Employer warning! Employment law changes this April
Several employment law changes are coming into effect this month of which all employers need to be aware.
The first, which took effect on 1st of April, sees the rise of both the national minimum wage and living wage hourly rates. This is for all categories of employees over the age of 16.
Employers must check that their pay rates for any working time (which may include travel and on-call) do not fall foul of the new legislation.
The following rates are applied from 1st April:
- Age 16 to 17 – £4.20
- Age 18 to 20 – £5.90
- Age 21 to 24 – £7.38
- Over 25 – £7.83.
On 6th April additional changes are coming into place which will increase the amount that an Employment Tribunal can award, including increasing the maximum unfair dismissal compensatory award to £83,682. At the same time, the maximum amount of a week’s pay used in the formula to calculate statutory redundancy pay also increases to £508 a week.
The scrapping of tribunal fees in July last year has resulted in a significant increase in the number of employment claims. This, combined with the now increased compensation levels, could have a substantial impact on businesses.
Employers are advised to take legal advice before dismissing an employee to avoid future problems that could be both expensive and damaging to its reputation.
If you would like to talk to our employment law team, you can contact them on 01752 203500 or fill in the contact form.
Rob Zacal, employment solicitor