Increasing job security: The potential impact of employment rights reforms in the UK

Posted on by Rebecca Florisson

Image of a black young woman working in a warehouse. © Adobe Stock

Work insecurity has been a persistent feature of the UK labour market for over two decades.

In 2023, our analysis found that over one in five UK workers (21.4%) – around 6.8 million people – were in severely insecure work.

In our latest research, we estimate what the levels of job security would have been in 2023 had two key reforms in the Employment Rights Bill – the introduction of day one rights and the introduction of minimum guaranteed hours – been in place. This serves as an indication of the potential impact of these reforms will have in the future.

Nearly four million more workers would have accessed secure work

The analysis indicates that the introduction of day one employment rights with a probation period of six months and the right to guaranteed hours after twelve weeks on a zero-hour contract would have seen:

  • The number of people in severely insecure work fall by 1.2 million from 6.8 million (21.4%) to 5.6 million (17.7%)
  • The proportion of workers in moderately insecure work fall from 34.6% to 25.6%, which is equivalent to 2.9 million workers
  • The proportion of the UK workforce in secure jobs rise sharply by 12.6 percentage points, from 44.1% (13.9 million workers) to 56.7% (17.8 million workers).

Overall, 3.85 million more workers would have accessed secure employment had these two policies been in place in 2023.

Estimated reduction in insecurity in 2023 had key reforms from the Employment Rights Bill been in place at the time

Estimated reduction in insecurity in 2023 had major changes from the Employment Rights Bill been in place at the time

Source: Work Foundation calculations using ONS Labour Force Survey microdata, 2023 April-June.

These two reforms would have had positive impacts on disadvantaged worker groups too as well as sectors where insecure work is concentrated.

  • Severely insecure work would have been reduced by 8.3 percentage points for workers aged 16-24, down to 38.3%
  • Black and Asian workers would have seen reduction of 4.6 and 4.5 percentage points respectively
  • In retail, an additional 150,000 retail workers would have experienced secure employment while in social care, the proportion of workers experiencing secure would have risen by 11 percentage points, from 30.8% to 41.8%.

To maximise the benefits of the Employment Rights Bill, we call on the Government to:

  1. Ensure the potential of the Employment Rights Bill is maximised and safeguard the core purpose of the reforms in primary and secondary legislation
  2. Allow for a smooth transition for employers and workers as the Employment Rights Bill is implemented
  3. Guarantee the Employment Rights Bill is appropriately enforced and its impact is monitored.

Read the full report here.

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