City leaders weigh employment policy alternatives to non-competes Law City businesses are expecting non-compete agreements to become less effective, looking instead to alternatives such as deferred bonus payments or share incentive plans to keep employees on board. In 2025, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) launched a consultation to consider restrictions on non-compete clauses in employment contracts. The consultation closed for feedback in [...]
Meta glasses court ban sparks privacy warning for City businesses Legal Meta’s controversial smart glasses have been banned from courthouses across England, prompting lawyers to sound the alarm for businesses about growing legal risks surrounding the wearable tech. Earlier this week, it was revealed that His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) had confirmed that camera glasses were banned from its sites across England and Wales. [...]
Ten bold ideas to fire up the British economy Economics City AM is about to take its traditional two-week break from printing the newspaper. Very French of us, I know. Don’t worry – the team’s not going anywhere and the website, app, newsletters and studios will continue to fire on all cylinders. But since this is the last Editor’s Letter I’ll pen before we fire [...]
Top court ‘opens the floodgates’ for part-time workers’ claims August 12, 2026 The Supreme Court “may have opened the floodgates to a large number of potential claims against employers” after ruling that part-time workers claiming discrimination do not need to prove their part-time status was the “sole reason” for less favourable treatment. The case was brought by Warren Augustine, a part-time private hire driver for Data Cars, [...]
Revealed: KPMG and Deloitte offer bumper redundancy packages to slash headcount July 17, 2026 KPMG and Deloitte are offering UK staff bumper redundancy packages as they look to slash their headcount and trim costs, City AM can reveal. The two accountancy companies, as well as PwC, have all ramped up their payouts to employees after a slowdown in the sector’s traditional ‘attrition model’, in which around 15-20 per cent [...]
Starmer’s final act will expose firms to more bogus equality claims July 16, 2026 In his final days, Keir Starmer has opened the door to employees being able to challenge pay differences between entirely different jobs if predominantly staffed by people of different races, and a tribunal determines those – entirely different jobs – to be of ‘equal value’. says Tom Harwood As Keir Starmer bows out after two [...]
Non-compete clauses are restraining Britain’s talent market July 7, 2026 In the US, you can hire someone for a senior role and have them at their desk in a matter of weeks. Britain should ban non-compete clauses to enable the same.
World Cup office sweepstakes could leave employers facing legal red cards June 10, 2026 With the World Cup set to kick off on Thursday, many offices across the City will be gearing up to offer employees the chance to participate in competitions – known as sweepstakes – to place informal bets on who might win. Sweepstakes involve participants paying a fee into a cash pot and being randomly assigned [...]
Rising hiring costs push British businesses to the brink May 21, 2026 UK businesses are on the brink due to the government’s highly contentious employment rights agenda and cost hikes, following the first provisions of the Employment Rights Act, which came into force in April. According to new research from Employment Hero, an AI-powered employment platform, more than half of UK businesses feel employing staff has “become more [...]
Employment Bill: Here is everything that has happened since its inception September 3, 2025 The third reading of the Employment Rights Bill, a controversial piece of legislation, commenced at the House of Lords on Wednesday. Rushed out within 100 days of Labour taking office, the Bill has faced fierce debate and criticism from multiple stakeholders. The Bill, which formed a significant part of Labour’s manifesto, was laid before Parliament [...]