Fury as Labour’s tax hikes and red tape sink employer confidence to record lows
TAX increases and business red tape have put employer confidence at record lows, a report warns today.
A quarter of firms plan redundancies in the next three months, while the number looking to hire has fallen to its lowest outside the pandemic.
A survey of 2,000 bosses by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development found the rate expecting to increase headcount has fallen sharply.
Bosses are blaming the £25billion hike in National Insurance announced in last year’s Budget, which started clobbering them last month.
They are also concerned Angela Rayner’s incoming Employment Rights Bill will pile complex and costly responsibilities on companies.
James Cockett, senior labour market economist at the CIPD, said: “From April, employers across the UK have begun to feel the full effect of increases to National Insurance Contributions and the National Living Wage outlined in last year’s Budget.
“They’re also looking at the potential impact of the Employment Rights Bill on employment costs and plans, and this comes at a time of global uncertainty.
“Employer confidence is low, which is being reflected in their hiring plans.”
The employment legislation will give workers a raft of extra rights from Day One in areas such as sick pay.
The CIPD’s tracker of employer sentiment fell last quarter from +13 to +8.
Shadow Business Secretary Andrew Griffith said: “This report only confirms what we hear daily from the shop floor to the boardroom: confidence has collapsed.
“Labour can’t understand why because their Cabinet has zero business experience.”