Member

We may well end up with a system that measures success in terms of the number of inspections carried out or the volume of penalties issued, without ever pausing to ask whether those efforts have made the labour market fairer, safer or more lawful. That is particularly important when we consider the realities faced by businesses on the ground, especially the vast majority that fall into the category of small or micro enterprises. Those businesses do not typically have in-house legal departments and many do not even have dedicated HR personnel. They are already grappling with a maze of regulatory obligations, often updated without adequate support or communication from the centre, and now, under the Bill, we are layering on a new extensive enforcement regime without any corresponding effort to explain what compliance looks like or to help smaller employers meet their obligations in practice.