The UK Government’s Employment Rights Bill, branded as the “Make Work Pay” plan, represents the most significant transformation of employment law in a generation. For HR leaders across the UK, particularly those overseeing organisations with 250 or more employees, this legislation isn’t merely a compliance challenge—it’s a pivotal opportunity to reshape your workplace for the better.
At Kinhub, we’ve been at the forefront of the work-life intelligence revolution, supporting organisations like Aalco Metals, HSL Compliance, Police Now, and the University of Oxford as they navigate evolving employee expectations. Our Work-Life Intelligence™ platform, powered by proprietary AI technology and underpinned by rigorous behavioural science, has enabled our clients to reduce coaching costs by up to 78% whilst simultaneously boosting employee productivity by approximately 20%.
This white paper serves as your comprehensive guide to understanding and implementing the Make Work Pay legislation. Drawing on over 14 years of research and coaching experience, I’ll decode the complexities of this legislation and provide you with evidence-based, actionable strategies that you can implement immediately.
This is not abstract theory. Throughout this paper, you’ll find real-world examples of organisations that have successfully embraced these principles—including detailed case studies of how Kinhub has supported Aalco Metals and HSL Compliance in their transformation journeys. You’ll discover practical approaches to attracting and retaining top talent, addressing potential challenges, and positioning your organisation not merely to comply with new regulations, but to thrive because of them.
The Make Work Pay plan will fundamentally reshape the employer-employee relationship in the UK. By understanding its implications and proactively adapting your HR strategies with the right support, you can ensure your organisation achieves its strategic goals whilst building a genuinely thriving and engaged workforce.
Join me as we decode the Make Work Pay plan, explore its implications for HR, and equip you with the knowledge and tools to navigate this transformative era of work in the UK.
The UK’s employment landscape is experiencing its most significant transformation in decades. The Labour Government’s “Make Work Pay” plan—formally known as the Employment Rights Bill—sits at the epicentre of this change. Published within 100 days of Labour taking power, as promised, this ambitious initiative aims to address longstanding labour market inequalities and create a fundamentally fairer system for both employers and employees.
The Vision: A New Deal for Working People
At its heart, Make Work Pay seeks to deliver a “New Deal for Working People”—a vision that prioritises fair wages, enhanced job security, and a modernised framework of workplace rights. This vision is underpinned by compelling evidence: that a motivated and secure workforce is fundamental to driving economic growth and productivity.
The plan acknowledges the profound challenges posed by insecure work, stagnant wages, and outdated employment legislation. It aims to create a system that genuinely rewards hard work and enables individuals to thrive in their careers. For HR leaders, this represents both a challenge and an opportunity—the chance to rebuild employment relationships on stronger, more sustainable foundations.
One of the plan’s primary objectives is to ensure that all workers receive a fair and decent wage that reflects the true cost of living. This involves fundamentally reframing the current minimum wage model to remove age-based disparities and promote genuine equality.
The Living Wage Gap: A Stark Reality
As of 2024, the UK Government’s National Living Wage stands at £11.44 per hour (following an increase from £10.42). However, the real Living Wage—independently calculated by the Living Wage Foundation to reflect the actual cost of living—stands at £12.60 per hour across the UK and £13.85 per hour in London (Living Wage Foundation, 2024; Resolution Foundation, 2024).
This gap is not academic—it has real consequences. Workers earning the National Living Wage fall short by up to £3,198 annually in London compared to what they need to cover essential costs. The Low Pay Commission will play a crucial role in advising the Government on appropriate wage levels, considering factors such as inflation, regional variations in living costs, and the overall economic climate.
The second pillar of the Make Work Pay plan addresses job security by targeting exploitative employment practices, particularly zero-hours contracts.
The Zero-Hours Contract Reality
As of 2024, there are 1.03 million workers on zero-hours contracts in the UK (Brione et al., 2024). The evidence is stark:
The Government intends to abolish zero-hours contracts as currently structured, ensuring that all workers have a baseline level of security and contracts that reflect their regular working hours. This represents a commitment to providing workers with greater stability and predictability, allowing them to plan their lives and finances with confidence.
Alongside tackling zero-hours contracts, the plan addresses “one-sided flexibility”—situations where employers make unpredictable changes to working hours, leaving employees with little control over their schedules and income.
The third core objective involves introducing a comprehensive range of new rights and protections that reflect the realities of the contemporary workplace:
Making Flexible Working the Default
Recognising the growing demand for flexibility, the plan proposes making flexible working the default option for all employees unless employers can demonstrate a clear business reason why it is not feasible. The evidence supporting this change is compelling:
This shift aims to empower employees with greater control over their work-life balance, promoting wellbeing and enabling individuals to better manage their personal and professional responsibilities.
Establishing a Right to Bereavement Leave
Acknowledging the profound impact of bereavement on individuals and their ability to work, the plan introduces a statutory right to bereavement leave, providing employees with paid time off to grieve and cope with the loss of a loved one. This initiative reflects a growing recognition of the importance of supporting employees through difficult life events.
Making Parental Leave Available from Day One
By removing the qualifying period for paternity and parental leave, the plan supports parents from the very beginning of their employment journey. This change recognises the evolving needs of modern families, providing fathers and partners with the ability to take an active role in childcare and bond with their new child from day one.
Strengthening Protections for Pregnant Women and New Mothers
The plan enhances the rights of pregnant women and new mothers, ensuring they are protected from discrimination and supported in their return to work. This includes measures to prevent unfair dismissal, provide adequate breastfeeding breaks, and ensure reasonable adjustments are made to accommodate their needs.
Beyond these core objectives, the Make Work Pay plan encompasses a range of initiatives designed to strengthen workers’ rights:
Introducing Mandatory Ethnicity Pay Gap Reporting
Building upon existing gender pay gap reporting requirements, the plan proposes mandatory ethnicity pay gap reporting for organisations with 250 or more employees. This initiative aims to increase transparency and accountability, encouraging organisations to take proactive steps to address pay inequalities.
For context, at Homes England, Black employees earn 9.4% less than their white counterparts, and ethnic minorities are underrepresented in senior roles, making up only 13.1% of leadership positions despite comprising 23.5% of the workforce (GOV.UK, 2024). By collecting and publishing this data, the Government hopes to drive progress towards a more equitable workplace.
Banning Fire and Rehire Practices
The controversial practice of “fire and rehire”—where employers dismiss employees and then rehire them on less favourable terms—will become automatically unfair dismissal unless there are exceptional circumstances (such as the business being in financial difficulties). TUC research revealed that 1 in 11 (9%) workers—approximately 2.7 million people across the UK—have been forced to reapply for their jobs on inferior terms and conditions (Trades Union Congress, 2022).
Giving Workers the Right to Switch Off
Recognising the blurring lines between work and personal life in the digital age, the plan proposes giving workers the right to switch off outside of working hours. This initiative aims to protect employees from the expectation of constant availability and responsiveness, promoting healthier work-life balance and safeguarding wellbeing.
Strengthening Trade Union Rights
The plan acknowledges the important role trade unions play in protecting workers’ rights and promoting fair working conditions. It proposes strengthening trade union rights, making it easier for workers to join unions and participate in collective bargaining, thereby empowering workers and giving them a stronger voice in shaping their working conditions.
The final pillar of the Make Work Pay plan focuses on supporting individuals throughout their careers:
Expanding Access to Training and Skills Development
The plan proposes expanding access to training and skills development opportunities for workers at all levels, including funding for apprenticeships, supporting reskilling initiatives, and promoting lifelong learning. Research highlights that technical skills—such as programming, coding, and software development—are in particularly high demand, with technological roles growing at a rate of 7.3% per year (Edge Foundation, 2024).
Creating a “Right to Retrain” Account
To support individuals in their career development, the plan proposes creating a “right to retrain” account, providing workers with a personal budget to fund training and skills development throughout their working lives. This initiative empowers individuals to take control of their own career development and adapt to the economy’s changing needs.
Providing Greater Support for Career Changers
Recognising that individuals may need to change careers multiple times throughout their working lives, the plan proposes providing greater support for career changers, including access to career guidance, retraining opportunities, and financial assistance.
The Make Work Pay plan will profoundly impact how organisations approach workforce planning, recruitment, and retention. HR leaders must proactively understand these implications and adapt their strategies to remain competitive in the evolving labour market.
Rethinking Workforce Structures
The plan’s emphasis on enhancing job security and banning zero-hours contracts will require organisations to fundamentally re-evaluate their workforce structures and staffing models. Moving away from zero-hours contracts may involve higher operational costs initially, such as increased wages and benefits. However, these are balanced by substantial long-term benefits.
Companies that have transitioned to more stable contracts report improvements in employee loyalty and significant reductions in turnover costs, with some noting positive shifts in company culture (London School of Economics and Political Science, 2024). The CIPD, in its 2023 report on flexible working, highlighted the need for organisations to move away from reliance on precarious contracts and embrace more stable and predictable employment models.
This shift necessitates a more strategic approach to workforce planning, considering:
Mandatory Ethnicity Pay Gap Reporting
The introduction of mandatory ethnicity pay gap reporting will require organisations to collect and analyse data on pay disparities across different ethnic groups. This data must be integrated into workforce planning processes, informing decisions on recruitment, promotion, and compensation. Organisations will need to proactively address any identified pay gaps, ensuring their workforce is representative and all employees are rewarded fairly based on skills and contributions.
The End of Precarious Work
The ban on fire and rehire practices will likely lead to a decrease in the use of temporary and contract workers, as organisations will need to offer more secure and stable employment arrangements to attract and retain talent. This shift could create a more competitive recruitment landscape, with organisations needing to differentiate themselves through:
The UK as a Destination for Global Talent
The plan’s focus on enhancing workers’ rights and promoting flexible working could make the UK significantly more attractive to skilled overseas workers. Recent data supports this trend: the UK granted 286,382 visas to main applicants in all work categories in the year ending June 2024—more than double (+109%) the 2019 levels (GOV.UK, 2024).
Moreover, the UK has risen nine places to 7th in the OECD’s Talent Attractiveness 2023 report, surpassing both the US and Canada for the first time (Faragher, 2023). This improvement is largely attributed to changes in the immigration regime since Brexit, which removed caps on highly skilled workers.
For organisations, this means adopting more inclusive and globally minded recruitment strategies to compete for international talent.
The Business Case for Employee Retention
The Make Work Pay plan has significant potential to improve employee loyalty and reduce turnover. By enhancing job security, banning exploitative practices, and promoting flexible working, the plan creates a more attractive and supportive work environment. A 2022 study by Glassdoor found that strong company culture and positive employee experience were among the top factors influencing employee retention.
The financial implications are substantial. The average cost of replacing an employee in the UK was estimated at £25,000 per worker in 2024, with costs for specialist and senior roles ranging from £40,000 to £100,000 (CIPD, 2024). With the national average annual turnover rate at 16% as of Spring 2024, and some sectors like hospitality facing rates as high as 52%, initiatives that improve retention could lead to significant cost savings.
The Power of Skills Development
Emphasis on skills development and career progression can further enhance employee retention. By providing access to training, supporting career changers, and creating a “right to retrain” account, the plan empowers employees to take control of their development and pursue fulfilling careers within their organisations. This investment in employee growth fosters loyalty and commitment, reducing the likelihood of employees seeking opportunities elsewhere.
Flexible Working as a Retention Tool
The plan’s emphasis on flexible working could lead to a more diverse and inclusive workforce. By offering flexible working arrangements, organisations can attract and retain individuals who may have previously been excluded from the labour market due to caring responsibilities, disabilities, or other personal circumstances.
A 2024 study found that 70% of workers are more likely to apply for a job based on the company’s flexible working policy, rising to 76% for those aged 18-34 (Department for Business and Trade, 2024). Moreover, 80% of workers believe the ability to work flexibly boosts their productivity, aligning organisational goals of increased efficiency with employee wellbeing.
Creating Conditions for Engagement
By promoting fair wages, job security, and a supportive work environment, the plan contributes to increased employee morale and motivation. A 2023 study by Gallup found that engaged employees are more productive, profitable, and likely to stay with their organisation. The plan’s focus on enhancing workers’ rights and promoting wellbeing aligns with the key drivers of employee engagement.
Managing the Challenges
The plan also presents potential challenges. Increasing the minimum wage and introducing new workplace rights could lead to increased labour costs. Organisations will need to carefully manage these costs, ensuring they remain competitive whilst providing fair wages and benefits. This may require:
The Upskilling Imperative
Another challenge is the need for upskilling and reskilling. The plan’s emphasis on lifelong learning and the “right to retrain” account will require organisations to invest in training and development. This may involve:
Policy and Procedure Updates
Implementing the Make Work Pay plan will require HR leaders to review and update policies and procedures, ensuring compliance with new legislation on flexible working, bereavement leave, parental leave, and other workplace rights. HR departments will need to update employee handbooks, contracts, and internal processes, ensuring changes are effectively communicated to all employees.
The Make Work Pay plan presents a unique opportunity for UK organisations to enhance their employer brand and attract top talent. By embracing the plan’s principles and embedding them within HR strategies, organisations can position themselves as employers of choice.
The plan’s emphasis on a genuine living wage resonates with candidates seeking financial security and recognition for their contributions. Organisations can showcase their commitment to fair pay by:
This transparency not only attracts talent but also fosters trust and loyalty among existing employees.
By offering permanent contracts, avoiding zero-hours contracts, and promoting a culture of long-term employment, organisations can appeal to individuals seeking a secure and rewarding career path. This commitment to job security is particularly attractive to those who may have experienced precarious employment or are seeking a stable foundation for their personal and professional lives.
The plan’s emphasis on flexible working can be a powerful tool for attracting and retaining top talent. By offering a range of flexible working arrangements—such as remote work options, flexible hours, and compressed workweeks—organisations can appeal to a wider pool of candidates.
A 2023 study by FlexJobs found that 80% of employees would be more loyal to their employer if they offered flexible work options. By embracing flexible working practices, organisations can improve employee morale, reduce stress, and enhance productivity.
Beyond specific policies, organisations can leverage the plan by creating a workplace culture that embodies its values. This includes:
To effectively leverage the Make Work Pay plan, organisations benefit from partnering with HR experts who can provide guidance and support in adapting HR strategies. Kinhub offers a comprehensive range of services designed to help organisations align their practices with the plan’s principles:
Developing Fair and Transparent Compensation Strategies
Kinhub can help organisations conduct pay equity audits, develop competitive salary structures, and implement performance-based reward systems that attract and retain top talent.
Designing Flexible Working Policies and Practices
Kinhub provides guidance on implementing flexible working arrangements that meet employees’ needs whilst supporting business objectives. Our Work-Life Intelligence™ platform enables organisations to understand individual employee needs in real-time, creating truly responsive flexible working policies.
Creating an Inclusive and Supportive Workplace Culture
Kinhub assists organisations in fostering a culture of inclusivity, wellbeing, and learning, where all employees feel valued, supported, and empowered to contribute their best work. Our platform’s patent-pending emotion detection technology helps organisations identify wellbeing issues before they escalate, whilst maintaining employee privacy.
Providing Training and Development Programmes
Kinhub offers a range of training programmes to help employees develop the skills and knowledge needed to thrive in the modern workplace. Critically, our platform delivers just-in-time training and coaching to line managers, ensuring they’re equipped to support their teams effectively in moments that matter. This dual approach—supporting both employees and managers—creates a positive feedback loop that improves individual and team performance.
Our AI-powered platform, “Coach Charlie,” has been trained on over 1 million data points and provides personalised coaching at scale, reducing the cost of coaching by up to 78% whilst boosting employee productivity by approximately 20%.
Organisations can leverage the Make Work Pay plan by actively communicating their commitment to its principles through various channels:
Employer Branding and Recruitment Marketing
Incorporate the plan’s key messages into employer branding and recruitment marketing materials, highlighting your commitment to fair wages, job security, and employee wellbeing through website content, social media posts, and recruitment campaigns.
Internal Communications
Communicate your organisation’s commitment to the Make Work Pay plan to existing employees through internal newsletters, company-wide meetings, and team briefings. By keeping employees informed, you foster transparency, trust, and appreciation.
Community Engagement
Demonstrate commitment to the Make Work Pay plan by actively engaging with local communities—participating in local job fairs, offering apprenticeships and training opportunities, and supporting initiatives that promote social mobility and economic development.
Leveraging the plan requires creating a culture of continuous improvement. Regularly review and evaluate HR policies and practices to ensure they align with the plan’s principles and meet the evolving needs of your workforce. Conduct employee surveys, focus groups, and feedback sessions to gather insights into employee experiences and identify areas for improvement.
Kinhub’s platform provides comprehensive employee sentiment and engagement data, offering detailed analysis to help organisations understand employee perspectives in real-time. Our average platform adoption rate is 40% (versus 5-20% with competitors), with measurable improvements in employee engagement of 43%.
Create channels for employees to share their ideas, concerns, and suggestions for improvement. Establish employee forums, suggestion boxes, and regular feedback mechanisms to encourage employee input and ensure voices are heard. By fostering a culture of open communication and collaboration, organisations create a more engaged and empowered workforce.
The plan’s emphasis on strengthening trade union rights highlights the important role unions play in protecting workers’ rights and promoting fair working conditions. By engaging in constructive dialogue with trade unions, organisations can build trust, address employee concerns, and create a more collaborative and harmonious workplace.
Middle managers play a crucial role in translating the plan’s principles into practice and creating a workplace culture that reflects its values. By providing middle managers with the training and development they need to lead effectively, organisations ensure the plan’s benefits are fully realised.
Kinhub offers tailored leadership development programmes that equip middle managers with skills including communication, emotional intelligence, and agile leadership. Critically, our platform enables employees to notify line managers about issues impacting their ability to work, whilst simultaneously offering responsive training and coaching to line managers so they’re fully equipped to deal with employees’ ever-evolving needs.
Whilst the Make Work Pay plan offers significant opportunities, it also presents potential challenges that HR leaders must address proactively. By anticipating and mitigating these challenges, organisations can ensure a smooth transition and maximise the plan’s benefits.
The Financial Reality
The plan’s commitment to raising the minimum wage and introducing new workplace rights—such as bereavement leave and enhanced parental leave—could increase costs for businesses. HR leaders need to carefully assess the financial implications, working with finance colleagues to model different scenarios and consider their impact on the organisation’s budget and profitability.
Strategic Approaches
This may involve:
Importantly, whilst initial costs may increase, the long-term benefits of reduced turnover, improved morale, and enhanced productivity often outweigh these expenses.
Implementing the Make Work Pay plan could require significant changes to HR systems and processes. Organisations will need to:
This could involve investing in new HR technology, providing training to HR staff, and communicating changes clearly to all employees. HR leaders need to proactively plan for these changes, allocating sufficient resources and time to ensure a smooth transition and minimise organisational disruption.
The plan’s emphasis on lifelong learning and the “right to retrain” account will require organisations to invest in training and development to ensure employees have the skills needed for the future of work. This could involve:
HR leaders need to assess workforce skill needs, identify potential skills gaps, and develop a comprehensive training and development strategy.
Whilst flexible working offers many benefits, it requires careful planning and management to implement effectively. Organisations need to:
HR leaders need to address potential concerns around communication, collaboration, and performance management in a hybrid work environment, ensuring all employees feel connected, supported, and able to contribute their best work.
The plan’s focus on strengthening workers’ rights and promoting trade union involvement could lead to an increase in employee grievances and disputes. According to recent data from Acas, there was a 12% increase in individual conciliation cases in 2024 compared to the previous year, highlighting the growing prevalence of workplace disputes (Acas, 2024).
Line managers and HR leaders need to be prepared to handle these issues effectively, ensuring robust grievance procedures and being equipped to engage in constructive dialogue with employees and trade unions. This may involve:
Beyond operational challenges, the Make Work Pay plan requires a shift in mindset for many organisations. The plan’s emphasis on employee wellbeing, work-life balance, and fair treatment necessitates a move away from traditional, hierarchical management styles towards a more collaborative and empowering approach.
Organisations need to foster a culture of trust, open communication, and mutual respect, where employees feel valued and empowered to contribute their best work. This cultural shift may require leadership development initiatives, training programmes for managers, and re-evaluation of performance management systems to ensure alignment with the plan’s values.
The plan’s focus on diversity and inclusion presents an opportunity for organisations to re-examine recruitment and promotion practices. The introduction of mandatory ethnicity pay gap reporting will require organisations to analyse data and address disparities. This may involve:
A report by McKinsey & Company (Dixon-Fyle et al., 2020) found that organisations with strong diversity and inclusion initiatives experience a 36% increase in employee engagement, which can lead to a 25% improvement in overall financial performance.
Implementing the plan’s initiatives will require clear, consistent communication with employees to ensure they understand the changes and how they will be affected. Organisations need to develop a comprehensive communication strategy involving:
This transparent and inclusive approach to communication helps build trust, minimise resistance to change, and ensure a smooth transition to the new policy landscape.
Traditional performance metrics may need revision to reflect the changing nature of work and the importance of work-life balance. Recent research from CIPD (Brinkley, 2024) indicates that organisations that have shifted to outcome-based performance metrics report a 25% increase in employee satisfaction and a 15% boost in overall productivity compared to those relying on time-based metrics.
Organisations may need to:
The Make Work Pay plan will likely evolve and be refined over time. Organisations need to stay informed about changes and adjust policies and practices accordingly. This requires HR leaders to:
Whilst the Make Work Pay plan establishes new guidelines and expectations for UK businesses, forward-thinking organisations are already embracing its principles and reaping rewards. These case studies demonstrate how two UK companies—Aalco Metals and HSL Compliance—have successfully implemented Make Work Pay principles with Kinhub’s support, leading to improved employee engagement, reduced turnover, and enhanced business performance.
The Challenge
Aalco Metals, the UK’s largest independent multi-metals stockholder, recognised the importance of aligning HR practices with the Make Work Pay plan’s emphasis on fair wages and skills development. With a workforce spread across 19 service centres nationwide, Aalco sought to create a consistent and equitable approach to compensation and career progression.
The Partnership with Kinhub
Kinhub partnered with Aalco to conduct a comprehensive review of their pay structures, benchmarking salaries against industry standards and regional variations in living costs. This analysis revealed inconsistencies in pay across different locations and roles, prompting Aalco to implement a standardised pay structure ensuring fair compensation for all employees, regardless of gender, location, or role.
Skills Development Programme
Furthermore, Kinhub worked with Aalco to develop a skills development programme aligned with the Make Work Pay plan’s focus on lifelong learning and the “right to retrain.” This programme provided employees with access to a range of training opportunities, including:
These initiatives empowered employees to enhance their skills and advance their careers within the company. Aalco also introduced a “Skills Development Fund,” providing employees with a personal collection of tokens to invest in their own training and development.
Leveraging Kinhub’s Work-Life Intelligence™ Platform
Critically, Aalco utilised Kinhub’s Work-Life Intelligence™ platform to deliver personalised coaching and just-in-time training. The platform’s AI-powered coach, “Charlie,” provided employees with tailored support in moments that mattered, whilst simultaneously equipping line managers with responsive coaching and training to better support their teams.
Kinhub’s patent-pending emotion detection technology enabled Aalco to identify and address employee wellbeing issues proactively, whilst maintaining privacy through anonymised trend data visible only to HR.
The Results
The results of these initiatives were significant:
The Challenge
HSL Compliance, a leading provider of health and safety compliance solutions, recognised the importance of the Make Work Pay plan’s emphasis on employee wellbeing and flexible working. With a diverse workforce including office-based staff, field-based consultants, and remote workers, HSL sought to create a supportive and inclusive work environment catering to the needs of all employees.
The Partnership with Kinhub
Kinhub partnered with HSL to develop a comprehensive wellbeing strategy that included:
Flexible Working Implementation
HSL introduced a range of flexible working options, including:
These arrangements empowered employees to choose working patterns that best suited their needs and lifestyles.
Mental Health and Wellbeing Support
HSL implemented a mental health support programme, providing:
Furthermore, HSL promoted a culture of work-life balance, encouraging employees to take regular breaks, utilise vacation time, and prioritise their wellbeing.
Kinhub’s Role in Supporting Line Managers
A critical element of HSL’s success was Kinhub’s support for line managers. Through the platform, employees could notify managers about issues impacting their ability to work. Simultaneously, Kinhub offered responsive training and coaching to line managers, ensuring they were fully equipped to deal with employees’ ever-evolving needs and offer well-rounded support.
Kinhub’s comprehensive employee sentiment and engagement data provided HSL with detailed analysis to understand employee perspectives and identify areas for improvement, all whilst maintaining individual privacy.
The Results
The impact of these initiatives was profound:
Both Aalco Metals and HSL Compliance demonstrate that embracing Make Work Pay principles—with the right support—delivers tangible benefits:
By partnering with Kinhub, both organisations successfully implemented the plan’s key initiatives, resulting in improved employee engagement, reduced turnover, and enhanced business performance. These real-world examples demonstrate that the Make Work Pay plan isn’t simply a compliance exercise—it’s an opportunity to transform your organisation for the better.
The UK’s Make Work Pay plan represents a watershed moment in the evolution of employment law—the most significant transformation in a generation. Throughout this white paper, we’ve examined the plan’s core objectives and key initiatives, analysed its potential impact on workforce planning, recruitment, retention, and employee engagement, and explored how organisations can leverage the plan to attract and retain top talent whilst addressing potential challenges.
By embracing the plan’s principles—fair wages, job security, flexible working, and employee wellbeing—organisations can do more than simply comply with the new policy landscape. They can gain a genuine competitive advantage in the evolving labour market. The plan offers a unique opportunity to:
However, we must acknowledge the challenges: increased labour costs, the need for upskilling and reskilling, and the requirement for adapting HR systems and processes. These challenges are not insurmountable. With proactive planning, strategic investment, and expert guidance, organisations can ensure a smooth transition and maximise the plan’s benefits.
As the case studies of Aalco Metals and HSL Compliance demonstrate, organisations that embrace these principles—supported by the right technology and expertise—achieve measurable improvements in employee engagement, productivity, and retention. These aren’t isolated success stories; they represent what’s possible when organisations commit to genuinely valuing and supporting their people.
To effectively navigate the Make Work Pay landscape, HR leaders should consider the following next steps:
Carefully review the Make Work Pay plan and its associated legislation to fully understand its implications for your organisation. Assess your current HR policies, practices, and systems to identify any areas that require adjustment or updating.
Develop a comprehensive strategy for implementing the plan’s principles within your organisation. This should involve a collaborative approach, engaging with employees, managers, and trade unions to ensure that the plan’s benefits are realised for all stakeholders.
Communicate clearly and transparently with employees about the plan’s initiatives and how they will be affected. Provide regular updates, answer questions, and address any concerns to foster trust and ensure a smooth transition.
Invest in training and development programmes to equip your workforce with the skills and knowledge needed to thrive in the changing world of work. This could involve providing access to online learning platforms, partnering with educational institutions, and creating internal training initiatives.
Explore and implement flexible working arrangements that meet your employees’ needs whilst also supporting business objectives. This could involve offering remote work options, flexible hours, and compressed workweeks.
Prioritise employee wellbeing by creating a supportive and inclusive work environment. Offer mental health support, promote work-life balance, and encourage healthy habits to foster a happy and productive workforce.
Consider partnering with HR experts like Kinhub to gain guidance and support in implementing the Make Work Pay plan. Kinhub offers a range of services specifically designed to help organisations navigate this transformation:
Policy and Procedure Development
We can help you develop and update your HR policies and procedures to ensure compliance with the latest legislation.
Compensation and Benefits Analysis
We can assist you in conducting pay equity audits, developing competitive salary structures, and designing benefits packages that attract and retain top talent.
Training and Development Programmes
We offer a range of training programmes that can help your employees develop the skills and knowledge needed to thrive in the modern workplace.
Just-in-Time Training and Coaching for Line Managers
We enable employees to notify line managers about issues impacting their ability to work. We offer coaching and support directly to employees to aid their productivity, but crucially, we also offer responsive training and coaching to line managers so they are fully equipped to deal with employees’ ever-evolving needs and offer well-rounded support.
Employee Sentiment and Engagement Data and Analysis
We collect comprehensive employee sentiment and engagement data and provide detailed analysis to help organisations understand employee perspectives and identify areas for improvement.
Diversity and Inclusion Training
We deliver diversity and inclusion training programmes that raise awareness of unconscious bias, promote inclusive practices, and help organisations create a more equitable and welcoming workplace.
Work-Life Intelligence™ Platform
Our AI-powered platform provides personalised coaching at scale through “Coach Charlie,” reducing coaching costs by up to 78% whilst boosting employee productivity by approximately 20%. With patent-pending emotion detection technology and an average platform adoption rate of 40% (versus 5-20% with competitors), our platform delivers measurable results.
By taking these proactive steps and seeking expert support, organisations can successfully navigate the Make Work Pay landscape, create a more rewarding workplace for their employees, and position themselves for continued success in the evolving UK economy.
Trades Union Congress. (2024, August 30). Over 8 in 10 zero-hours contract workers want regular hours – TUC poll reveals. https://www.tuc.org.uk/news/over-8-10-zero-hours-contract-workers-want-regular-hours-tuc-poll-reveals
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