Section 27BB: Requirements relating to a guaranteed hours offer, Employment Rights Act 1996

An offer by an employer to a qualifying worker is a guaranteed hours offer for the purposes of this Chapter if it is an offer—

to vary the worker's terms and conditions of employment (but see subsection (6)), or

to enter into a new worker's contract,

and the terms and conditions as varied or (as the case may be) the new worker's contract will require the employer to provide the qualifying worker with work, and the qualifying worker to do work, for a number of hours that reflects the reference period hours in the relevant reference period.

The Secretary of State may by regulations provide that an offer by an employer to a qualifying worker is a guaranteed hours offer for the purposes of this Chapter only if it also satisfies the condition in subsection (3).

The condition referred to in subsection (2) is that—

the offer sets out—

the days of the week, and the times on those days, when the offered number of hours are to be provided and worked, or

a working pattern of days, and times of day, by reference to which the offered number of hours are to be provided and worked, and

those days and times reflect, or that pattern reflects, when the qualifying worker worked the reference period hours in the relevant reference period.

Where no regulations are in force under subsection (2) that apply in relation to an offer by an employer to a qualifying worker, the offer is a guaranteed hours offer for the purposes of this Chapter only if it also proposes terms and conditions relating to when the offered number of hours are to be provided and worked (which need not be on particular days of the week, or at particular times on those days, or by reference to a particular working pattern of days or times of day).

The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision about how it is to be determined—

whether an offer reflects the number of hours worked by a qualifying worker during a reference period;

where regulations are in force under subsection (2) that apply in relation to an offer, whether the offer reflects when hours were worked by a qualifying worker during a reference period.

A guaranteed hours offer may take the form of an offer to vary a qualifying worker's terms and conditions of employment (as opposed to an offer to enter into a new worker's contract) only if—

the qualifying worker worked for the employer under a worker's contract at the beginning of the relevant reference period,

the qualifying worker is still working for the employer under that worker's contract on the day the offer is made, and

the qualifying worker did not work for the employer under any other worker's contract during the period beginning with the first day of the relevant reference period and ending with the day the offer is made.

A guaranteed hours offer that takes the form of an offer to vary a qualifying worker's terms and conditions of employment—

must propose the removal of any term that provides for the contract to terminate by virtue of a limiting event unless, if the contract were entered into on the day the offer is made, it would be reasonable for it to be entered into as a limited-term contract;

may not propose any other variation of the worker's terms and conditions of employment (other than what is required by or under subsections (1) and (2) or subsections (1) and (4)).

A guaranteed hours offer that takes the form of an offer to enter into a new worker's contract—

must not propose a new worker's contract that is a limited-term contract unless it is reasonable for it to be entered into as such a contract, and

must (in addition to what is required by or under subsections (1) and (2) or subsections (1) and (4)) propose terms and conditions of employment—

that, taken as a whole, are no less favourable than the terms and conditions of employment relating to matters other than working hours and length of employment that the qualifying worker had when working for the employer during the relevant reference period, or

where section 27BC applies, that comply with subsection (2) of that section.

For the purposes of this section it is reasonable for a worker's contract of a qualifying worker to be entered into as a limited-term contract only if—

it is reasonable for the qualifying worker's employer to consider that the worker is only needed to perform a specific task and the contract provides for termination when the task has been performed,

it is reasonable for the qualifying worker's employer to consider that the worker is only needed until the occurrence of an event (or the failure of an event to occur) and the contract provides for termination on the occurrence of the event (or the failure of the event to occur), or

it is reasonable for the qualifying worker's employer to consider that there is only a temporary need of a specified description (not falling within paragraph (a) or (b)) for the qualifying worker to do work under the contract and the contract is to expire at a time when it is reasonable for the employer to consider that the temporary need will come to an end.

Before making the first regulations to be made under subsection (9)(c) the Secretary of State must consult—

such persons representing the interests of seasonal workers as the Secretary of State considers appropriate,

such persons representing the interests of employers of seasonal workers as the Secretary of State considers appropriate, and

such other persons as the Secretary of State considers appropriate.

A guaranteed hours offer—

must be made by no later than the specified day,

must be made in the specified form and manner, and

must be accompanied by specified information relating to the offer.

The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision about when a guaranteed hours offer is to be treated as having been made.

In this section, "reference period hours", in relation to a qualifying worker and a relevant reference period, has the same meaning as in section 27BA(3).

Section 27BB: Requirements relating to a guaranteed hours offer

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