Dear constituent,

Thank you for contacting me about fire and rehire, where employers dismiss workers in order to re-employ them on worse terms.

I agree with you on this important issue. Fire and rehire should be outlawed. Allowing working people to be bullied on to lower wages and worse terms and conditions is both morally wrong and economically damaging. I am therefore proud to back the Employment and Trade Union Rights (Dismissal and Re-engagement) Bill, which seeks to protect workers against dismissal and re-engagement on inferior terms and conditions. Unfortunately, as you will know, on Friday 22 October Government MPs voted to block the progress of the Bill in the House of Commons.

The practice of fire and rehire is not a new one. Worryingly, though, it seems to have become increasingly common during the pandemic, with some companies taking advantage of the crisis to exploit workers. We have seen several major employers threatening to sack staff unless they agree to worse pay, terms and conditions. The TUC has found that nearly one in ten workers have been told to reapply for their jobs on worse terms and conditions since March 2020.

The Government says it does not accept fire and rehire as a negotiation tactic. However, it has consistently put off taking action to stop it. At the same time, it argues that some employers may feel they need to dismiss staff and re-engage them to ensure their sustainability. Yet, according to analysis from the Observer, 70% of companies accused of using fire and rehire tactics are making a healthy profit, with some even increasing executive pay.

The use of this appalling practice will continue to spread so long as the Government refuses to ban it. We therefore need urgent legislation, not further delay. If the Government was serious about stopping the use of this tactic it would have used the opportunity provided by the Employment and Trade Union Rights (Dismissal and Re-engagement) Bill to end this pernicious practice. Unfortunately, it chose not to. I can nevertheless assure you that I will continue to support efforts to press the Government on this issue and put a stop to this unethical and exploitative practice.

Thank you once again for contacting me.

Peter Dowd MP