As with every year, April has seen some changes to the world of employment law. Many of the changes have of course related to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme which I’ve written about elsewhere, and so in this post, I will take a break from the CRJS and Furlough Leave other than to say that for clients, I have a useful template furlough agreement that employers can use.
In this post I’ll provide an update on some of the key changes you should be aware of:
- Agency workers rights
- ICE (Information and Consultation of Employees) Regulations
- Changes to holiday pay calculations
- Increases to the national minimum wage
- Increases to statutory family-related pay and sick pay
- Change to unfair dismissal compensation
- Increase to statutory redundancy calculations
- Parental bereavement leave and pay
- Written statements of employment particulars
Agency workers’ rights
On 6 April employers’ right to pay agency workers less than their own workers in certain circumstances (also known as “the Swedish Derogation”) ceased. Under the derogation agency workers could agree to accept a lower rate of pay, compared to an employer’s own workers, in exchange for guaranteed pay between assignments when they would not otherwise be paid.
Now that the derogation has been abolished, employers must ensure that agency workers receive the same rate of pay if they meet the 12-week qualifying period. Employers should also remember that to cease and then recommence an engagement so as to avoid the 12-week qualifying period is illegal.
When individuals apply to work with an agency they must be provided with a “key information document” right away which sets out the type of contract they’ll have and the pay they will receive. When someone signs a contract with an agency they must then be provided with a written statement of particulars.
When an agency offers someone an assignment they must provide certain details in writing or email straight away (or within 3 days if the offer was made verbally):
- the name of the organisation and what sort of business they do
- the start date and likely length of the assignment
- details of the position and type of work
- the location
- the working hours
- any health and safety risks and how they will be managed
- experience and training needed
- the rate of pay and any other benefits
- whether expenses can be claimed
ICE
Since 6 April it is easier to request an information and consultation agreement under the Information and Consultation of Employees Regulations. A minimum of 2% (or at least 15 people), rather than 10%, in workplaces with 50 or more employees can request a formal agreement to be informed and consulted about workplace matters.
Aside from the existing right to be informed and consulted about possible redundancies, contractual changes, TUPE transfers, and changes to pension arrangements an ICE agreement could cover matters such as:
- mental and physical wellbeing
- staffing levels
- health and safety
- training
- working conditions
- new ways of working
Changes to holiday pay calculations
On 6 April the reference period used to calculate a week’s pay for the purpose of holiday pay changed from the previous 12 weeks to the previous 52 weeks.
Whatever an employee’s working pattern they should be paid the same during holidays as when they’re at work. For those working fixed hours their holiday pay is the same as their normal rate of pay. For those with no fixed hours (e.g. zero hours contracts or doing casual work) their pay must now be calculated using the average pay over the previous 52 weeks.
If for any of the previous 52 weeks they received no pay at all then an earlier week should be used in its place.
If a small amoung of pay was received, for example Statutory Sick Pay, again an earlier week should be used in its place.
Employers should count back as far as necessary in order to get 52 weeks of usual pay but counting backwards can only extend to a maximum of 104 weeks.
If an employee doesn’t have 52 weeks’ tenure then the employer should use the total number of weeks worked for the purpose of calculating holiday pay.
Increases to the National Minimum Wage
The national living wage for workers aged 25 and over increased on 1 April to £8.72 per hour.
At the same time other national minimum wage rates increased with hourly rates increasing to £8.20 for workers aged 21 to 24; £6.45 for workers aged 18 to 20; and £4.55 for workers aged 16 or 17.
Statutory family-related pay and sick pay
The weekly rate of statutory maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave pay increased on 5 April to £151.20.
On 6 April the weekly rate of statutory sick pay increased to £95.85. At the time of writing, the 3 day waiting period to qualify does not apply as a consequence of measures taken by the government to tackle Coronavirus.
Unfair dismissal compensation
For any dismissals taking place after 6 April, the maximum comensatory award for unfair dismissal is now £88,519.
Statutory redundancy calculations
The maximum amount of weekly pay for the purpose of calculating statutory redundancy payments increased on 6 April to £538. There is a useful calculator on the GOV.UK website to help with calculations.
Parental bereavement leave and pay
This was covered in an earlier blog post which you can find here.
Written statements of employment particulars
This was covered in an earlier blog post which you can find here. For more details of what information needs to be provided when; and what information can be provided in a single document, and what can be provided seperately, please get in touch.