Human resources departments will need to keep up with the raft of new legislation coming up in the year ahead, says Jo Moseley.
This year will be a busy one for human resources practitioners and line managers in the property sector. New legislation will increase legal protections for pregnant women, new parents, carers and those wanting to work flexibly. Significant changes are being made to the Working Time Regulations and a new duty to prevent workplace sexual harassment will also take effect.
Most of the new Acts referred to below are already on the statute books but will not come into force until the government issues separate regulations that will provide additional detail.
Changes to holiday and holiday pay
The Employment Rights (Amendment, Revocation and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2023 amend the Working Time Regulations.
New rules will apply to workers with irregular working hours (such as those engaged on zero-hours contracts) and those working under part-year contracts. They will not automatically be entitled to 5.6 weeks’ holiday each year and instead will accrue holiday at a rate of 12.07% of the hours they work each month.
Employers will also be able to lawfully roll up holiday pay for this group of workers by paying an additional 12.07% on top of their hourly pay, provided they itemise this separately on their payslips. Employers can make these changes for leave years on or after 1 April 2024.
Other changes will come into force from 1 January 2024, including defining what types of payments have to be included in holiday pay (including some commission, uplifts for professional or personal status or seniority and overtime payments).
The new rules also expressly set out when a worker will be able to roll over holiday from one leave year to the next (and in some cases beyond that). They also put a new duty on employers to inform their staff if they have outstanding holiday that they need to take before the end of the leave year.
Employers will need to review the contracts of employment of their staff to ensure that they reflect these new rules and amend any that don’t.
Protection against redundancy
Under current rules, before making redundant an employee on maternity leave, shared parental leave or adoption leave, employers are obliged to offer them a suitable alternative vacancy where one exists, in priority over anyone else who is provisionally selected for redundancy.
The Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Act 2023 will extend protection so that it applies to pregnant women from the point they tell their employer they are pregnant and for an additional protected period following their return to work (calculated from the first day of the expected week of childbirth for a period of 18 months). This means that, if an employee takes their full 12 months of statutory maternity leave, they will receive an extra six months of protection following their return to work.
Protection will also apply to new parents returning to work from adoption or shared parental leave for a similar additional protected period.
The new right will come into force on 6 April 2024.
Carer’s leave
The Carer’s Leave Act 2023 will introduce one week’s unpaid leave to help employees with long-term caring responsibilities to balance these with their paid work. It will be a “day one” right and leave can be taken in one single block or on individual days. These rights will come into force on 6 April 2024.
Changes to rules on flexible working
The Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023 will make significant changes to the current statutory procedure. Employees will be able to make up to two requests each year, and employers will have to deal with applications (and any appeals) within two months. Employers will still be able to turn down requests if they have a business reason for doing so on the same grounds as currently exist.
Employees will be able to make a request from the first day of their employment. The right to make a request from day one will come into force on 6 April 2024 and we expect the other changes to come into force at the same time.
Right to request a more predictable working pattern
The Workers (Predictable Terms and Conditions) Act 2023 will allow some workers to ask their employer for a more predictable working pattern, including the right to work for a certain number of hours, or on particular days of the week. The right will also apply to workers engaged under fixed-term contracts of less than 12 months. Employers will be able to turn down requests if they have a business reason for doing so.
New regulations are required to bring this into force. We expect these to be published in the new year and to come into force in September 2024.
Combating workplace harassment
The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 will impose a new duty on employers to prevent sexual harassment in their workplaces. If they fail to do so, a tribunal can award a claimant additional compensation of up to 25% of their compensatory award.
This will come into force in the autumn of 2024, and employers will have to update their diversity and inclusion policies and ensure that the training they provide to their staff complies with the new law.
National Minimum Wage
There are some hefty wage increases that employers will need to factor in. From April 2024, the National Living Wage will apply to workers aged 21 and over and the rate is increasing to £11.44 an hour. Those aged between 18 and 20 years will receive £8.60 an hour,16- and 17-year-olds £6.40 an hour, and apprentices under the age of 19 or in their first year £6.40 an hour.
HR-wise, there will be plenty to grapple with in the year ahead.
Jo Moseley is a lead practice development lawyer in the employment team at Irwin Mitchell LLP
