A pay-off with no tribunal will help firms lose failing staff The legislation, to be introduced in the Commons, would allow employers to offer staff a "settlement agreement" to leave before a formal employment dispute arises. Under the agreements, workers will leave with a compensation payment, while their employer will get legal protection against the dismissal being used in a tribunal. Conservative ministers have advocated a system of "compensated no-fault dismissal" that would allow employers to fire staff at will. That plan, drawn up by Adrian Beecroft, a private equity executive, triggered a Coalition row and led to the settlement agreements. Norman Lamb, the Liberal Democrat employment relations minister, said: "Employers have to feel confident in dealing with situations such as where an employee isn't pulling their weight or where someone is unreliable or even guilty of misconduct. Mr Lamb said that many large companies already use settlement agreements and the Coalition's changes will allow small firms to do the same without incurring large legal fees. Employees will be free to choose whether to accept the offer. Dr Adam Marshall, the director of policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, said the changes will help companies. Paul Kenny, the general secretary of the GMB union, said the change will seriously undermine workers" rights. This is no-fault dismissal by another name. Once again we see this Government finding a way to undermine existing employment rights by introducing measures which allow employers to force employees out the door if their face doesn't fit. There is no evidence these measures encourage growth. In fact they encourage further destabilisation in workplaces and cause unnecessary anxiety. Catherine Wilson, an employment lawyer at Thomas Eggar, said it was a largely cosmetic development of compromise agreements introduced in 1993.