As we’ve just entered a brand new year, we’re looking ahead to the upcoming 2023 employment law changes.
Additional bank holiday
It has been announced that there will be an additional bank holiday next year.
This will take place on 8 May 2023 to mark the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III.
This does not however give your employees an automatic right to an additional day off work and it will depend on what is written into their employment contract.
National minimum wage changes
2023 will mark the first year the NMW has risen above £10 an hour.
Can you imagine being paid £3.60 per hour back when the NMW was introduced in April 1999!?
The new rates for 2023 are as follows:
- 23 and over: £10.42
- 21 to 22: £10.18
- 18 to 20: £7.49
- Under 18: £5.28
- Apprentice: £5.28
These rates will come into play on 1 April 2023 so make sure you are increasing pay to reflect the new rates.
Statutory pay increases
In addition to the changing NMW rates, other statutory payment rates are also set to increase:
- Statutory maternity pay, adoption pay, paternity pay, and shared parental leave pay will increase to £172.48 per week.
- Statutory sick pay will increase to £109.48 per week.
These changes are set to take effect in April 2023.
Flexible working
The legislation around flexible working is set to change. Below are the upcoming changes:
- The right to request flexible working will become a day one right (currently only available to employees with 26 weeks continuity). This remains a right to request, not a right to have flexible working.
- Employees will be able to make 2 requests (previously 1) within a 12-month period.
- The time limit for employers to respond has been reduced to 2 months (previously 3 months).
- Employers will have a new duty to discuss alternatives to the request. It is not yet clear if this will be a statutory requirement.
- Employees will not have to set out in the procedure how the effects of their flexible working request might impact the employer.
- There is no change to the list of reasons employers can use to refuse a request for flexible working.
To read more detail on the changes to flexible working and how this will affect your business, please click hereto read our recent blog.
IR35
Following the Government’s mini budget the Chancellor announced that the off-payroll working rules (known as “IR35”) would be scrapped from April 2023.
However, on 17 October 2022, this decision was reversed by the new Chancellor.
In light of this U-turn, businesses will therefore continue to be required to determine the correct tax status of the engagement (and pay the tax and NI where appropriate).
Businesses engaging contractors should continue to consider the application of IR35 and ensure they continue to keep the necessary records of their checks and the tax status determinations. In addition, consideration of employment status should remain a priority for businesses given the potential liability created to individuals where their employment status is wrongly determined.
Keep an eye out for our monthly newsletter where we will keep you up to date on all the upcoming changes to employment law throughout the year.
If you have any questions for any of the team then please contact us at hello@rinewlegal.co.uk or visit our website to find out more.