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Thursday, December 5, 2019
Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay
Royal Assent has been granted to The Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay Act 2018 and we can expect to see this come into force in April 2020.
The Act provides for employed parents to have the right to 2 weeks’ leave if they suffer the tragedy of losing a child under the age of 18 or suffer a stillbirth from 24 weeks of pregnancy. Parents will also be able to claim pay for this period, subject to meeting eligibility criteria.
Written statements of employment particulars
From 6 April 2020 there are three important changes to written statements:
- Workers employed on or after 6 April 2020 will be entitled to a written statement of employment particulars.
- Employees and workers must be provided with their written statement on or before their first day of employment.
- There is additional information that written statements will need to contain, including:
- the hours and days of the week the worker /employee is required to work, whether they may be varied and how
- entitlements to any paid leave
- any other benefits not covered elsewhere in the written statement
- details of any probationary period
- details of training provided by the employer
Changes to agency workers’ rights
There are three important changes to agency workers’ rights which will apply from 6 April 2020:
- Abolition of the Swedish Derogation (sometimes referred to as ‘pay between assignments’ contracts). Previously agency workers could agree to a contract which would remove their right to equal pay with permanent counterparts after 12 weeks working at the same assignment. From 6 April 2020, these contracts will no longer be permissible, and all agency workers, after 12 weeks, will be entitled to the same rate of pay as their permanent counterparts.
- All agency workers will be entitled to a key information document that more clearly sets out their employment relationships and terms and conditions with their agency.
- Agency workers who are considered to be employees will be protected from unfair dismissal or suffering a detriment if the reasons are related to asserting rights associated with The Agency Worker Regulations.
Changes to ICE (Information and Consultation of Employees) Regulations
From 6 April 2020, there will be a reduction in the percentage of employees required to make a valid request for an agreement on the sharing of information and consultation within the workplace. Currently, it is at least 10% of the workforce who must put in a request before an employer is obliged to take steps to comply with this right. This percentage will be reduced to 2%. The requirement that at least 15 employees make the request will remain.
Changes to holiday pay calculations
From 6 April 2020, the reference period to calculate a “week’s pay” for holiday pay purposes will be extended from the previous 12 weeks of work to the previous 52 weeks. [Source: ACAS]
Written by Robert Gibson, Senior Consultant - Employment Law
Robert is a Senior Consultant at Samuel Phillips and specialises in employment and business matters. He advises in relation to employment and shareholder disputes, including pensions and related issues.
