The government’s proposed amendments to the Employment Rights Bill will ‘do little to alleviate employer concerns’, the Institute of Directors (IoD) has warned.

Changes to a number of proposals, including application of zero-hours contracts to agency workers and Statutory Sick Pay, have been announced.

In February, the IoD set out four key changes to the Employment Rights Bill which would significantly soften the negative impact of the reforms on hiring.

This included delaying protection against unfair dismissal so that it only comes into effect after six months rather than on day one and increasing the planned reference period for the entitlement to guaranteed hours to 52 weeks.

Alexandra Hall-Chen, Principal Policy Adviser for Employment at the IoD, said: ‘While any steps to mitigate the impact of the government’s employment reforms on businesses are welcome, the changes announced today do not address the key areas of the reforms which are of particular concern to employers.

‘Substantial further amendments to the Bill will be required if it is to avoid undermining the government’s growth mission. Our own data shows that directors’ headcount expectations have dropped to lows last seen in the depths of the Covid-19 pandemic. Urgent and substantive action from the government is needed to restore business confidence in hiring.’