A sham 5 week consultation has been initiated by the Department for Business, Innovations and Skills’ much to the chagrin of the hard line anti worker Institute of Directors (IOD) "The right to request time off for training is a spectacularly bad policy. It simply wasn't necessary to wrap discussions about training between employers and employees in formal rules and regulations. It would have been far better if the government had simply announced it would repeal this law, rather than instigate a fresh round of time-consuming consultation" said the IOD’s Mike Harris with the eloquence of Gradgrind.
UNISON GS Dave Prentis (a member of the UK’s Commission for Employment & Skills) responded "If Britain is to compete in the global economy, having a well-trained, skilled workforce is a necessity. Good employers will want to make sure that their staff are equipped to do their jobs properly. It makes sense to retain and expand this provision."