Employments Rights Regulations Update

Employments Rights Regulations Update

In amongst the chaos of the past six months you may have missed our previous announcement regarding legislative changes to employment law.

From 6th April various new Employment Rights Regulations came into force. We have summarised the key changes for you below however if you do have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Written Statement of Terms A written statement of terms (a contract of employment) must now be provided to all staff (workers as well as employees) and must be given on or before the first day of employment.

There is now additional compulsory information to include as follows: – How long a job will last (an end date for fixed term contracts); – How much notice must be provided or given by both parties; – Eligibility for sick leave and pay; – Details of all other types of paid leave (maternity, parental etc); – The duration and conditions of any probationary period; – All remuneration (including benefits); – Normal working days and hours (including how these will vary if applicable); – Training entitlement (what is compulsory and who bears the costs of this).

We would suggest that you review your standard contract now to ensure that it complies with the new regulations before you recruit any new staff. It is also advisable to review your procedure to ensure that new staff are always given their contracts on or before their first day of employment. A breach of this duty can attract a financial penalty of 4 weeks’ pay in any tribunal claim.

Holiday pay The reference period for determining an average weeks’ pay will increase from 12 weeks to 52 weeks. This generally applies to casual or seasonal staff.

We advise that you consider all employees that this may apply to and ensure that you have clear records of their pay for a 52-week rolling period.

Agency Workers Whilst there is no action to take as an employer/service user, if you do have agency workers within your organisation then you need to ensure that the agency has complied with the new regulations.

Parental Bereavement Leave Under new legislation, employed parents (of a child under 18 or those who suffer a still birth from 24 weeks of pregnancy) will be entitled to a statutory minimum of two weeks’ paid leave. The right extends to both adoptive parents and the partner of a parent who lives that that parent and the child in an enduring family relationship.

The minimum period is one week and the two weeks do not need to be taken consecutively. The leave can be taken at any time within 56 weeks from the date that the child died.

The current rate paid for parental bereavement leave is £151.20 per week, or 90% of normal weekly earnings if this is lower.

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