HR Changes This Year
There will be several HR-related changes this year, and with so much having already changed over the past year or two, we thought it would be useful to cover some of the things you should know about, as well as some of the little things you might have missed.
These changes include increases to National Living Wages, National Minimum Wage Rates and Statutory Rates for Maternity, Family Leave, Sick Pay and Redundancy Pay, as well as increases to National Insurance Contributions.
We’ve also included a few things that are likely to change this year, but have yet to be confirmed.
Minimum Wage Rates
From the 1st of April 2022, minimum wage rates will increase:
- Workers ages 23 and over – £8.91 to £9.50
- Workers aged 21 to 22 – £8.36 to £9.18
- Workers aged 18 to 20 – £6.56 to £6.83
- Workers aged 16 to 17 – £4.62 to £4.81
- Apprentices – £4.30 to £4.81
Statutory Sick Pay
From April 2022 the weekly rate of statutory sick pay will be increasing from £96.35 to £99.35.
There is currently a rule change in place in reaction to the pandemic which means Statutory Sick Pay must be paid from Day 1 rather than Day 4, but this is set to end on the 25th March 2022.
Statutory Maternity (etc.) Pay
The weekly rate of Statutory Maternity Pay, Maternity Allowance, Paternity Pay, Shared Parental Pay, Adoption Pay and Parental Bereavement Pay will increase from £151.97 to £156.66 as of April 2022.
Increases to National Insurance Contributions
We covered the changes to National Insurance contribu\tions last year, but to re-cap, HMRC announced there would be a tax increase to help cover the costs of the health and social care funding gap that formed during the pandemic.
From April 2022 there will be a 1.25% increase in National Insurance contributions for employers and their employees.
This increase will be replaced by a dedicated Health and Social Care Levy in 2023.
Changes To ‘Right To Work’ Checks
Due to the pandemic, the Home Office allowed employees to carry out right to work checks remotely when a new member of staff joined a company, using video calls and scanned documents.
This process is due to end on the 5th April 2022.
From the 6th of April 2022, right to work checks can only be carried out online for those who hold a Biometric Residence Card, Biometric Residence Permit or Frontier Worker Permit.
There will also be a new scheme for checking the right to work of British and Irish Nationals using government-certified technology.
Changes to Bank Holidays
Due to the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, there will be changes to this year’s Bank Holidays. We’ve covered what will be changing and how it might impact your business and employees here.
Possible Change: Right For Workers To Receive Their Tips In Full
The government intends to bring forward measures to require employers to pay all tips and service charges to workers in full. This will be supported by a statutory Code of Practice and rights to request information about tipping.
Possible Change: Making Flexible Work The Default
Currently employees need to have been employed for 26 weeks before making a formal request for flexible work. however, the government is considering bringing in the right to request it from Day 1.
They will also consider reducing the time frame for dealing with these requests down from 3 months and requiring employers to suggest alternative proposals if they deny the request.
Possible Change: 1 Week of Additional Leave For Carers
The government intends to introduce the right for employees to take an additional week’s unpaid leave per year if they are the carer or a dependant with long-term care needs.
The leave can be taken to provide care for the dependant or to arrange care for them and can be taken flexibly in half days, full days or one week.
The worker will have to give notice to their employers and the request can be postponed in some circumstances.
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