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Index of Amendments

S.C.E.

Amendment Paper as at
Tuesday 23rd March 1999

STANDING COMMITTEE E

EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS BILL

NOTE
The Amendments have been arranged in accordance with the Order of the Committee [2nd March], as follows:
Clauses 17 to 26, Schedule 4, Clause 15, Clause 1, Schedule 1, Clause 2, Schedule 2, Clauses 3 to 7, Clause 16, Clauses 27 to 35, Schedule 5, Clauses 36 to 38, new Clauses, new Schedules.


Mr Ian Bruce [R]

120
Clause     28,     page     15,     leave out lines 22 to 37.

Mr Ian Bruce [R]

122
Clause     28,     page     15,     line     31,     at end insert—
         'Provided that regulations under this section shall only be made with the purpose of protecting employees' rights and not otherwise to interfere with the commercial relationship between such agencies or businesses and employers'.

Mr Ian Bruce [R]

254
Clause     28,     page     16,     leave out lines 10 to 16.

Mr Ian Bruce [R]

121
Clause     28,     page     16,     leave out lines 17 to 49.


Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

114
Clause     29,     page     17,     line     12,     leave out 'twenty-six nor more than fifty-two', and insert 'thirteen nor more than twenty-six'.


Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

271
Clause     30,     page     17,     line     31,     at end insert 'by more than 1 per cent.'.

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

272
Clause     30,     page     18,     line     5,     leave out '£50,000' and insert '£40,000'.

NEW CLAUSES
Unfair dismissal of striking workers

Mr Ian McCartney

NC5
To move the following Clause:—
    '. Schedule (Unfair dismissal of striking workers) shall have effect.'.

Implementation of European Union Directives

Mr Graham Brady

NC1
To move the following Clause:—
    '.—(1) Where regulations are made under this Act for the purpose of implementing any European Union directive in United Kingdom law, the Secretary of State shall in each case publish a statement setting out where those regulations go beyond the minimum requirements of the directive.
    (2) A statement under subsection (1) shall also give estimates of—

(a) the cost to business which will arise from the regulations; and

(b) the cost which would have arisen from implementing the minimum standard permissible under the directive.'.

Report on Act's effect on the economy

Mr John Bercow

NC2
To move the following Clause:—
    '. Twelve months after the coming into force of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Department of Trade and Industry shall publish a detailed qualitative and quantitative report, following consultation with representatives of employers and trade unions, on the impact on the economy of its provisions.'.

Waiving of provisions relating to parenting and domestic incidents

Mr John Bercow

NC3
To move the following Clause:—
    '. In the event of adverse economic conditions, including any such conditions highlighted in a report under section (Report on Act's effect on the economy), authority shall be sought from the European Union to waive or relax the provisions relating to leave for parenting and for the handling of domestic incidents.'.

Annual debate on small firms

Mr John Bercow

NC4
To move the following Clause:—
    '. Following the coming into force of this Act, the annual parliamentary debate on small firms shall include consideration of its impact on those firms, as compared with the impact of the Family and Medical Leave Act 1993 on small firms in the United States.'.

General duty of ACAS

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

NC6
To move the following Clause:—
    ' . In section 209 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (ACAS's general duty) add at the end "so far as may be consistent with individual and collective employment rights, and the promotion of an efficient and competitive economy in the United Kingdom".'.

Discrimination in the work-place on grounds of age

Mr David Chidgey
Mr Brian Cotter

NC7
To move the following Clause:—
    '—(1) The Secretary of State may make regulations for the purpose of prohibiting, in relation to any employment matter, discrimination by an employer against another person on grounds of that person's age.
    (2) In subsection (1) "employment matter" includes—

(a) the offer or refusal of employment;

(b) the termination of employment;

(c) terms and conditions of employment;

(d) the provision of training or skills development opportunities;

(e) promotion and career progression.
    (3) Regulations under subsection (1) may—

(a) specify the types of action, or failure to take action, which are to be taken to constitute discrimination for the purpose of this section;

(b) confer jurisdiction (including exclusive jurisdiction) on employment tribunals and on the Employment Appeal Tribunal in relation to cases brought under this section;

(c) provide for penalties to be imposed or, as the case may be, compensation to be awarded in respect of offences committed under paragraph (a) above;

(d) specify exceptional circumstances in which, in any proceedings arising under this section, it would be a defence for an employer to show, having regard to the nature and commercial viability of the business or undertaking in question, that—

    (i) it was reasonable for him, in deciding to treat one employee differently from another in relation to an employment matter, to take account of the respective ages of the relevant employees, or

    (ii) age was not a significant factor in any decision to treat one employee differently from another in relation to an employment matter.
    (4) No regulations shall be made under this section unless a draft has been laid before, and approved by resolution of, each House of Parliament.'.

Discrimination in the work-place on grounds of sexual orientation

Mr David Chidgey
Mr Brian Cotter

NC8
To move the following Clause:—
    '—(1) The Secretary of State may make regulations for the purpose of prohibiting, in relation to any employment matter, discrimination by an employer against another person on grounds of that person's sexual orientation.
    (2) In subsection (1) "employment matter" includes—

(a) the offer or refusal of employment;

(b) the termination of employment;

(c) terms and conditions of employment;

(d) the provision of training or skills development opportunities;

(e) promotion and career progression.
    (3) Regulations under subsection (1) may—

(a) specify the types of action, or failure to take action, which are to be taken to constitute discrimination for the purpose of this section;

(b) confer jurisdiction (including exclusive jurisdiction) on employment tribunals and on the Employment Appeal Tribunal in relation to cases brought under this section;

(c) provide for penalties to be imposed or, as the case may be, compensation to be awarded in respect of offences committed under paragraph (a) above.
    (4) No regulations shall be made under this section unless a draft has been laid before, and approved by resolution of, each House of Parliament.'.

Power to suspend provisions of Act in case of emergency

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

NC9
To move the following Clause:—
    '(1) Where it seems to the Secretary of State that the operation of this Act is damaging the economy of the country or reducing its competitiveness in respect of—

(a) a particular industry or group of workers;

(b) a particular category or size of business (reckoned by the number of persons in its workforce);

(c) an economic emergency attending more than one section of industry,
    he may by Order suspend the operation of all or part of this Act (to be specified in the Order) for a period of not more than forty days, to be subject to renewal in a further such Order.
    (2) No Order shall be made under subsection (1) unless a draft thereof has been laid before, and approved by a resolution of, each House of Parliament.'.

Right to one day's leave per week

Mr John Bercow
Mr Ian Bruce

NC10
To move the following Clause:—
    'In connection with any employment rights conferred under Schedule 3 of this Act, it shall be the duty of any employer, on the request of an employee, to take all reasonable steps to offer one regular day of leave each week to that employee.'.

NEW SCHEDULE

Mr Ian McCartney

NS1
To move the following Schedule:—

'Unfair Dismissal of Striking Workers

Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992
    1. The Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 shall be amended as follows.
    2. In section 238 (dismissals in connection with industrial action) after subsection (2A) there shall be inserted—

    "(2B) Subsection (2) does not apply in relation to an employee who is regarded as unfairly dismissed by virtue of section 238A below."

    3. The following shall be inserted after section 238—

"Participation in official industrial action. 238A.—(1) For the purposes of this section an employee takes protected industrial action if he commits an act which, or a series of acts each of which, he is induced to commit by an act which by virtue of section 219 is not actionable in tort.
    (2) An employee who is dismissed shall be regarded for the purposes of Part X of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (unfair dismissal) as unfairly dismissed if—

(a) the reason (or, if more than one, the principal reason) for the dismissal is that the employee took protected industrial action, and

(b) subsection (3), (4) or (5) applies to the dismissal.
    (3) This subsection applies to a dismissal if it takes place within the period of eight weeks beginning with the day on which the employee started to take protected industrial action.
    (4) This subsection applies to a dismissal if—

(a) it takes place after the end of that period, and

(b) the employee had stopped taking protected industrial action before the end of that period.
    (5) This subsection applies to a dismissal if—

(a) it takes place after the end of that period,

(b) the employee had not stopped taking protected industrial action before the end of that period, and

(c) the employer had not taken such procedural steps as would have been reasonable for the purposes of resolving the dispute to which the protected industrial action relates.
    (6) In determining whether an employer has taken those steps regard shall be had, in particular, to—

(a) whether the employer or a union had complied with procedures established by any applicable collective or other agreement;

(b) whether the employer or a union offered or agreed to commence or resume negotiations after the start of the protected industrial action;

(c) whether the employer or a union unreasonably refused, after the start of the protected industrial action, a request that conciliation services be used;

(d) whether the employer or a union unreasonably refused, after the start of the protected industrial action, a request that mediation services be used in relation to procedures to be adopted for the purposes of resolving the dispute.
    (7) In determining whether an employer has taken those steps no regard shall be had to the merits of the dispute.
    (8) For the purposes of this section no account shall be taken of the repudiation of any act by a trade union as mentioned in section 21 in relation to anything which occurs before the end of the next working day (within the meaning of section 237) after the day on which the repudiation takes place."

    4.—(1) Section 239 (supplementary provisions relating to unfair dismissal) shall be amended as follows.
    (2) In subsection (1) for "Sections 237 and 238" there shall be substituted "Sections 237 to 238A".
    (3) At the end of subsection (1) there shall be added "; but sections 108 and 109 of that Act (qualifying period and age limit) shall not apply in relation to section 238A of this Act."
    (4) In subsection (2) after "section 238" there shall be inserted "or 238A".
    (5) At the end there shall be added—

    "(4) In relation to a complaint under section 111 of the 1996 Act (unfair dismissal: complaint to employment tribunal) that a dismissal was unfair by virtue of section 238A of this Act—

(a) no order shall be made under section 113 of the 1996 Act (reinstatement or re-engagement) until after the conclusion of protected industrial action by any employee in relation to the relevant dispute,

(b) regulations under section 7 of the Employment Tribunals Act 1996 may make provision about the adjournment and renewal of applications (including provision requiring adjournment in specified circumstances), and

(c) regulations under section 9 of that Act may require a pre-hearing review to be carried out in specified circumstances."

Employment Rights Act 1996
    5.—(1) Section 105 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (redundancy) shall be amended as follows.
    (2) In subsection (1)(c) for "subsections (2) to (7)" there shall be substituted "subsections (2) to (7A)".
    (3) After subsection (7) there shall be inserted—

    "(7A) This subsection applies if—

(a) the reason (or, if more than one, the principal reason) for which the employee was selected for dismissal was the reason mentioned in section 238A(2) of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (participation in official industrial action), and

(b) subsection (3), (4) or (5) of that section applies to the dismissal."'.

          As Amendments to Mr Ian McCartney's proposed Schedule (NS1) (Unfair Dismissal of Striking Workers):

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

(a)
Leave out lines 5 to 8.

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

(b)
Line     8,     at end insert 'or who is dismissed under common law in connection with an official industrial dispute.'.

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

(c)
Line     22,     leave out 'eight' and insert 'four'.

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

(d)
Line     23,     at end insert 'or, in the case of intermittent industrial action in connection with the same dispute, four weeks from the first day on which industrial action was taken in connection with that dispute.'.

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

(e)
Line     32,     after 'employer', insert ', or employee or employees, or a union representing that employee or employees,'.

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

(f)
Line     35,     after 'employer', insert ', or an employee or employees, or a union representing that employee or employees,'.

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

(k)
Line     38,     after 'applicable', insert 'and legally binding'.

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

(g)
Line     40,     after 'offered', insert 'in good faith'.

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

(h)
Line     50,     after 'employer', insert ', or an employee or employees, or a union representing that employee or employees,'.

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

(i)
Line     54,     leave out 'the next working day' and insert 'three working days'.

Mr Tim Boswell
Mr Tim Collins

(j)
Line     70,     after 'until', insert 'at least one week'.




©Parliamentary copyright 1998	Prepared 23 Mar 1999

Amendment Paper as atTuesday 23rd March 1999

STANDING COMMITTEE E

EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS BILL

NOTE

NEW CLAUSES

NEW SCHEDULE

'Unfair Dismissal of Striking Workers

Amendment Paper as at
Tuesday 23rd March 1999