Angela Rayner will gather top union and business leaders in Westminster today to discuss controversial plans to give workers more rights.
The Deputy Prime Minister and Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds will join the heads of the TUC, Unite, Unison and the militant RMT unions to discuss the Employment Rights Bill.
Under major reforms to be set out on Thursday, all employees will be allowed to demand flexible hours from day one in a new job as well as the ‘right to switch off’ when they go home, without having to answer calls or emails.
Workers will be entitled to sick pay from their first day of illness and will be able to bring unfair dismissal claims after probation periods of just six months rather than two years, while there will also be a crackdown on ‘zero-hours’ contracts.
Those present at the meeting will also include leaders of top business organisations including the CBI, Federation of Small Businesses and the Institute of Directors.
Unison general secretary Christina McAnea said: ‘Unison will not miss any opportunity to speak up for a progressive agenda and show that what’s good for workers is also good for the services they deliver. Expectations are high and we will be working with our trade union allies to make them a reality.’
But there are warnings that the Employment Rights Bill could end up making life harder for jobseekers.
Legal experts say that small businesses in particular may choose to rely on temporary workers, overtime for their existing workforce or even getting AI to take on more tasks instead of taking on more permanent staff.
It comes as a new report warns that firms are already reluctant to hire new staff while they remain cautious about the economic outlook.
A survey of agencies by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), who will be at the meeting, found that the number of candidates placed in permanent jobs had been falling for two years.