Tips legislation postponed as Code of Practice finalised
Enforcement of the Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023 ("the Act") has been postponed and will now come into force on 1 October 2024. The Act requires employers to pass on tips to workers, and in businesses where tips are left more than occasionally a tipping policy is required. Workers will also have a right to request their employer’s tipping record. The Act will now come into force concurrently with an updated Code of Practice on Fair and Transparent Distribution of Tips which employers must have regard to when distributing tips. The Code is currently in draft form awaiting approval by both Houses of Parliament.
50% of employees do not report workplace sexual harassment and trust in senior leadership is poor
A survey of 2,000 employees has found that 10% of employees have witnessed or experienced sexual harassment at work, but half of them do not report it. A third had seen or experienced bullying, with 44% not reporting it. Of those surveyed, 43% said they worried about retaliation or retribution if they did report it, with only 52% of those surveyed having trust in senior leadership. The new duty on employers to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace is due to come into force in October.
Home workers less likely to get pay rises and promotions
Recent research has found that homeworkers experience "career penalties", and although that applies irrespective of gender, the penalties for men were found to be substantially larger than for women. 937 UK managers were surveyed, and the results showed that, when compared to office-based staff, the managers were 11% less likely to promote staff who worked entirely from home and 7% less likely to promote hybrid workers. Managers were also 9% less likely to give a pay rise to home workers, and 7% less likely to give one to hybrid workers. When this was broken down based on gender, managers were 15% less likely to give male home workers a promotion, compared to 7% less likely for female home workers, and 10% less likely to give male homeworkers a pay rise, compared to 8% less likely for female homeworkers.
Updated Code of Practice on Dismissal and Re-engagement to be in force by July
The UK Government has confirmed that it intends to bring the updated statutory Code of Practice on Dismissal and Re-engagement into force in July 2024, subject to Parliamentary approval. The Code, which is intended to address "fire and rehire" practices has already been approved by the House of Lords, and has been criticised as unlikely to deter unscrupulous employers.
"General workforce consultation" redundancy case appealed
In the case of De Bank Haycocks v ADP RPO UK Ltd, the EAT considered whether "general workforce consultation" was needed for an individual redundancy to be fair. The case is due to be heard on 18 March 2025.
Crackdown on "gagging orders"
The UK Government has announced that legislation is to be introduced, as soon as parliamentary time allows, to clarify that non-disclosure agreements will not be enforceable if they prevent victims from reporting a crime. The legislation will ensure that information related to criminal conduct can be discussed with the following groups without fear of legal action:
Police or other bodies which investigate or prosecute crime;
Qualified and regulated lawyers; and/or
Other support services such as counsellors, advocacy services, or medical professionals, which operate under clear confidentiality principles.
Low Pay Commission recommend national living wage for 18-year olds
Following on from the lowering of the minimum age for receiving the national living wage from 23 to 21 with effect from April 2024, the Low Pay Commission ("LPC") have recommended a further reduction to include those aged 18 and above. The LPC think this can be achieved without damaging youth employment prospects and propose that it is done one age group at a time to enable the effects to be monitored. It also recommends retaining an apprentice rate but for those aged 18 and over, it recommends changing to a simple discount of the age rate during the apprentice’s first year.
