The meat industry has often struggled to recruit workers despite offering attractive packages which include advantages like flexible working, help with transport and a progressive career path. With such a large number of working-age people in the UK who are currently economically inactive, and therefore not available to employers, the new Employment Rights Bill will hopefully pave the way for some to re-enter the workforce.

BMPA’s Technical Policy Manager said: “We think it’s important that any new provisions are applied equally across the board to create a level playing field and equal competition amongst companies and across industries. Anything that is unevenly applied risks distorting the employment landscape and creating worker shortages for some companies and an oversupply for others.

“While it’s difficult at this stage to predict the cost implications of the new Bill, we’d also like government to have one eye on how the new legislation will impact costs and therefore the competitiveness of British companies. Because we are not self-sufficient, the UK meat sector relies heavily on both imports and exports to maintain a level of food security for the domestic market. Anything that throws this out of balance risks eroding that food security and could impact consumer prices.”

Farming Today had an interesting discussion on the potential benefits and impacts of the new bill on the food and farming industry.

Listen from 9:30 minutes