Claire Merritt from Paris Smith and Debbie Reed from Red Funnel invited HR professionals and team leaders from businesses who are part of the Maritime and Transport Action Group (MTAG) to explore how their organisations can be best prepared for the legislative changes being introduced in the Employment Rights Act.
Claire and Debbie provided an overview of the Act’s development and implementation timeline, before examining key changes relating to employment contracts, unfair dismissal rights, probationary periods, fixed-term contracts, trade union reforms and third-party harassment.
Attendees from DP World, Solent Stevedores, Meachers and Williams Shipping contributed to the discussion, sharing their experiences, concerns and approaches to preparing for the changes. Particular focus was given to reviewing probationary periods, managing fixed-term contracts and understanding the potential impact of enhanced trade union rights.
“The meeting was engaging, it created lots of discussion points, and gave people a lot to go away and think about.” – Claire Merritt (Paris Smith)
“It was a really thought-provoking session that has probably given us more questions than answers at this stage, but we will certainly work through them.” – Debbie Reed (Red Funnel)
