What To Expect In 2024
There is a whole raft of new employment laws due to hit the statute books in April 2024 making next year very interesting (dare we say exciting!) for those of us who are involved with advising people teams.
We will be discussing all of the laws being introduced and the practical implication for employers at our Spring Summit in March 2024 (see further below), but as a taster:
- Flexible Working (Amendment) Regulations 2023 which will remove the requirement that an employee must have 26 weeks service in order to make a request for flexible working (making it a Day One right) plus other changes;
- Maternity Leave, Adoption Leave, and Shared Parental Leave (Amendment) Regulations 2024 (which are still in draft form) extends the period of special protection from redundancy for those on this type of leave. The protection will be extended to
For maternity – the protected period will cover pregnancy, alongside 18 months from the first day of the estimated week of childbirth. The protected period can be changed to cover 18 months from the exact date of birth, if the employee gives the employer notice of this date prior to the end of maternity leave.
For adoption – the protected period will cover 18 months from placement for adoption.
For shared parental leave – the protected period will cover 18 months from birth, provided that the parent has taken a period of at least 6 consecutive weeks of shared parental leave. This protection will not apply if the employee is otherwise protected under 1. or 2. above.
- Carer's Leave Regulations 2024 will allow employees to apply for up to 1 week of unpaid carer's leave in any 12 month period. Key features are:
the right is a Day One employment right
the right applies to employees who have a dependant with a long-term care need and those who want to be absent from work to provide, or arrange care for that dependant
requests can be in consecutive, or non-consecutive, half-days or full days
employers can postpone a request if the operation of the business would be unduly disrupted. In these circumstances, the employer must give notice of the postponement before the leave was due to begin, and must explain why the postponement is necessary. The employer must then allow the leave to be taken within one month of the start-date of the leave originally requested.
employees are protected from detriment and dismissal because they take, or seek to take, carer’s leave (or the employer believes they are likely to do so)
Starford's Spring Summit, covering all of these laws and much more, will take place on Thursday 21st March at the Sandman Signature Hotel, Gatwick. More info to follow in the new year!
If you would like to pre-book your place just let us know by contacting our team on events@starfordlegalhr.com