|
Most Common Employment Rights – Summary …
Employment Law – claims, compensation and time limits from 1st February 2012
|
|
Qualifying Period |
Compensation limits |
Time limit to bring claim |
Unfair dismissal
Commencing employment before 6th April 2012 |
1 year |
Maximum Award - £72,300 |
Three months from effective date of termination (EDT) |
Unfair dismissal
Commencing employment on or after 6th April 2012 |
2 years * |
Maximum Award - £72,300 |
Three months from effective date of termination (EDT) |
|
Redundancy pay |
2 years |
Maximum – £12,900 (£430.00 per week) |
Six months from EDT |
|
Breach of Contract |
None |
Tribunal – £25,000
High Court/County Court – No limit |
Three months from EDT. Six months from breach. |
|
Sex Discrimination |
None |
Unlimited |
Three months from act of discrimination |
|
Race Discrimination |
None |
Unlimited |
Three months from act of discrimination |
|
Flexible Working |
None |
Unlimited |
Three months from act of discrimination |
Notes: Compensation levels are normally increased (or decreased) annually on 1st February each year.
*Employees can still bring a claim against their employer if they have less than two years service, IF the reason for the dismissal is connected to an area that does not require a qualifying period. This includes dismissals relating to discrimination
A redundancy is a dismissal. Therefore an employee only needs one years qualifying period to claim unfair dismissal if they are made redundant. An employee requires 2 years service before they qualify for statutory redundancy payments.
Family Friendly Rights – Summary – from 6th April 2012
|
|
Qualifying Period |
Rate |
Notes |
|
Statutory maternity pay (SMP) |
26 weeks by the end of the 15th week before expected week of childbirth; and average earnings at or above £107.00 per week |
90% of average earnings for six weeks, followed by 33 weeks at flat rate (£135.45) or 90% of average weekly earnings if lower |
All employees have the right to 52 weeks leave regardless of length of service (26 weeks ordinary maternity leave followed by immediately by 26 weeks additional maternity leave).
SMP is paid for 39 weeks |
|
Statutory adoption pay (SAP)
|
26 weeks by the end of the week of match for adoption; and average earnings at or above £107.00 per week |
39 weeks at £135.45 or 90% of average weekly earnings if lower |
All employees have the right to 52 weeks leave (26 weeks ordinary leave followed by immediately by 26 weeks additional leave). SAP is paid for 39 weeks |
|
Statutory Paternity Pay
|
26 weeks by the end of the 15th week before the expected week of birth, or by the end of the week notified of match for adoption; and average earnings at or above £107.00 per week |
One or two consecutive weeks at 90% of average weekly earnings or £135.45 if lower |
Leave to be completed within 56 days of birth or adoption placement |
|
Additional Statutory Paternity Leave and Pay |
The employee’s average weekly earnings (for the eight weeks ending with the 15th week before the week in which the baby is due to be born or placed) must be at or above £107.00 per week.
To be eligible to receive ASPP, the mother or adopter must have returned to work and must have stopped claiming any relevant pay, with at least two weeks of unexpired Statutory Maternity Pay period remaining. |
All additional paternity leave taken after the end of the Statutory Maternity Pay, Maternity Allowance or Statutory Adoption Pay period is unpaid. |
The right to additional paternity leave will apply to parents of babies and adoptive parents due on or after 3 April 2011. Eligible employees will have the right to take up to six months leave to care for the child, if the child’s mother returns to work without exercising her full entitlement to maternity leave. Additional paternity leave can only be taken once the mother has returned to work and if the child is over 20 weeks old and under one. |
|
Parental leave
|
1 year |
13 weeks’ unpaid leave (18 weeks if the child is disabled) in respect of children under the age of five (18 if disabled), and adopted children in the first five years after adoption or until their 18th birthday, whichever occurs sooner. |
Male or female employees with parental responsibility for a child qualify.
Leave to be taken in one–week blocks (can be taken one day at a time or in multiples of one day if child is disabled.
Leave limited to each parent in respect of each child. |
|
Flexible Working
|
26 weeks |
|
Note: there is a right to apply for flexible working. The employer may refuse a request if it has a detrimental effect on the business (as set out in the procedure). Employers should follow the statutory procedure in the case of all applications. |
Other
|
|
|
|
|
|
Statutory sick pay |
Absences of four or more days, up to a maximum of 28 weeks.
Average earnings must be at or above £107.00 per week |
£85.85 per week |
|
|
Paid annual leave |
None.
Pro rata in first year |
5.6 weeks per year, including bank holidays |
|
|
|
Adult Rate |
18- to 20 year olds |
16 to 17 year olds |
|
|
National Minimum Wage (from October 2011) |
£6.08 per hour |
£4.98 per hour |
£3.68 per hour |
|
|
Calculating redundancy pay |
|
One and a half weeks’ pay |
Each year of employment in which employee is aged 41 and above |
|
One weeks’ pay |
Each year of employment in which employee is aged 22 to 40 |
|
Half a weeks’ pay |
Each year of employment in which employee is aged 21 and under |
|
Maximum weekly pay |
£430 per week |
|
Maximum number of years |
Last 20 worked |
|
Paula Fisher, Managing Director, is a Human Resources (HR) professional who has worked in HR for over 25 years.
She has held senior HR management positions within corporate organisations and in 1997 completed a Law Degree, graduating with a 1st class honours. She went on to achieve a Master Degree (LL.M) in Employment Law and Employee Relations and has taught employment law at Anglia Ruskin University on the CIPD course (Certified Institute of Personnel & Development).Paula is now the Managing Director (and Founder) of Practical HR Ltd, an HR Consultancy that provides support to SME’s throughout Essex.
Practical HR was formed to provide employment law and human resources support services to organisations to help them meet legal requirements, protect the business and promote positive employee relations (to the benefit of both the organisation and employees).
The services available from Practical HR therefore span many HR disciplines including performance management, training, administration, flexible benefit schemes, etc.
Practical HR aims to put organisations ‘back in control’ when it comes to dealing with any employment issue. And the majority of support therefore concentrates on the employment law aspects of HR including; legal compliance (e.g. contract of employment, policies and procedures); managing performance and conduct issues; managing grievances; restructuring and redundancies.
|
|
