First published on Thursday, Aug 13, 2020
Last updated on Monday, Mar 25, 2019
Every April, new employment laws come into force. This year, the National Minimum Wage goes up, pension contributions get bigger, and payslips get a complete overhaul.
Here are six employment laws that are changing and how to prepare for them.
1st April: National Minimum Wage increases
The National Minimum Wage goes up for all staff. The new hourly rates are:
£8.21 per hour for workers aged 25 and over (up from £7.83)
£7.70 per hour for workers aged 21 to 24 (up from £7.38)
£6.15 per hour for workers aged 18 to 20 (up from £5.90)
£4.35 per hour for workers aged under 18 (up from £4.20)
£3.90 per hour for apprentices (up from £3.70)
6th April: New payslip rules
All workers (that includes agency staff and casual or zero hours staff) must get itemised payslips, not just employees.
Payslips must include the number of hours where pay varies depending on the amount of time worked. So if staff get paid based on the number of hours they work or they get different pay for working certain hours, you need to include these hours on their payslips.
Want to know more about this law? Our new guide to payslips lands on the BrightHR blog this Wednesday—so stay tuned.
6th April: Sick pay goes up
Statutory Sick Pay increases from £92.05 to £94.25 per week. Your employees get this payment when they’ve been ill for four days or more.
6th April: Employment tribunal award hikes
Tribunal compensation goes up for certain awards. Here are the new limits:
- £525 is the limit on a week’s pay when calculating statutory redundancy payments
- £15,750 is the maximum basic award for unfair dismissal and statutory redundancy payment
- £86,444 is the maximum compensatory award for unfair dismissal
6th April: Pension contributions change
You need to put 3% of your staff’s annual salary (up from 2% last year) into their pension, and your staff need to contribute 5%.
7th April: Family-related pay increases
Statutory Maternity, Paternity, Adoption and Shared Parental Pay increases from £145.18 to £148.68 per week. Employees need to earn £118 per week (up from £116) to get these payments.
Prepare your business now
It’s not too late to get your business ready for 1st April. And with BrightAdvice, you get instant answers to any employment law questions you have.
Our legal specialists are on hand to give you in-depth, practical advice on how to prepare your business, so that you can avoid huge mistakes and hefty fines.
Speak to our friendly team today on 0800 783 2806.