The future of work won’t appear by itself

Fred Hicks, Senior Policy and Communications Adviser?

“Ultimately, it is action, rather than any review, that will prepare the UK economy for future challenges and address the issues facing workers and employers”, said Matt Warman MP in his recent letter to then Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who tasked the Boston MP with leading a review into ‘the future of work’ back in May. We agree with the need for action, particularly to address the significant challenges in the UK’s tax and employment status frameworks. Unfortunately, this still seems hard to come by.

Concluding the Future of Work review last week, Warman explained that officials across government will now take forward the issues highlighted by his review, including AI, automation, skills, flexibility and workers’ rights. The review neatly outlined the balancing act required by any government seeking to deliver policy interventions in these areas.

However, it didn’t even begin to grapple with the question of how government can reduce confusion over employment status rules, which are at the heart of problems threatening the long-term viability of freelancing, such as IR35.

It would be unfair to blame this on Matt Warman or his review. Government’s recent response to the Employment Status consultation, which concluded after four years that now is not the right time to update the system, torpedoed any suggestion that the future of work needs updated employment legislation. Instead, the review advocated for more guidance for workers and employers, mirroring that which was recently published by government (you can read what we think this guidance means for the self-employed here).

The signs point to the workforce of the future being increasingly independent, seeking flexibility and control over their work and managing their own work-life balance. The pandemic-induced decline in UK self-employment has begun to reverse, and as many as 28% of UK employees can see themselves becoming self-employed in future, while 12% have a side hustle. If this is the future of work, we believe government has more to gain by dismantling the obstacles that can hold the self-employed back, enabling freelancers and their clients to maximise their potential.

With the Future of Work review seemingly over, IPSE’s focus is now on ensuring that the new government, led by Liz Truss, takes a fresh look at calls to revamp the UK’s employment status rules. The new PM’s pledge to review IR35, which we welcomed with cautious optimism, is a promising sign that a new government could be open to wider reforms.

But without concrete action to address confusion over employment status rules, freelancers and clients have little choice but to negotiate the perpetual uncertainty of status determinations, putting thousands of highly skilled freelancers and the strength of their businesses in doubt.

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