Legislative Round Up

In this round up of recent and forthcoming legislative changes, we provide a summary of legislation that has come into force in the last few months and report on the new National Minimum Wage rates that will apply from October 2010, the draft Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses (Amendment) Regulations 2010, draft regulations requiring certain banks and building societies to disclose the remuneration packages of executives earning £500,000 or more, and a European Commission consultation on the options for reviewing the Working Time Directive.

Recent legislative changes

The following important legislative changes that came into force recently will be of interest to employers:

Intentionally stirring up hatred on grounds of sexual orientation - from 23 March, individuals in England and Wales who intentionally stir up hatred against a person on the grounds of their sexual orientation will be guilty of a criminal offence under the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008. Both employers and employees should bear in mind that any act of discrimination at work on the grounds of a person’s sexual orientation could, in certain circumstances, now amount to a criminal offence, punishable by a fine and/or a prison sentence of up to seven years.

Statutory maternity, paternity and adoption pay - the rate of each increases to £124.88 per week (or 90% of normal weekly earnings if that is lower) from 4 April.

Paternity leave and pay - the new additional rights to paternity leave and pay came into force on 6 April, but note that they only apply in relation to children due to be born or placed for adoption on or after 3 April 2011). Employers should review and amend their policies before that date.

Whistleblowing claims - employment tribunals’ power to pass on details of whistle blowing claims took effect from 6 April.

Time off for training - employees’ right to request time off to undertake certain study and training took effect from 6 April.

Fit note - the ‘fit note’ replaced the sick note regime from 6 April.

New anti-slavery criminal offences - from 6 April, employers in England and Wales who know or ought to know that they are holding an individual in slavery or servitude or are requiring an individual to perform forced or compulsory labour will be guilty of a criminal offence under the Coroners and Justice Act 2009. Employers found guilty of the new offence face a fine and/or a prison sentence of up to 14 years. A similar offence is currently being considered by the Scottish Parliament as part of the Criminal Justice and Licensing (Scotland) Bill.

Change to immigration rules - certain changes to the rules relating to Tier 1 and Tier 2 of the new points based-system took effect from 6 and 7 April. The key changes include new points criteria for both tiers, a simplified route for Tier 1 workers who do not have a Master’s degree, more flexibility for short-term transfers by multinational companies and additional protection against such short-term transfers being used to fill long-term vacancies.

National minimum wage

The government has announced the new national minimum wage rates that will apply from 1 October 2010:
workers aged 21 and over: £5.93
workers aged 18 - 20: £4.92
workers aged 16 and 17 (excluding apprentices): £3.64
As well as increasing the rates, the age band of the top tier rate has also been reduced from workers aged 22 and over to workers aged 21 and over.
A minimum wage payable to apprentices under 19 years old and apprentices aged 19 and over who are in the first year of their apprenticeship will also be introduced. From 1 October 2010, those apprentices will be entitled to a minimum of £2.50 per hour. All other apprentices are entitled to the national minimum wage appropriate for their age.

Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses

Following last year’s consultation, the draft Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses (Amendment) Regulations 2010 have been published. The Regulations, due to come into force on 1 October 2010, amend the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 by introducing a cooling-off period for individuals seeking certain types of work, modifying the suitability checks that employment businesses and employment agencies are obliged to carry out, restricting the fees that may be charged to a work-seeker, modifying the requirement to obtain a work-seekers’ agreement to basic terms before services are provided and making minor amendments to the rules on advertising.

Executives’ remuneration

The government has published the draft Executives’ Remuneration Report Regulations 2010 under which certain banks and building societies will be obliged to disclose the remuneration packages of executives earning £500,000 or more. These Regulations are made under the Financial Services Bill, which is currently before the House of Lords. Once that Bill has been passed into law, a full consultation on the Regulations is expected to commence.

Working Time Directive consultation

The European Commission is currently seeking evidence from employer and employee representatives as part of its six-week consultation on the options for reviewing the Working Time Directive (implemented into UK law by the Working Time Regulations 1998).

Source Shepherd and Wedderburn