SYLO | Beyond HR. are pleased to provide you with our latest quarterly employment law update.

We hope that you had an enjoyable summer and managed to grab a bit of sunshine and some much-needed time away to relax and recharge. With summer now firmly behind us, covid restrictions removed and September signalling the start of many businesses welcoming their teams back to the office, it is certainly starting to feel (dare we say) more like ‘normal’ life resuming.

We do however need to continue to be cautious, particularly as we head into the winter months. With the Delta variant still circulating at high levels, it is still important, as you bring staff back to the office, that you regularly risk assessing to minimise the spread of infection within the workplace.

The Government’s winter plan was recently revealed, reserving the right to initiate ‘plan B’ should the level of hospitalisations place a threat on overwhelming the NHS. Plan B measures include bringing back the mandatory wearing of face masks, vaccine passports and advising people to work from home. The ‘advisory’ work from home statement can of course create many challenges for employers. Whilst we remain hopeful that plan B will not need to be triggered, it is worth business owners and management teams putting this on the agenda for discussion and forward planning just in case.

Hybrid Working

As highlighted in our last update, the ‘normal’ world of working life as we once knew it is definitely changing. Many businesses are already underway with or in the process of planning to incorporate a hybrid working model, recognising that striking a balance between both home and office-based working can work extremely well for all.

We have recently been running a series of webinars on this very topic. If you missed the sessions but are considering a shift to a more hybrid working environment, then do check out our YouTube video, Are you prepared for Hybrid Working? where you can catch up on a recording.

There are many aspects to consider when introducing hybrid working, including potential contractual changes and health and safety obligations to name but a few. It is really important all aspects are considered carefully, planned for and that you are fully engaging and consulting with your team when implementing these types of changes. Please do get in touch if you would like further support in this area.

Below you will find a summary of the latest key updates.

Should you wish to discuss any of the topics highlighted and the impact and requirements on your business, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.

1) COVID-19

Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme Extension

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) will come to a close on 30th September 2021. Employers have until 14th October to submit their final claim under the scheme. Businesses that still have employees on furlough will need to return them from 1st October on their agreed terms and conditions or agree with employees any changes to their terms and conditions of employment (ensuring adherence to rules around making contractual changes). If the employment is to be terminated, employers must ensure adherence to redundancy consultation/rules.

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) Rebate

Employers with fewer than 250 staff should bear in mind that they may be eligible for a rebate on any SSP paid to employees for covid related absences that occur prior to the closure of the CJRS on 30th September 2021. Employers will have until 31st December 2021 to make any claims for any eligible SSP costs incurred up to and including 30th September 2021.

2) RIGHT TO WORK IN THE UK

As an employer, you must continue to check the right to work status of all employees. In August the Home Office confirmed that adjusted right to work checks will now remain in place until 5 April 2022. Adjusted checks mean that the employer is able to continue to check the right to work status of new hires remotely rather than in person. This adjustment was put in place at the start of the pandemic to help ease the process for employers when lockdown and work from home enforcements were in place. The Government has recognised the efficiencies created for employers in conducting remote checks and their intention is to look at a longer-term, post-pandemic remote solution.

As a reminder of the right to work in the UK process, UK and Irish citizens can continue to use their passport or passport card to prove their right to work.

All other EU, EEA and Swiss citizens will no longer be able to use their passport or national identity card to prove their right to work. You’ll need to check their right to work online here View a job applicant’s right to work details using:

• a share code

• their date of birth

You can also check someone’s original documents instead if they do not have a UK immigration status that can be shared with you digitally.

3) APPRENTICESHIP FUNDING

A reminder that the cash boost of £3,000 per apprentice for those hired between 1st April and 30th September 2021 is coming to an end. The deadline for applications for the funding will close on 30th November 2021.

These payments are on top of the existing £1,000 that employers get for all new 16-18-year-old apprentices and those aged under 25 with an Education, Health and Care Plan.

If you missed the cash boost incentive deadline but are still interested in taking on an apprentice,

providing you do not pay the apprenticeships levy (businesses with a payroll less than £3 million) you will usually only pay 5% of the fees for apprenticeship training. The government covers 95% of the fees.

Businesses with less than 50 staff will have 100% of their apprenticeship fees funded by the government if the apprentices are aged 16-18.

4) HEALTH AND SAFETY PROTECTION EXTENDED TO ‘WORKERS’

The Employment Rights Act 1996 (Protection from Detriment in Health and Safety Cases) (Amendment) Order 2021 came into force on 31st May 2021

From this date, workers will gain the right not to be subjected to detrimental treatment for leaving or refusing to return to work if they believe themselves to be in ‘serious and imminent danger’. Previously the right only applied to employees.

The change follows a High Court decision last year in a case involving the gig workers union, the IWGB, that the government had failed to implement the EU Health and Safety Framework Directive properly into UK law by omitting workers from the protection. The right has been used more frequently in recent times by employees worried about travelling to or being at work during the Covid-19 pandemic.

This highlights the importance of employers continuing to operate to Covid-Secure guidelines, taking appropriate measures to protect employees and workers, listening to concerns raised and, making adjustments where possible.

5) POTENTIAL UPCOMING DEVELOPMENTS

Flexible Working Consultation

The Government has just launched a consultation proposing, amongst other changes, to remove the requirement for making flexible working requests. Currently employees must have worked for their employer for 26 weeks.

In addition to making flexible working requests a ‘day 1’ right, the consultation proposes:

  • Requiring employers to suggest alternatives if they reject the employee’s request
  • Allowing the change to be temporary rather than permanent
  • Reviewing whether the eight business reasons for refusing a request remain valid.

The consultation will take time, so it is not expected that any changes, if approved, will happen this year. We will of course keep you updated as and when there is further news.

Pregnancy and Maternity Redundancy Protection Bill

There is no date yet set but the Government have said that legislation will be brought forward once parliamentary time allows.

The proposal is in response to a consultation carried out earlier this year on pregnancy and maternity discrimination.

Currently, an employee at risk of redundancy while on maternity, adoption or shared parental leave has the right to be offered any suitable alternative vacancy that is available.

The Government is proposing to extend this protection to:

  • Pregnant employees, once they have told their employer of their pregnancy
  • Employees returning from maternity or adoption leave within the previous six months
  • Parents returning from shared parental leave.

And finally…

As a valued client, we would like to continue to keep you updated on key topics which we feel would be of interest to you and your business, for example, employment-related developments and hot topics, details of our online training programmes and our quarterly Employment Law updates. Should you wish to opt-out of these, please just let us know.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your continued support and, should you wish to explore any of the topics highlighted in this bulletin, we would be very happy to discuss them further with you. Please drop us a line at enquiries@sylobeyondhr.com.