New legislation making major changes to existing employment regulations comes into force from Monday 6 April 2020.
Parental bereavement leave and pay
The Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay Act 2018 gives all employed parents the right to 2 weeks’ paid leave if their child aged under 18 dies, or if they have a stillbirth at 24 weeks or later.
Written terms (‘written statement of employment particulars’)
Workers now have the same right as employees to written terms (a ‘written statement of employment particulars’) from their employer. Employers must provide their workers and employees with their written statement on or before their first day of employment, no matter how long they’re employed for.
Agency workers’ rights
The Swedish Derogation (referred to as ‘pay between assignments’ contracts) is abolished from 6 April 2020, so all agency workers are entitled to the same rate of pay as their permanent counterparts after 12 weeks. All agency workers are entitled to a key information document that clearly sets out the type of contract they will have and the pay they’ll receive.
ICE (Information and Consultation of Employees) Regulations
From 6 April 2020, it has been made easier to request an information and consultation agreement. A minimum of 2%, rather than 10% of employees (or at least 15 people), in workplaces with 50 employees or more can request a formal agreement to be informed and consulted about workplace
matters.
Changes to holiday pay calculations
From 6 April 2020, the period used to calculate a week’s pay for holiday pay purposes increases from the previous 12 weeks of work to the previous 52 weeks.