In a bid to get the economy moving in the right direction, the government has been discussing various ways of cutting down on regulation, be it to do with maternity rights or scrapping unfair dismissal claims deregulation seems to be the way forward. At the moment employers complain that the amount of unfair dismissal claims currently going through the courts or being subject to a relatively large pay out has discouraged them taking on new staff. First, there is the fear that employers will be unable to get the level of participation from staff that they desire. Second they fear that should they confront a staff member about their work or perhaps the possibility of retirement for example, that these discussions meant to make things better will end up the subject of a tribunal hearing.
The government know that the law protects the employee and as such it can be difficult to dismiss an employee without following a certain amount of procedure. Some employers are so fearful of the procedure that they avoid the employment of staff in the first place. However, in order to get the most out of their staff, employers need to be able to discuss issues with them freely. This is where protected conversations comes in. Clegg said "We want to give them (employers) the confidence to be open about performance, about retirement with their employees."
Whilst it is widely agreed that a minimum standard of rights be in place it is also accepted that sometimes this does get in the way of a business developing in the way it should. The move is supported by both the CBI and the British Chamber of Commerce who agree that it will help boost the economy. Similar mechanisms already exist in countries such as France. The affect of protected conversations, it is hoped, is that management can make better decisions for the company free from concerns which so far have inhibited the movement of staff. Without prejudice conversations, not citable in tribunals could also lead to quicker solutions to general grievances and disputes.
At the moment the mood seems to be that it is all too easy for an employee to claim that they have been unfairly dismissed. Measure such as this should help readdress the balance of power between the employer and the employee. The method in which such a change could be put in place is yet to be discussed and there are of course concerns that an employer should not use the 'protection' against the employee. This might in itself lead to the need for more governance, which is exactly what we're trying to avoid here.
Often employers are deemed to be big organisations who might be taking advantage of their staff but Britain is a country populated by many small and medium countries and the plethora of legislation in employment often makes it difficult for them to run their business. This of course affects the wider economy and the job market on the whole. Protected conversations could help both the employers and eventually the people who wish to be their employees.