Happy Monday! Your 1 minute read on 6 April employment law related changes

We’re aware that you will be being bombarded with challenges and information at the moment. As 6 April is the day in the employment law calendar when rates change and new legislation takes effect, we thought it might help for you to have the key need to know information in one place, as part of a 1 minute read.

As well as confirming what will change, it’s important to realise what will not – and the much heralded IR35 changes will not now be implemented on 6 April 2020, but on 6 April 2021 instead.

April 6 key changes are:

• “A week’s pay” rises to £538 – with the maximum statutory redundancy entitlement being £16,140.

• The cap on the basic award for unfair dismissal also rises to £16,140, with the compensatory award cap rising to £88,519.

• The guarantee payment for lay-off of short time working rises to £30 per day for a maximum of 5 days in any 3 month period.

• Statutory maternity pay rises to £151.20 per week and the same rates apply to statutory paternity and adoption pay.

• Statutory sick pay rises to £95.85 per week.
• National Minimum Wage/National Living Wage rate rises to £8.72 per hour for employees over 25s and £8.20 per hour for employees aged 21 - 24 (click here for other rates).

The “Vento bands” for ‘injury to feelings’ compensation in discrimination cases will rise to:

• £900 to £9,000 for lower band;

• £9,000 to £27,000 for middle band;

• £27,000 to £45,000 for upper band.

In terms of legislation applying from 6 April 2020, the key areas are:

• The reference period for determining an average week's pay (for holiday pay purposes) increases from 12 weeks to 52 weeks. If the worker has been employed for less than 52 weeks, the number of complete weeks they have been employed for should be used instead.

• All workers will need to be given the right to a written statement of terms under the Employment Rights (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019. Read more here.

• All termination payments above the £30,000 threshold are now subject to class 1A NICs.

• The Parental Bereavement (Leave and Pay) Act 2018 come into force, meaning all employed parents who have lost a child will now be entitled to two weeks' leave (irrespective of their length of service) to allow them time to grieve away from the workplace.

If you have any queries on any of the above, please do not hesitate to contact one of the Employment Team on 0191 211 7777.