New law allows employers to hire temporary agency workers during strikes

The UK government have made a change in the law which will allow businesses most impacted by industrial strike action to fill staffing gaps with temporary agency workers.

This will help ensure that vital public services and people's daily lives remain uninterrupted during staff strikes.

Due to strikes happening across a range of sectors, the UK government have quickly taken action to alter trade union laws which restricted employers from filling positions with temporary agency workers. This aims to reduce disruption to vital public services.

The law change applies to all industry sectors, and aims to benefit society and our economy.

Businesses can now see increased flexibility, however it is still their responsibility to follow health and safety regulations, and to hire individual agency workers with the correct qualifications and/or skills to fulfil the temporary role.

The maximum damage that courts can award against a union when strike action has been found to be unlawful has also been changed by the UK government. For the largest unions, the maximum award will rise from £250,000 to £1 million.

Article by GOV.UK