2.5.2 Legislation

Question 1

The effects of businesses of legislation

Answer 1

• Legislation refers to laws and regulations passed by governments that require businesses and individuals to conduct their behaviour in a particular manner
• There are five areas of legislation that have significant impact on businesses:
  1. Consumer protection.
  2. Employee protection.
  3. Environmental protection.
  4. Competition policy.
  5. Health and safety.

Question 2

The effects on businesses of consumer protection laws

Answer 2

• Consumer protection legislation aims to ensure that consumers are treated fairly by the companies with which they interact
• Legislation covers areas including the safety of products, the standard and quality of products, the rate of customers if they’re unhappy with their purchase, the product information that must be given to customers
• Meeting the requirements for results in increased business expenditure, which may reduce profitability
• Consumer protection legislation aims to provide a level playing for businesses, ensuring that no business can gain an unfair advantage of arrivals by taking shortcut so I making false claims about his products

Question 3

The effects on businesses of employee protection laws

Answer 3

• Employee protection legislation aims to prevent the exploitation of work
• Includes areas like pay and working conditions, a quality of employment rights for marginalised groups to avoid discrimination, the right to belong to a trade union and take industrial action, contracts and termination of employment

Question 4

The effect on businesses of environmental protection laws

Answer 4

• environmental legislation aims to hold businesses responsible for their environmental impact
• Includes areas like pollution, destruction of wildfire, traffic congestion, air quality, resource depletion
• Businesses that fell to a data to these laws may be fined or forced to cease commercial activity until they resolve problems they have caused

Question 5

The effects of businesses of competition policy laws

Answer 5

• Competition legislation aims to protect the interest of both consumers and businesses by restricting anti-competitive practices
• These include abuse of market power so as to limit monopoly power, anti-competitive acquisition activity, cartel activity and collusion
• Where the competition and market authority judges that a business is acted or may potentially act an antique competitive manner it may take steps such as preventing a merger or instructing a business to dispose of subsidiaries in order to correct the market

Question 6

The effects on businesses of health and safety legislation

Answer 6

• Health and safety legislation require requires businesses to operate in a way that protects the physical and mental well-being of its employees and contractors, as well as it’s customers
• Includes areas like the provision of adequate breaks and rest periods, temperature and noise levels, the provision of safety equipment, hygienic, safe and sanitary conditions, preventing stress
• Implementation of procedures and equipment required to maintain health and safety business premises and working conditions are likely to incur financial and time costs
• Serious health and safety breach is can lead to find or investigation by the health and safety executive and in some cases can lead to prosecution