Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether employers can pro-rate company premiums for private medical cover for short-term employees; if so, by how much; and whether employers can pro-rate other benefits such as holiday pay.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Fixed-term employees must not be treated less favourably than a comparable permanent member of staff without an objective justification. Beyond this protection, the terms and conditions of employment, except where they are subject to statutory minimum standards such as the national minimum wage, are a contractual matter for negotiation and agreement between employers and employees (or their representatives). Provided they do not discriminate unlawfully, for example on grounds of race, sex or disability, employers are free to offer the terms and conditions of employment which best suit their business needs.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what advice they have published for employers and employees seeking assistance from ACAS in relation to employment contracts and tribunals.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Guidance on employment law and employment tribunals is published on GOV.UK for employees and employers. GOV.UK also signposts users to Acas for more detailed guidance on employment issues, including on employment contracts and the process to resolve disputes.
Acas provide free and impartial advice to employers, employees, and their representatives on employment rights; best practice and policies; and resolving workplace conflict. Acas also publish guidance on different aspects of employment law and employment relationships, and a list of these topics can be found on the Acas site: https://www.acas.org.uk/advice.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that the UK has a high level of protection for (1) copyright, and (2) other performers’ rights, online.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The UK is widely acknowledged as one of the best places in the world in which to protect and enforce copyright and related rights.
Now that we have left the EU, we intend to maintain these high standards of protection, and to promote them globally, including through future trade agreements.
Our future trade agreements should achieve positive outcomes for owners and users of copyright and related rights, including effective cooperation on tackling online copyright infringement.
The Government takes the enforcement of IP rights very seriously, and is taking forward various initiatives including the development of a new enforcement strategy, continued funding for the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU), strategic coordination of enforcement activity and continuing support for voluntary initiatives with intermediaries and others in the online world.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further (1) to the speech by the Prime Minister on the economy on 30 June in which he pledged they would “build, build, build”, and (2) to the rate of retirement rate of skilled workers in the construction sector, how they intend to ensure there are sufficient (1) quantity surveyors, (2) bricklayers, (3) plasterers, (4) masons, and (5) welders, in that sector.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government is supporting the construction sector in its drive to increase investment in skills development, and to equip workers with the skills that they will need for the future. This is a cross-industry drive which includes organisations delivering training to quantity surveyors, bricklayers, plasterers, masons, and welders. This will be achieved through a joint commitment to implement reforms to the Construction Industry Training Board to make it more strategic and industry-led, and to enable the sector to make best use of funding from the Apprenticeship Levy.
On 1 June, the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) published its Industry Recovery Plan. Employment and skills in the construction sector are identified as a priority, and a focus of the ‘Restart’ phase of the Plan is to maximise employment opportunities.
The Government has welcomed the Plan and is collaborating with the CLC and industry to ensure that the proposals are implemented.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether people on maternity leave beyond the period of 39 weeks' statutory maternity pay are able to return to work before the intended end of their leave and then be furloughed; if so, whether they would need to give eight weeks' notice to return to work early in order to qualify for furlough arrangements; and if not; what assessment they have made of the disparity in circumstances for these women compared to those still in receipt of maternity pay who have to give eight weeks' notice before returning to work in order to be furloughed.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Employed mothers are required to take at least two weeks Statutory Maternity Leave (or four weeks of they are a factory worker) immediately after giving birth. Generally speaking, if an employed mother wishes to return to work before the end of her Maternity Leave (which is 52 weeks), she is required to give at least 8 weeks’ notice of the date that she intends to return to work, irrespective of whether she is on paid or unpaid Maternity Leave. However, the employer can agree to the employee returning on shorter or no notice.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, an employer and employee must enter into a written agreement reducing the employee’s salary before the first reduced payment is made.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Employers should discuss the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme with their staff and make any changes to the employment contract in writing as part of the furlough agreement. This includes agreement to any reduction in pay.
In order to be eligible for the scheme, employers must confirm in writing to their employee that they have been furloughed. If this is done in a way that is consistent with employment law, that consent is valid for the purposes of claiming through the scheme. Collective agreement reached between an employer and a trade union is also acceptable for the purpose of such a claim. There needs to be a written record, but the employee does not have to provide a written response. A record of this communication must be kept for five years.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assistance is available to those who received firm job offers including start dates before lockdown was announced on 23 March but whose start dates have subsequently been postponed because of the lockdown.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme is designed to help employers whose operations have been severely affected by coronavirus (COVID-19) to retain their employees and protect the UK economy. If an individual was on their former employer’s payroll as of 28 February 2020, their employer can re-employ them and put them on furlough. This applies even if an employee is not re-employed until after 19 March.
However, the scheme is not an employment right and it is up to the employer to decide who to furlough, and whether to re-employ a member of staff they have made redundant or who has resigned from their employment.
There is a package of support available for those who are not eligible for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, including an increase in the amount of Universal Credit, three-month mortgage holidays and support for renters.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assistance is available to those who received firm job offers including start dates before lockdown was announced on 23 March but whose start dates have subsequently been postponed because of the lockdown.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme is designed to help employers whose operations have been severely affected by coronavirus (COVID-19) to retain their employees and protect the UK economy. If an individual was on their former employer’s payroll as of 28 February 2020, their employer can re-employ them and put them on furlough. This applies even if an employee is not re-employed until after 19 March.
However, the scheme is not an employment right and it is up to the employer to decide who to furlough, and whether to re-employ a member of staff they have made redundant or who has resigned from their employment.
There is a package of support available for those who are not eligible for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, including an increase in the amount of Universal Credit, three-month mortgage holidays and support for renters.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effect of changes to physical distancing on businesses that have been ordered to remain closed and therefore have no income.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
On 11 May the Government published its COVID-19 recovery strategy which sets out our plan for moving to the next phase of our response. The strategy sets out a cautious roadmap for easing existing measures in a safe and measured way. The roadmap will be kept constantly under review, and we will continue to work hard to support business and workers as the situation evolves.
Detailed guidance has been published for various working environments to help businesses make workplaces as safe as possible. We continue to work with stakeholders on developing sensible guidance for businesses that will give UK workers the utmost confidence on their return to work and will now focus on sectors that are not currently open to help them plan for when they can open.
Employers are responsible for taking all reasonably practical steps to address health and safety risks, which would be identified by carrying out a risk assessment. Nevertheless, my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced unprecedented support for business and workers, including a Bounce Back Loans scheme.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what support is available to businesses that have not been ordered to close but are reliant on those that have, such as ticket agents, 73 per cent of whose staff have been furloughed according to the Entertainment Agents' Association; and whether they expect that these businesses and their staff will need continued support to prevent large job losses.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government is aware that businesses are facing?many challenges during this?unprecedented?time?and?we are doing everything at our disposal to support?businesses through this crisis and beyond.
The Government has been clear that it is essential that businesses that experience increased costs and disrupted cash flow as a result of coronavirus are supported, and my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced unprecedented support for business and workers to protect them against the current economic emergency. These measures include the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS), Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS), and Bounce Back Loan Scheme, which are designed to help businesses across the UK impacted by the coronavirus crisis to access funding they need and the Self-Employed income support scheme. Guidance on all these schemes can be found on the Government website.
In addition, to help firms to continue to keep people in employment, the Government has introduced the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. The scheme has protected over 7 million workers and almost 1 million businesses so far through this crisis. This scheme has been extended in full until end July 2020 and after July we will introduce more flexibility to the furlough scheme so that we move out of it in a measured way that protects people’s incomes and helps support furloughed employees as they return to work. This will run for three months from August through to the end of October.
The Government recognises that some firms will be affected longer than others by Coronavirus. Through this period, the Government will continue to monitor developments in the public health and wider economic situation, and engage with affected sectors, to ensure that the support provided is right for these sectors and for the economy as a whole.