Every business needs to fulfil certain guidelines when it comes to protecting their staff and if they fail to do so, they run the risk of being in breach of the law. 

Recently there has been talk of the government taking steps to modernise worker’s rights in the UK, but what will this mean for your SME? Read on to find out. 

If you work in business and haven’t heard the term ‘gig economy’ being used recently, it’s likely that you need to make more of an effort to keep up to date with current affairs, because this is something that is set to change the entire face of the way that modern organisations operate. 

As was highlighted by Theresa May in one of her speeches, the structures that are in place with regards to workers need to reflect the current working environment. 

• Enforcing workers' holidays and sick pay for the first time and introducing the right for all workers to request a more concrete contract which should subsequently provide them with more financial security. 

• Defining "working time" for flexible workers who find jobs through apps or online so they know when they should be being paid.

• Asking the Low Pay Commission to consider higher minimum wage rates for workers on zero-hour contracts.

• Quadrupling employment tribunal fines for employers showing malice, spite or gross oversight to £20,000.

If you operate an SME and employ any freelance workers, it’s worth considering how the suggestions laid out in this proposal might affect you.