However, EEF issued a note of caution with regard to flexible working and urged the government to proceed with caution before granting any further rights in this area, especially given the difficulties posed for smaller companies.
Commenting, EEF Director General, Martin Temple, said:
“The Queen's speech contains a number of vital issues on which business wants to see rapid progress. We look to government to ensure that business competitiveness is at the heart of the delivery of its legislative programme.”
Climate Change:
“Business will welcome the creation of a realistic framework which will provide confidence and certainty for planning. Policy must now ensure that all sectors, not just industry, contribute to the emissions reduction effort and that the need to address climate change is balanced with the need to maintain competitiveness.”
Energy
“The energy bill is heading in the right direction to deliver a secure, balanced and competitive supply of energy. However, the one omission remains a positive decision on the future of nuclear power which will be a crucial element of a future energy mix.”
Pensions
“Government should be applauded for taking forward the remaining provisions of its pensions reform package, although the lack of financial support for smaller companies when personal accounts are introduced remains to be addressed. It is now vital that we do not lose the cross-party political consensus which has been built up on pensions reform at the eleventh hour.”
Education & Skills
“Government has gone some way towards establishing a world class education and training system. It must now put in place the final pieces of the jigsaw recommended by Lord Leitch to deliver a truly demand-led skills system.”
Work Life Balance & Flexible Working
“Work life balance is an important component of a modern workplace which will help deal with the issues of skills shortages and an ageing population. However, any extension in the right to request flexible working has the potential to create significant problems, especially for smaller companies already struggling to manage employee expectations in this area.”
ENDS
EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, is the representative voice of manufacturing in the UK with a federation of 11 regional Associations and ECIA, the Engineering Construction Industry Association and UK Steel. The EEF has a growing membership of almost 6,000 companies of all sizes, employing some 900,000 people from every sector of engineering, manufacturing, engineering construction and technology-based industries.