As part of its ongoing Employment Law Review programme, the Government has published a consultation entitled ‘Ending the Employment Relationship’.
The consultation covers two issues:
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Ways to encourage the use of settlement agreements as a means of ending the employment relationship by consensual agreement – not just in situations where there is a dispute between the parties; and
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Reducing the limit of the compensatory award in unfair dismissal cases.
The consultation, which closes on 23 November 2012, can be found at http://www.bis.gov.uk/Consultations/ending-the-employment-relationship.
The Government has also announced that it does not intend to proceed with the proposal for the introduction of ‘no fault’ dismissal. This was put forward in a report commissioned from venture capitalist Adrian Beecroft in May this year. Instead, the Government will work with ACAS to improve guidance for small businesses on the code of practice on discipline and grievance.