More than half of retail roles could be affected by upcoming reforms to guaranteed working hours, with major retailers warning the changes risk making it harder to offer flexible part-time jobs across the sector.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC), which represents many of the UK’s biggest retailers, has urged the government to take a measured approach as it finalises details of the Employment Rights Act, arguing that poorly calibrated rules could reduce opportunities for workers who rely on flexibility, particularly younger staff, students and parents.
From April, the Employment Rights Act will introduce new protections covering areas such as sick pay, sexual harassment, parental leave and trade union recognition.
Further measures due next year include rights to guaranteed hours for workers on zero-hours and low-hours contracts, compensation for shifts cancelled at short notice, stronger flexible working rights and tighter restrictions on fire-and-rehire practices.
However, key elements of the reforms are still to be decided. Ministers have yet to confirm the maximum number of hours that would qualify as a ‘low-hours’ contract, or the reference period over which regular working patterns would be assessed when determining whether an employee should be offered guaranteed hours.
The BRC has called for guaranteed hours protections to apply only to contracts of 8 hours a week or fewer, with a reference period of at least 26 weeks, and ideally a full year. It argues that this would better reflect the seasonal nature of retail and avoid unintended consequences for employers and employees alike.
According to the trade body, 55 per cent of retail roles are part-time, compared with a UK-wide average of 33 per cent. It said those roles are a crucial route into work for people balancing study, childcare or health conditions, and warned that reforms which fail to reflect that reality could ultimately reduce access to employment.
BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said: “Flexible retail jobs are a vital part of how millions of people are able to stay in work.
As the UK’s largest private sector employer, retail provides opportunities for students earning alongside their studies, parents balancing childcare, and those managing health conditions. These part-time roles are not only valued, but relied upon across the country.”
She added: “Retailers support the aim to improve job security, but the detail of Employment Rights Act implementation will be critical. If reforms treat flexibility as a problem rather than something workers actively choose, the risk is fewer opportunities and reduced access to work.
“Government must strike the right balance by targeting genuine bad practice while protecting the flexible roles that underpin employment in retail.”
The BRC also pointed to research from Opinium, based on a survey of 2,000 UK adults, which found that fifty-two per cent of respondents said the ability to flex their working hours around their lives was important.
But unions have pushed back strongly against the suggestion that the reforms could damage the labour market, arguing that retail remains one of the sectors most affected by insecure and unpredictable working practices.
Usdaw general secretary Joanne Thomas said the changes would be particularly beneficial for workers in the most precarious forms of employment, including women and disabled staff.
“Retail employment is notoriously dogged by precarious employment practices and retail workers absolutely rely on basic employment rights, particularly with non-unionised employers,” she said. “So, the act is very important to staff and crucially helps to protect decent employers from being undercut by the worst who exploit workers.”
She added: “Tackling precarious employment is good for the economy, growth and individual workers who should have the decency of a guaranteed wage that they can live off.”
TUC general secretary Paul Nowak also backed the reforms, saying greater certainty over hours and income would be transformative for many families.
“Working people need security and predictability to plan their lives, manage their finances and care for their children,” he said. “It’s no wonder this change is so popular. It will make a massive difference to many families’ quality of life. We can’t afford the status quo.”
He added that the right to regular hours and a ban on what he described as “exploitative” zero-hours contracts would materially improve living standards, and said it was essential that the government delivered on its commitment in full.
With implementation details still under consultation, the final shape of the reforms is likely to be closely watched across the industry.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
