§ Mr. HancockTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the effect of the 8-week rule on(a) employers and (b) employees; and if she will make it her policy to abolish it. [146177]
§ Mr. SutcliffeDuring the recent review of the Employment Relations Act 1999, the Government looked closely at the operation of protections from dismissal for employees taking lawfully organised official industrial action. The conclusion of that review, as set out in the response to consultation published last month, is that the 8-week rule should be retained and that the Employment Relations Bill will introduce improvements to the existing protections. These changes are designed to ensure, firstly, that days where employees are 'locked-out' during official industrial action are disregarded in calculating the 8-week period; and secondly that the procedural steps employers and employees must take under the statute to attempt to resolve a dispute are clear.