Season’s greetings from everyone at Integra
2013 has been a busy year for an employment law point of view and in 2014 we can expect more of the same. Proposed changes in the New Year include:
31 January 2014: Changes to TUPE. Key changes are:
• The legislation will clarify that for a service provision change the activities carried on after the change must be “fundamentally or essentially the same” as they were before.
• The obligation to provide employee liability information will be extended to 28 days before the transfer (currently it is 14 days).
• Changes in the location of the workforce following a transfer will be within the scope of economic, technical or organisational reasons entailing changes in the workforce.
• Businesses with 10 or less employees will be allowed to inform and consult affected employees directly when there are no recognised independent union or appropriate representatives. Micro businesses are those with ten or fewer employees.
6 April 2014: Statutory discrimination questionnaires to be abolished
6 April 2014: Mandatory early conciliation introduced. A new duty on the parties and Acas to attempt conciliation before an Employment Tribunal claim is submitted. The time limit for bringing claims will be put on hold while early conciliation occurs.
6 April 2014: Employment Tribunals will have the power to fine an employer up to £5,000 (payable to the Government) if they lose and their case has “aggravating features”.
6 April 2014: Flexible working rights will be extended to all employees with 26 weeks’ service and not just those who are parents or carers. The current statutory procedure will be replaced with a requirement for employers to consider all requests reasonably.
Spring 2014: The Government will introduce a new approach to the management of workplace sickness absence. This will include a health and work assessment and advisory service which will provide a state-funded assessment by occupational health professionals for employees who are sick for four weeks or more.
Look out for Integra’s seminar in March 2013 for details on these changes and more.
To discuss the new law or any employee issue get in touch at contact@integralegal.co.uk or 0115 987 6790.
In the meantime have a Merry Christmas and prosperous 2014.