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Eu exit and the implications for your business

Following the unexpected confirmation of a “leave” vote, many businesses will already be turning their attention to what happens next?

The most important message is that the referendum result does not trigger any automatic legal changes; neither does the UK’s formal notification that it will be withdrawing from the EU.

The UK will continue to be a member of the EU for the time being, and the status and effect of all UK and EU law remains unchanged for now, and possibly for some time in the future.

Beyond that, however, much remains to be debated and negotiated – such as the shape of trading agreements between the UK and the EU, the status of EU-derived law, thorny issues such as acquired rights, and the UK’s relationships with non-EU states.

It’s still business as usual for a while – no immediate changes

Neither the referendum result nor the UK’s formal notification to the EU has any immediate legal effect. From a legal perspective, it will be ‘business as usual’, probably for some time to come.

• The next step is for the UK to give formal notification to the EU of it’s intention to leave. This will start the withdrawal process, which must be concluded within two years unless an extension can be agreed (which requires the consent of all twenty-seven remaining Member States).

• The future trading relationship between the UK and the EU could take one of a number of different forms; which form it takes will have significant implications in terms of the movement of goods, services, people and capital.

• The UK will also need to undergo a major legislative project to identify which areas of EU-derived law will stay, which will be modified and which will no longer have effect in the UK.

Each of these processes is likely to involve much consultation with the UK public and industry. Businesses have an important part to play in shaping the environment that they will be trading in, domestically and cross-border.

Employment implications of Brexit for your business

UK employers are unlikely to see any large-scale changes to current employment law in the short-term as a result of the UK leaving the EU.  The UK’s on-going relationship with EU Member States, as well as our own workplace culture, is likely to demand that the UK retains many of the EU-derived laws that have already been incorporated into domestic legislation.

Free movement of workers within the EU

Now we’ve voted to leave the EU, the free movement of workers will certainly be affected. However, changes to legislation are likely to be gradual rather than immediate.

While in theory citizens of EU member states no longer enjoy the automatic right to work in the UK (and vice versa), this will form part of negotiations to establish the UK’s new trading relationship with the EU.

EU nationals already employed in the UK may already have acquired rights under UK legislation, depending on how long they’ve been here. It’s likely that many will be permitted to stay in return for a similar agreement for UK nationals currently employed in EU member states.

For prospective employees, however, it may be a different story. While it will still be possible to employ personnel from EU member states, there may be extra administrative costs to be factored in, such as visa applications. An EU employee’s capacity to remain long-term in the UK may also be affected.

There may also be limitations on the type of workers that will be allowed to seek employment in the UK. If we choose to follow a model more like the US or Australia, visas may only be granted for those in professions identified as having a particular need.

Other employment legislation changes

We also expect some piecemeal reform to specific areas of employment law, such as:

• Clarification of the rules for calculating holiday pay and how holiday accrues during periods of long term sick leave, under the Working Time Regulations (WTR)1998.

• There is on-going litigation regarding inconsistencies between the WTR and the EU Working Time Directive (which the WTR implements in the UK), creating wide-spread confusion for UK businesses and potentially significant accrued and on-going liabilities.

• Whilst the UK government is unlikely to repeal current working time rules, it may well take the opportunity to clarify the rules around holiday pay and provide much needed guidance for employers.

• Pro-business reform of agency worker rights, given the additional costs and complexities of engaging agency workers since the introduction of the Agency Workers Regulations 2010, which implement the Temporary Agency Work Directive.

Whilst the AWR gives agency workers limited equal treatment rights with comparable permanent employees from day one, following a 12-week period, an agency worker has a right to equal pay, working time and holiday with a comparable permanent employee. The extent of any reforms in this area will depend on the exit terms the government is able to negotiate.

KEY THINGS TO CONSIDER NOW

Understand the profile of your workforce. How many are EU citizens? How long have they lived in the UK? Do any have the right to a British passport that you can support?

If you are in a sector recruiting lots of EU nationals or likely to, consider accelerating any planned recruitment before changes are announced to the process. Much more likely that any existing arrangements will be allowed rather than unpicked.

If you are planning to expand into areas of Europe, familiarise yourself with local employment legislation and understand any opportunities to second staff from UK and vice versa.

If you would like to speak to an experienced employment advisor, please contact us.

www.amelore.com