A Belfast law firm has cautioned that the window to enact the Good Jobs Employment Rights Bill is narrowing as the current Northern Ireland Assembly mandate approaches its conclusion, the Belfast Telegraph reports.
In July 2024, the Department for the Economy unveiled what it described as the most substantial overhaul of Northern Ireland’s employment law framework in a decade. The proposed legislation was billed as delivering meaningful reform for both employers and employees.
A public consultation on the wide-ranging proposals followed that summer. However, progress has since slowed and, with just under 14 months remaining in the Assembly’s mandate, the Belfast office of Lewis Silkin has warned that the timetable is increasingly tight.
Leeanne Armstrong, managing associate at the firm, said initial optimism around the bill’s progress had diminished.
She said: “We recognise that 14 months is a challenging timeframe in which to complete the necessary work to ensure the passage of the Good Jobs bill to become law and bring about these needed reforms, but with where the bill is in the process now, there is a real risk that the bill may not pass before the end of the current mandate.
“This means that the legislative process would need to start again from the beginning under a new mandate, with no guarantee that the same policy priorities currently underpinning the bill would be maintained.
“This understandably leaves much uncertainty for employers in Northern Ireland in terms...
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