Dreaming Music Video Treatment _ Project & Portfolio III
March SN Employment Law
1. Greater Manchester
Good Employment Charter
Supporters’ Network Event |11th March 2020
GoodEmployment
#GoodEmpCharter Greater Manchester
Good Employment Charter
Welcome – network and share good employment, but to
follow COVID-19 best practice, no need to shake hands!
2. Agenda
Welcome and Introductions
(Ian MacArthur, Head of Charter Implementation Unit)
Employment Law Update
(Karen Lester, Acas Trainer)
Charter Development
Date, time and subject of next meeting
3.
4.
5. working for everyone
to resolve and prevent workplace problems
Employment law
update
Karen Lester
6. Objectives
• State the current statutory payments and when increases will come
into effect
• Describe recent changes in employment legislation
• Explain recent and future developments in employment related
issues
• Explore the implications for employers of recent case decisions
10. National Minimum Wage/ Living Wage
Adult rate
(Age 21-24)
£7.70 £8.20
Age 18-20 £6.15 £6.45
Age 16-17 £4.35 £4.55
Apprentice rate £3.90 £4.15
National living wage
(Age 25 and over)
£8.21 £8.72
April 2019 April 2020
12. Good Work Plan
• Extend holiday pay reference period from 12 to 52 weeks – 6th
April 2020
• Lowering the threshold for Information and consultation
arrangements – 6th April 2020
• Clarity for employment status tests - TBC
• The right for worker to request a more predictable contract -
TBC
13. Written statement changes
From 6 April 2020:
• Extended to all workers, not just employees
• Principal document must be issued no later that first day of
employment/engagement
• Some information can be provided another reasonably accessible
document
• No need to issue to existing employees, unless they ask for it
14. Agency workers changes
From 6 April 2020:
• ‘Swedish derogation’ is removed
• By 30 April 2020, temporary work agencies must provide agency
workers, whose existing contract contains a Swedish derogation
provision, with a written statement advising that, with effect from 6
April, those provisions no longer apply.
• Temporary work agencies must provide agency workers with a Key
Information Document
15. Consultation on the use of confidentiality clauses
Government has consulted on :
• Banning confidentiality clauses that prevents a victim from
discussing criminal acts with the police
• Confidentiality clauses to be detailed in the written statement
issued to workers at the start of the working relationship
• Confidentiality clauses to highlight the disclosures that these
clauses do not prohibit. Any confidentiality clauses which fail to
comply with this will be void in their entirety
16. Parental Bereavement (Pay and Leave)
• To provide employed parents who lose a child under the age of 18
with 2 weeks leave
• Day-one right
• Employees with a minimum of 26 weeks continuous service will be
eligible for statutory parental bereavement pay
• Small employers will be able to reclaim all statutory bereavement
pay and larger employers being able to reclaim most
Becomes law on 6th April 2020
17. Changes and what could be on the horizon
• Executive pay ratio reporting
• Flexible working task force
• Shared Parental Leave and pay:
policy transparency
• Ethnicity pay gap reporting
• Plans to ban employers from taking
staff tips
19. Employment Rights after the UK leaves the EU
EU (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill no longer
contains protection of EU-derived workers’
rights
EU law will continue to apply to the UK
until 31 December 2020
Protection for EU workers’ rights to be
included in an Employment Bill
20. EU citizens working in the UK
• EU citizens currently living in the UK will have the
same right to work until at least 30 June 2021
• EU citizens who have lived in the UK for 5 or more
years before Brexit takes place have the right to work
in UK indefinitely by applying for ‘settled status’
• EU citizens who have lived in the UK for less than 5
years before Brexit takes place have the right to work
in the UK indefinitely by applying for ‘pre-settled
status’
• Irish nationals or have dual citizenship
21. Talking about how Brexit affects workers
Employees should:
• Know that if its important to them and their work
it’s important to the employer
• Know what they need to discuss and where to get
help
• Ask their line manager for time to discuss
something private
Employers, supervisors and managers should:
• Appreciate it’s difficult for an employee to request
a private meeting
• Be aware of emotions
• Have extra meetings if required
22. Other Brexit issues
• Appeal against employment tribunal
and court decisions
• Changes in business contracts
• Discrimination
• Brexit political beliefs in the
workplace
24. Coronavirus
• Health and Safety Law – duty of care to protect health and safety of
all employees
• Government updates – daily at 2pm
• Contingency planning
• Self isolation – is it sick leave?
• Reduction in demand
• Contact details up to date
• Discrimination - Banter/jokes or treating individuals differently
because of ethnicity or race
25. Coronavirus – practical steps
• Communicate with staff :
• Measures in place to prevent spreading
• Provide handwashing facilities, soap, sanitiser
• Sickness reporting procedures reviewed/communicated
• Review travel of staff – is it necessary
26. Coronavirus – sources of information
• Government updates – 2pm daily -
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-information-for-the-
public
• Public Health England –
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/public-health-england and
Twitter - @PHE_uk
• Health and Safety Executive – www.hse.org.uk
• NHS 111 online - https://111.nhs.uk/covid-19
• ACAS – www.acas.org.uk
28. New Employment Bill
The main elements of the Bill are:
• Creating a new single enforcement body
• Ensuring that tips left for workers go to them in full
• Introducing a new right for all workers to request a more
predictable contract.
• Extending redundancy protections to prevent pregnancy
and maternity discrimination
• Allowing parents to take extended leave for neonatal
care: and introducing an entitlement to one week’s leave
for unpaid carers
• Subject to consultation the Bill will make flexible
working the default unless employers have good reason
not to
29. Government’s response to report on sexual
harassment in the workplace
• The government will work with the EHRC to develop a statutory
Code of Practice on sexual harassment
• Raising the limit from £5,000 to £20,000 that employment tribunal’s
can award for an aggravated breach
• The EHRC will be added to the list of prescribed persons to whom
protected whistleblowing allegations can be made
• Consultation on sexual harassment in the workplace launched
30. Government had consulted on
• Whether to introduce a mandatory duty to protect employees
• How best to clarify and strengthen laws relating to 3rd party sexual
harassment
• Measures to protect interns and volunteers
• Extending tribunal time limits
31. Consultation on parental leave entitlements
• Parental leave and pay
• Neonatal leave and pay
• Transparency in flexible working
• Family-related leave and
pay policies
32. Consultation on one-sided flexibility
Government is consulting on :
• Providing workers a right to reasonable notice of work schedules
• Providing workers with compensation for shifts cancelled without
reasonable notice
In addition the government is seeking views on how it can provide to
support employers and encourage good practice
33. Single enforcement body for employment rights
• Enforcement of the minimum wage and holiday pay
• Tackle labour exploitation and modern slavery
• Oversee the safeguarding of agency workers
• Consider whether the body also should enforce unpaid tribunal
awards
34. Proposals to reduce ill health-related job loss
• Right to request workplace
modifications
• Encouraging early/supportive
action from employers
• Reforming SSP
• Improving access to occupational
health
• Advice an support for employers
35. Acas – changes to Early Conciliation notification
process
• Improved notification process
• Improved case management system
• Trialling different ways of working
37. de Souza v Primark
Transgender employee
awarded almost £47,500
compensation against Primark
38. A Ltd v Z
Does an employer have
constructive knowledge of a
disability if the employee hides
their disability?
39. Talon Engineering v Smith
Should an employer delay a
disciplinary hearing if an
employee’s union rep is not
available for 2 weeks?
40. Furlong v Chief Constable of Cheshire Police
Can positive action in a recruitment
campaign to attract and recruit
more BME and female recruits be
discriminatory?
41. London Borough of Lambeth
v Agoreyo
Does an employer need to show
that suspension is necessary?
42. Casamitjana v League Against Cruel Sports
Is ethical veganism protected as
a philosophical belief under the
Equality Act 2020?
43. Cases to watch out for….
• Royal Mencap Society v Tomlinson Blake and others (NMW Sleep ins)
• Kostal UK Ltd v Dunkley and others (Trade Union Incentives)
• Heskett v Secretary of State for Justice (Age Discrimination)
• Aslam and others v Uber and others (employment status)
45. Stay in touch
Acas newsletter
acas.org.uk/subscribe
Customer Services
Team
0300 123 1150
events@acas.org.uk
Social media
@acasorguk
Acas
Editor's Notes
5
Rate and length of statutory lay-off pay
Employees are entitled to guaranteed pay during lay off or short-time working. The maximum they can get is £30.00 a day for 5 days in any 3-month period.
If employees usually earn less than £30.00 a day they will get your normal daily rate.
If employees work part-time, entitlement is worked out proportionally.
