure that new employees have the same rights from day one of employment: access to paternity leave, parental leave, bereavement leave and statutory sick pay, as well as the right to request flexible working.

The right to a guaranteed working schedule

People working on zero-hours or reduced-hours contracts will be entitled to guaranteed working hours if they work a regular schedule for a fixed period (with the suggestion that the qualifying period be set at 12 weeks).

There would be more protection against dismissal for female employees during pregnancy, on maternity leave and within six months of returning to work. The government also signaled support for increasing employee wages, which can only be positive in terms of a sense of financial security.

To ensure ongoing monitoring and enforcement of the rules, the bill recommends the creation of a fair employment agency to ensure employees have access to statutory holiday pay and sick pay. It will also ensure that employers comply with legislation on tackling the gender pay gap and mandatory reporting on the pay gap based on ethnicity and disability.

Will feelings of protection and security be the only result of increased employee rights?

Rights must come with responsibilities. Taking more people with more rights, who are even harder to move on if they don’t work, is not attractive. So some employers may well want to scale back their recruiting plans and be more cautious about who they recruit.

This may mean higher workloads for established staff and more use of AI and automation. Younger, untested employees with a strong sense of entitlement, in particular, might seem like a risk too far.

Employers may also feel they need to get tougher on performance and outcomes to ensure they get a fair return for all the extra employment rights they provide.

Britain’s productivity challenges

At the heart of the UK’s productivity challenges are health and wellbeing issues. A recent study by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) think-tank. claimed that the cost of illness among employees has risen by £30bn since 2018.

The entire landscape of health and wellness and the role of business has changed, it says. Presenteeism was highlighted as one of the underlying problems. Because while sick leave is now at an average of 6.7 days per year, up from 3.7 days in 2018, around 44 days of productivity per year are lost due to people working sick (from 35 days in 2018).

Similarly, the work by Commission for a healthier working life showed that around 300,000 people aged 16-64 with a ‘work-limiting health condition’ leave the UK workforce each year – and are three times less likely to return to the latter at work.

It’s a growing problem: one in five or 20% of the working-age population has a condition that limits work, up 15% from 10 years ago. Much of the increase was due to mental health issues, with the number citing mental illness as a reason for leaving doubling over the period.

For employers, it means another way in which productivity is undermined, through the loss of talent and experience and the disruption of teams.

Employee health is clearly on the government’s radar (as evidenced by its high-profile plan to provide more access to weight-loss shots as a means of getting those struggling with obesity back to work).

But as health and wellness professionals will know, it’s essential that an employee health strategy focuses on treating the causes of the health condition, not just the symptoms.

No “right to stop”

With this in mind, it was disappointing that the announcements on the Rights at Work Act did not include what would have been the most important step forward: the planned “right to stop” to finally help address the impact of work digital and its pressures.

Instead, there is expected to be advice and guidance rather than the type of legislation introduced by Australia and Ireland.

Organizations need to get to the root of the problems, untouched by providing more rights and protections for employees (accompanied by more control and pressure). How aware are most employers of the details of their wellbeing landscape?

The reasons why their staff are absent or underperforming, which teams or areas are experiencing workload pressures, questions about management styles, relationship issues or growing financial worries. Is their training for managers to organize constructive, productive return to work, departures and one-on-one sessions with their team? How can people best be supported so that they feel part of something?

In this context, an employee assistance program can be used as an early warning system.

More welfare services and benefits were clearly not the answer. A tailored approach, where OH and HR work closely with their EAP provider and access their knowledge base to identify real needs, can lead to the tangible results needed, lower stress levels and more engaged and motivated people.