Business groups urge Tory peers to stop blocking Labour's workers' rights bill

"With the clock ticking before Christmas, six of the country's biggest employers' groups warned that failure to pass the legislation before parliament rises on Thursday could put at risk a deal brokered with bosses and union leaders. In a letter to the business secretary, Peter Kyle, the employers' groups the Confederation of British Industry, the British Chambers of Commerce, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, the Federation of Small Businesses, the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, and Small Business Britain wrote:"

"Labour staged a U-turn last month to ditch a key manifesto pledge guaranteeing workers protection against unfair dismissal from day one of employment, instead of the current two-year waiting period. In a deal with most trade union leaders, ministers tabled a six-month period as a compromise despite the climbdown triggering backbench anger among some Labour MPs who accused Keir Starmer's government of betrayal."

Six major employers' groups urged Conservative peers to stop blocking the workers' rights bill to preserve a compromise with trade unions. The groups warned that failure to pass the legislation before parliament rises could put a brokered deal at risk. Labour abandoned a manifesto pledge of day-one unfair-dismissal protection and accepted a six-month compromise, prompting anger from some backbench Labour MPs. Tory peers repeatedly voted down the bill and added amendments protesting a concession to lift the cap on unfair-dismissal compensation. Business leaders warned that lifting the cap could enable open-ended payouts for high earners, prompting concern among financial services representatives.

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