WHAT DOES 2024 HOLD FOR EMPLOYMENT LAW?
Released On 16th Jan 2024
After a few years of relatively few changes, 2024 looks to be a somewhat busier year for employment law. This is, perhaps, a consequence of Brexit and the Government finally having the time and inclination to tackle some of those niggling issues – or perhaps it’s because an election is scheduled for this year. So, here are my thoughts on the year ahead…
Flexible Working
Here the Government are a little schizophrenic; on the one hand they are desperate to get as many people back to work, into the office and working full-time then, at the same time, saying employers need to be as flexible as possible. The latter will be the subject of the new flexible working legislation which will allow employees to make two requests a year to work flexibly, shortening the ‘consideration’ time and obliging employers to consult with employees.
These new rights will be available to all employees from Day One. Whilst the published (but not enacted) legislation does not confirm this, various Government ministers have stated that this will be the case.
Minimum (Living) Wage (NMW/NLW)
This will increase in April 2024 with above inflation rises for all and, in particular, younger workers. Previously, there has been a lower band for 21 and 22 year olds with the full NMW/NLW only applying to those over 23. This will change this year with everyone over 21 getting the full wage which will be £11.44 an hour. Those between 18 and 20 must receive a minimum of £8.60/hour and apprentices, £6.40.
Holiday Pay for Part-time and Zero-hours Workers
All employees are due to receive a minimum of 5.6 weeks paid holiday a year. This can include bank holidays and often equates to four weeks’ holiday and eight bank or public holidays. For those on short, fixed-term or zero hours contracts there was a complicated calculation to work out holiday entitlement and pay. This calculation had been difficult to formulate and had been subject to previous tweaks over the years. Then, it was discovered that full-time employees were losing out on holiday pay as compared to some short-timers!
Accountants and employers devised their own rules. These were unlawful, but did a better job at resolving the anomalies than the government had. Here, employers ‘rolled up’ holiday pay into the hourly rate. This meant that they did not have to re-calculate holiday pay every week. This made the employers happy, the employees happy and HMRC happy (as they were guaranteed income tax) – but it was still wrong.
The Government have now come round to accepting the ability to pay rolled-up holiday pay (at the rate of 12.07%) on the ‘normal’ rate of pay. Now all we have to do is work out what is ‘normal’! More to follow…
TUPE
Another insanely complicated piece of legislation is the Transfer of Undertakings Regulations, the protection given to employees when they change employers.
One of the most difficult requirements was consulting with ‘representatives’ on any transfer. This was fine for European employees with their ‘worker councils’ and ‘employee committees’ but really never worked in a UK context. So, this year will see the ability to consult with employees individually where there are no formal worker groupings or a trade union.
Miscarriage Leave Bill
This will allow three days of paid leave for those losing a baby before 24 weeks of pregnancy. This replaces the similar provision which was without pay. We await further information on this.
Carer’s Leave Act
With many people acting as carers for individuals with long-term (>3 months) illnesses and conditions this will allow a week off per year. Unfortunately, this will be unpaid, but does recognise the importance of those who look after others.
Protection from Sexual Harassment
Whilst employees have the right to a safe working environment, which would include protection from sexual harassment, the Government intend to oblige employers to be proactive in their approach to this. Failure to actively protect employees could result in any compensation being awarded by a tribunal being increased by 25%. However, the proposed legislation will not allow an employee to bring a free-standing complaint and this would have to be tacked on to an existing sexual harassment claim.
Tips and Gratuities
With the decline in cash usage and many people only paying by card, the poor waiter/waitress is less likely than ever to see the tip that their generous customer has added onto the credit card payment. The Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act seeks to address that. From May this year, 100% of tips must be paid to the employees. This may be more difficult than it seems with some tips being pooled, backroom staff missing out and HMRC wanting to ensure tax is being paid correctly, but it’s a step in the right direction.
Election
Of course, the above is an indication of what the current government wish to do. What happens if Labour or a collation get in?
