CBI Northern Ireland responds to employment law review

The CBI’s key recommendations for reform are as follows:

• All claims to go to the LRA before going to tribunal.
• Increase the unfair dismissal qualifying period to two years in line with GB.
• Merge, simplify or scrap 40% of employment related Regulations.
• Introduce fees for lodging a tribunal claim.
• Make ‘compromise agreements’ easier to use.
• Introduce a Rapid Resolution scheme for low value, straightforward claims.
• Reform industrial tribunals to create an easy, accessible, speedy, informal and inexpensive system.
• Introduce ‘protected conversations’ for retirement.
• Simplify the Code of Practice on Discipline and Grievance.
• Reform the working time legislation.
• Review the Agency Worker Regulations.
• Cap awards and costs in discrimination cases.
• Call for evidence on the need to reform collective redundancy consultation periods.
• Increase clarity around the TUPE regulations.
• Explore how the current sickness absence system could be changed to help people stay in work.