Employment Law Newsletter April 2009

On 6 April 2009, major changes to employment law come into force.

The changes include:

Statutory dispute resolution procedures repealed

The most significant change is the repeal of the statutory disciplinary, dismissal and grievance procedures, which will be replaced by the new ACAS Code of Practice on discipline and grievances. The ACAS Code can be found on www.acas.org.uk/dgcode2009. The Code does not apply to dismissals due to redundancy or the non-renewal of fixed term contracts on their expiry.

To complement the new Code, ACAS has also published an 88 page guide with detailed advice on dealing with discipline and grievances in the workplace.

Employees with children under 17 – New right to request flexible working

The Flexible Working (Eligibility, Complaints and Remedies) (Amendment) Regulations 2009 SI 2009/595 extends the right to request flexible working to employees with children under 17.

Minimum paid holiday entitlement increases

Also, on 1 April 2009, the statutory minimum paid holiday entitlement increases from 24 to 28 days a year for those working a five day week (and pro-rata for part-time workers). This is inclusive of paid public holidays. So, for example, if employees do not work but are paid for public holidays, the employer is compliant with the new rules so long as full-time staff are given at least 20 days paid annual leave (because there are eight UK bank holidays every year).

Knight-Webb Solicitors are specialists in employment law. We pride ourselves in providing a first-rate, cost-effective and personal service to clients. We can help you to avoid the employment law pitfalls and ensure that your procedures are up-to-date, taking into account all the recent changes in the law, including those outlined in this Newsletter. Contact Sunita Knight-Webb on 020 7207 6195 or at sunita@knightwebb.com.