215.Section 19 requires the Secretary of State to make regulations to ensure that part-time workers receive no less favourable treatment than full-time workers, as provided in the EU Directive on Part-Time Work (Council Directive 97/81/EC). The Directive was brought forward under the Agreement on Social Policy to adopt as Community law a Framework Agreement between the European social partners. (These are three federations consisting of national organisations representing respectively employers, trade unions and companies with public ownership or public interest in each Member State. The CBI and TUC are both members of their appropriate groups.) It aims to remove discrimination against part-timers and improve the quality of part-time work. In Chapter 5 of Fairness at Work, the Government welcomed the Directive and said it would implement the Directive before April 2000. This provision gives the Secretary of State the powers to ensure that all aspects of the Directive and the Framework Agreement are fully implemented, together with related matters.
216.This power is necessary because Directives which implement Framework Agreements cannot, by the terms of the Agreement on Social Policy (now incorporated into the Treaty of Amsterdam), cover pay. However, in relation to part-timers, the Government believes pay should be covered at the same time as other employment conditions. The powers under the European Communities Act 1972 which are usually used to implement EU Directives are not sufficiently wide to go beyond the scope of the Directive in this way, so the section provides powers to do this.
217.The regulations will primarily address less favourable treatment in non-statutory terms and conditions, as statutory employment rights in the UK do not treat part timers less favourably than their full-time equivalents. The powers are widely drawn and the Government intends to consult fully on how they should be used, by discussing with interested parties and publishing draft regulations for comment. Section 42 provides that the regulations will be subject to the affirmative resolution procedure.
218.Section 19(2) provides power to specify in the regulations definitions of part-time and full-time workers. There is currently no standard definition of either in UK law, and it is envisaged that whatever is provided in the regulations in this respect will operate, in effect, as a default provision. This is because appropriate definitions may vary between employers or between different sectors of industry; and under section 19(3)(g) provision may be made whereby employers and workers will be able to reach agreement, for example in a collective or workforce agreement, as to what for them constitutes full and part time employment for the purposes of the regulations.
219.An issue for consultation would be whether there are circumstances which need to be specified under section 19(2)(c) as giving rise to less favourable or equal treatment in order to remove doubt and prevent unnecessary litigation. Section 19(2)(d) provides power to exclude specifically certain classes of worker who would otherwise be covered by the definition. One possibility would be casual workers, which the Directive allows to be excluded in specified circumstances. Again, this would be a matter for consultation.
220.Section 19(3)(a) allows the Secretary of State to specify that any disputes arising out of this legislation may only be heard at employment tribunals, and that appeals will go to the Employment Appeal Tribunal. The Government intends that this will be the normal route for disputes.
221.Sections 19(3)(b) and (3)(c) provide power for the Secretary of State to create criminal offences. If it is exercised, the use of this power, which will be subject to consultation, is likely to be strictly limited. Section 19(5) makes it clear that any offences so created will only be for summary trial, and the penalty will be limited to a fine, of up to level 5 on the standard scale (currently £5,000). An existing example of such an offence is in section 57(4) of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, which makes it an offence, punishable by a fine, knowingly or recklessly to make a false or misleading statement which causes another person to do something which that Act renders unlawful.
222.Section 19(3)(e) would allow the regulations to set up a procedure which would enable those who consider that they may have suffered less favourable treatment to require information from their employer (for example, written reasons, or other information) in order in particular to enable them to decide whether or not to proceed with a claim.
223.The social partners intended aspects of the Framework Agreement to be adaptable to the specific conditions of sectors of the economy or individual companies. The Government wishes to keep this flexibility in these regulations. Section 19(3)(g) allows the Secretary of State to set out the extent of that flexibility in the regulations, along with the circumstances in which different provision can be agreed. For example, the regulations could provide that different provisions could be agreed through collective or workforce agreements.
224.Section 19(4) gives power to make whatever provision (in addition to those provided for under subsections (2) and (3)) may be necessary to implement the Directive or the Framework Agreement, or to cover other matters (such as pay) in the same way.
225.Section 20 provides for the Secretary of State to issue Codes of Practice relating to part-time work. This will enable implementation of Clause 5 of the Framework Agreement, which does not impose any legal obligations on Member States or employers, but provides (amongst other things) for the encouragement of more and better quality part-time jobs by setting out principles which employers should seek to adopt. As with other statutory Codes of Practice, breach of such a Code would not in itself give rise to proceedings but the provisions of such a Code may be taken into account by a tribunal if it considers it to be relevant.
226.A Code of Practice may deal with matters specific to the UK labour market which will help improve opportunities for and treatment of part-timers. For example, it may include factors to be considered in deciding whether a job can be done part-time; examples of ways to encourage part-time work at senior levels in a company; and advice on informing workers of available part-time opportunities. The Government has made a commitment to consult widely on this Code.
227.Section 21 sets out the procedure by which the Secretary of State can issue or revise a Code. The Secretary of State must consult on any draft Code or revision, and take any responses into account before introducing the Code to Parliament. The draft Code or revision must be laid before both Houses of Parliament, and both Houses must resolve to approve the draft before the Secretary of State can issue the Code.
Commentary on Sections Leave for family reasons Sections 19-21: Part-time work