Employment status: UK employment law

Essential points

• The rights someone has at work – for example, whether they are entitled to redundancy pay or are protected against unfair dismissal – are dependent on whether they are an employee, a worker or self-employed.

• Employment status is not defined clearly in law and the definitions used for tax purposes are different to those used for employment rights.

• The growth in the gig economy has given rise to many claims for the rights of ‘workers’, such as the right to receive the National Minimum Wage and paid holidays, from gig workers who have been defined by the organisations they work for as ‘self-employed’.

As well as outlawing the use of zero-hours contracts where these are classed as ‘exploitative’, the Labour government are proposing that employees will have a new right to a contract that reflects hours they regularly work (as judged against a 12-week reference period).

This page outlines the current legislation that should still be followed until any changes come into force. We will update this page once details of any changes are confirmed.