Legislation

• legislation = a set of laws put in place by the government to protect businesses, employees and consumers
• consumer protection = aims to ensure that consumers are treated fairly by the companies they interact with
• employee protection = employment rights, health and safety, redundancy, discrimination

  -> minimum wage

  -> equal pay
• environmental protection = an action or activity where the main purpose is to collect, treat, reduce, prevent or eliminate pollutants or any other degradation of the environment.
• competition policy = refers to the laws and regulations that businesses need to comply with in relation to how they compete in markets
• health and safety act = 1974, employers must provide a safe working environment
• Affects of the consumer protection law on businesses:

  • results in increased business expenditure, which may reduce profitability
  • Higher labour costs
  • changing working practices
  • potential penalties
  • compliance costs