The latest casualty of the government’s relentless employment law review are unfair dismissal laws.

Under new rules, employees have had their qualifying time with an employer doubled from 12 months to two years.

The new regulation will come in to force from April 2012.

The government expects to see a massive decline in “weak and vexatious” claims for compensation brought by disgruntled workers.

Consultation suggest around 2,000 less claims will go before employment tribunals as a result of the change.

Business Secretary Vince Cable said: “The priority of this government is to increase growth in our economy. We have one of the most flexible labour markets in the world but there is more we can do to give British business the confidence it needs to create more jobs and support the wider economy to grow.

“Businesses tell us that unfair dismissal rules are a major barrier to taking on more people. So today we have announced that only after working for the same employer for two years can an employee bring an unfair dismissal claim.”

The move is part of an 18 month scrutiny of employment laws – and more changes are expected over the next few weeks as the government campaign focusses on 160 different business regulations.

Other laws the government is looking at revising include collective redundancies, employment agencies, immigration checks, the National Minimum Wage and statutory sick pay.

Some employment organisations fear relaxing employment laws will let unscrupulous employers take advantage of workers.

Dr John Philpott, chief economic adviser at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development  said: “While watering down unfair dismissal rights can boost recruitment and improve job prospects for young people and the long-term unemployed, the short-run impact is limited by the weak labour market, while in the long-term any positive effect on hiring is likely to be offset by a corresponding increase in the rate of dismissals.

“Evidence on the effects of employment protection legislation suggests that while less job protection encourages increased hiring during economic recoveries it also results in increased firing during downturns.

“The overall effect is thus simply to make employment less stable over the economic cycle, with little significant impact one way or the other on structural rates of employm

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