‘They’re paid to do a job’: Lloyd’s of London boss warns of Labour’s plans for workers’ rights

The head of Lloyd’s of London has sounded the alarm over plans to introduce a raft of rights for workers, saying it is vital to “get the balance right”.

John Neal, who has campaigned to bring staff back into the three-century-old insurance market after the pandemic, said: “The employee needs to understand that they are being paid to do a job.”

He warned that putting employers under too much pressure with new rules could risk cutting jobs or pushing them to send jobs overseas.

Labour wants to give staff the right to request a four-day working week and the “right to switch off” and has strongly supported working from home.

Speaking at the Labour Party conference yesterday, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves said the plans amounted to “a new deal for workers” to “make work pay”.

But many companies are concerned that the plans – which also include the right to protection from dismissal from day one – will deter hiring.

Neal acknowledged that in the past the pendulum had sometimes swung too far against workers (for example, if they were expected to always be available to be contacted).

He said that “can’t be right, because they need a break.”

But Neal told the Mail: “We want UK plc to stay alive and well, if it’s alive and well it needs to grow, if it’s growing then it will create job opportunities. If we put businesses under too much pressure where they become very, very expensive…

If they focus on this, they risk facing two problems: are they going through restructuring programmes or layoffs? Are they thinking of relocating jobs?

“And we don’t want to get caught up in those debates. We need to make sure that employees feel valued in terms of pay and benefits.

“But at the same time, the employee has to understand that he or she is being paid to do a job and that job has to be done well. So we just have to find the right balance.”

Lloyd’s allows some flexibility for its employees, but they must be in the office at least three days a week, and for some it might be four.

He said attendance at the building was “pretty much back to normal” from Tuesday to Thursday, with Monday “coming in pretty quickly.” Friday was always “a bit quiet” for Lloyd’s even before the pandemic, he said.

Neal said being present was vital to a business.