Employment Key Changes 2023: What is coming?

The year ahead see's changes to rates of pay, major reforms to EU law and details on the much-awaited Employment Bill.

1. Increased Rate Changes

The new year welcomed various rate changes. Here is what you can expect:

• National Minimum Wage / National Living Wage rates are set to increase from 1st April 2023.

• Statutory maternity, adoption, paternity, shared parental pay. The rate of £156.66 per week will increase to £172.48 per week on 2nd April 2023.
• Statutory sick pay. The rate of £99.35 is set to increase to £109.40 per week. This increase is expected to occur on 6 April 2023.

2. Retained EU law (Revocation and Reform) Bill

The Retained EU Law Bill will repeal all EU law unless new legislation keeps it in place. The introduction of the Bill could see changes to:

- Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations
- The Working Time Regulations
- The Agency Workers Regulations
- Fixed-term Employees Regulations
- Part-Time Workers Regulations
- The Information and Consultation of Employees Regulations
- Various health and safety regulations
- Maternity and Parental Leave Regulations

3. Employment Bill

The much-awaited Employment Bill, mentioned in 2019, is likely to come in to force in 2023. The Employment Bill is said to include some of the following:

- Changes to the existing right to request flexible working. Employees no longer need 26 weeks of service to request flexible working; they can do so right away.
- Proposals to provide job security for new and expectant mothers for up to 6 months after their maternity leave ends.
- Introducing the right to receive up to 12 weeks’ paid neonatal leave for parents of babies needing neonatal care.
- Providing employees who are carers the day one right to receive one week’s unpaid leave per year.
- Allowing workers on variable hours the right to request a more predictable and stable work contract after 26 weeks’ qualifying service.
- Proposals making it unlawful for employers to withhold tips, gratuities and service charges from workers.
- Imposing a new duty on employers to prevent sexual harassment at work (extending to third parties). There are also proposals to extend the time limit for claims to 6 months.

Also in 2023, the Harbours (Seafarers’ Remuneration) Bill will come into effect, giving UK ports authority to deny access to ships that pay their crew members below the national minimum wage.

The Transport Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill will likely take effect in 2023. It requires employers and unions to agree on a minimum service level during transport strikes for three months. It will also remove the automatic unfair dismissal protection available to employees who participate in strike action during that period.

Posted in Employment Law, Family Leave, Parental Leave, Sick Leave/Absence Management, Wages

The Kings Coronation: An Additional Bank Holiday

The Government has announced that Monday 8 May 2023 will be a bank holiday across the whole of the United Kingdom, to mark the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III which will take place on Saturday 6 May 2023. The bank holiday is intended to give families and communities the chance to celebrate and welcome His Majesty to the throne.

There’s no automatic legal right for most staff to take bank or public holidays off work, so you’ll need to check their employment contracts to see if they’re entitled to the day off. We’ve set out a refresher below on how to check whether your staff are entitled to this day off and/or how to treat your staff fairly when deciding whether to give them the day off anyway.

There’s no automatic entitlement for bank or public holidays off work

There is no automatic legal entitlement for your staff to take bank or public holidays off work. The only exception to this is that some banking sector workers do automatically get bank holidays off.

However, you should respond sensitively to requests from your staff members to take the day off work, and you’ll need to make sure you check what their employment contract entitles them to.

Check your staff members’ employment contract

These are some likely scenarios that could be included in their employment contract:

1. Their contract says they are entitled to a certain number of days annual leave, in addition to all bank and public holidays

Staff are entitled to take the extra bank holiday off in this scenario.

2. Their contract says they are entitled to a certain number of days annual leave, inclusive of bank and public holidays

In this scenario, it will be up to you whether you allow them to take the extra day off, as their contract does not explicitly entitle them to it.

3. Their contract says they are entitled to the normal bank and public holidays as annual leave

As the extra bank holiday is not one of the ‘normal’ eight bank and public holidays in England and Wales, it will be up to you whether you allow your staff members to take it.

In scenarios 2 and 3, if you decide that you need your staff to work through the bank holiday, you should explain why and communicate your position with them as early as possible. Allowing an early finish or half day on the day of the coronation could also help boost their morale. If you decide to allow your staff to take the day off as holiday even though they aren’t contractually entitled to it, you should make it clear that this is a one-off gesture of goodwill.

Do I have to pay staff extra to work on a bank holiday?

If your staff are working on this bank holiday, they’ll only be entitled to be paid extra, or take an additional day’s holiday another day, if their contract says so. If you decide to pay them extra, or give them an additional day’s holiday another day, you should make it clear to them that this is a one-off gesture.

Make sure you treat part-time staff fairly

If your staff aren’t contracted to an extra bank holiday off, but you decide to give it to them anyway, make sure you consider the implications for part-time staff. You must make sure that you do not treat part-time staff less favourably than full-time staff, or you could face discrimination claims. This means that if the bank holiday falls on one of a part-time staff member’s usual non-working days, you must adjust their holiday allowance on a pro rata basis so they don’t miss out on the extra leave.

Posted in Pay/Wage

Celebrating Women in Tech with Eleanor Vaughey

At Bright we celebrate all our employees achievements and progress in the Tech industry everyday and with International Women's Day last week we wanted to shed a light on some of our amazing women at Bright but we didn't want to just do it for one day, as all our employees deserve to feel the spotlight every day of the week. So this week we are shining a light on Eleanor Vaughey who works in our Marketing department. Eleanor sat down with us to talk about who inspires her in her career and why diversity in the workplace is important.

Question: Is there anyone that inspires you in your career?

Eleanor: All of the bosses I’ve had throughout my career have been women. There are a lot of women in my life who are in leadership roles too – teachers, doctors, managers. I’m very fortunate to have a lot of inspirational women in my life.

Question: Why do you think diversity in the workplace is so important?

Eleanor: I think it’s important for different ideas and viewpoints. It enriches the workplace and provides opportunities for broader and deeper perspectives everything – from bigger picture strategies to quick weekly brainstorms.

Question: What is the most important piece of advice you have been given?

Eleanor: That we can do anything, once we have the resources and tools available to us. And if we don’t know how to do something, it’s just because we haven’t had the opportunity to discover and access those resources yet.

Question: On International Women’s Day, what is the most important message you want to send out to young women thinking about their careers?

Eleanor: Don’t be scared to try out a role because you think you’re not smart enough or capable. Nobody starts out as an expert, ever. Go all in and be brave. And if it doesn’t work out, at least you tried it out and are wiser from it, rather than never trying at all.

There's much to celebrate about women's achievements. Gains are made for women worldwide, but there's more to do. Collectively, we can all challenge gender stereotypes, call out discrimination & draw attention to bias. Let's #EmbraceEquity to create places & spaces where women thrive.

Celebrating Women in Tech with Neeraja Sankar

At Bright we celebrate all our employees achievements and progress in the Tech industry everyday, but with International Women's Day being upon us we wanted to shed a light on some of our amazing women by gathering a few of our Bright women and hearing what International Women's day means to them, who the inspiring women in their lives are, an important piece of advice they have been given and much more. We recently interviewed Neeraja Sankar who has given us her thoughts on IWD.

Question: Why do you think diversity in the workplace is so important?

Neeraja: Although this is a IWD piece, I think diversity, beyond gender diversity, can be incredibly beneficial for an organization. A diverse workforce means our people can bring to the table varied opinions, thoughts, and viewpoints because of their different backgrounds – the more varied our perspectives, the more innovative and agile we can be as a company. For a company like Bright that is constantly evolving, and thinking of better ways to meet our customers’ needs, this diversity in viewpoints is invaluable and in turn, leads to increased employee engagement and morale.

Question: What is your proudest achievement whilst working here?

Neeraja: Our HR team once shared a candidate was drawn to interviewing for Bright, specifically because our leadership team had a good gender balance (we’re working toward making this even more balanced!) – whilst this is not a direct achievement of mine, I felt incredibly proud that I am part of a leadership team that is aspirational for people.

Question: What advice would you give to the next generation of female leaders?

Neeraja: Believe in yourself and your potential but balance that with being humble and self-aware
Have a strong sense of purpose, and let it be the foundation for what kind of leader you want to be
As a leader, you often have to ask yourself “who can I work on this with?” - surround yourself with people who have similar principles to yours, and inspire confidence through your actions and vision
Seek out a mentor – having a mentor can do beneficial with building your confidence and opening doors to new opportunities

Question: What is the most important piece of advice you have been given?

Neeraja: This is not direct advice that was given to me but I learnt a lot when from a leader I worked with, who was excellent at bringing people along in her journey. As mentioned above, leadership a lot of the time is working with others, and this particular leader I worked with was always looking for opportunities to build and lift her team up. She was good at recognizing others’ strengths, and empowered and equipped them to contribute to their full potential. This worked wonders for her, her team and the organization she worked for. This principle of elevating people I work with and bringing them along in my personal journey as a leader underpins my approach to work and leadership.

There's much to celebrate about women's achievements. Gains are made for women worldwide, but there's more to do. Collectively, we can all challenge gender stereotypes, call out discrimination & draw attention to bias. Let's #EmbraceEquity to create places & spaces where women thrive.

Celebrating Women in Tech with Aisling Hetherington

At Bright we celebrate all our employees achievements and progress in the Tech industry everyday, but with International Women's Day being upon us we wanted to shed a light on some of our amazing women by gathering a few of our Bright women and hearing what International Women's day means to them, who the inspiring women in their lives are, an important piece of advice they have been given and much more. We recently interviewed Aisling Hetherington who has given us her thoughts on IWD.   

Question: What does IWD mean to you?

Aisling: For me, International Women’s Day is a day to celebrate the achievements of women both in and out of the workplace. From years ago, when my mother's generation were encouraged to stay at home or to give up work once they became mothers, to a world where we are encouraged to excel in our careers while also having a family. Sometimes this can be a balancing act and working for such a family friendly and supportive organisation as Bright makes this a lot easier. This is not the case in other organisations and in some countries where women face ongoing struggles for equal rights and opportunities. While I personally don’t think that gender makes a difference to your ability to carry out a job or have a successful career, it is well known that for a long-time, women have faced more challenges in the workplace. Thankfully, there is more awareness about this now (for example the gender pay gap) and we have seen great changes over the last number of years. This is an ongoing journey to improving equality for women.

Question: On International Women’s Day, what is the most important message you want to send out to young women thinking about their careers?

Aisling: They can achieve anything that they set their heart on, regardless of their gender and there is nothing that can hold them back. They should never doubt their ability or limit themselves. I have always worked hard in my career and given my all to the organisation I am working for. It is also important to switch off outside of work with family and friends.  It’s great if the career path and job chosen when they finished school is one they enjoy and are passionate about. It’s also possible to change this path at any stage of their life so should never be afraid to take on something new. I know this from first-hand experience.

Question: How can we encourage more women to pursue senior leadership roles in their career?

Aisling: Organisations have responsibilities to encourage women to pursue senior leadership roles and provide the education and training to prepare them for it. Typically, these roles require time commitments that may go beyond the 9-5 workday. This is something that should be reviewed and changed if it is noticed occurring regularly in the organisation. It is important for organisations to recognise that people have responsibilities outside of the office.  So many studies have been completed now looking at the working hours, working days, flexible and hybrid options, and work-life balance. Organisations need to value their employees and senior leaders and recognise that they have commitments outside of the office, regardless of their gender. Some days, more attention may be needed to a person’s home life than to their work life. I was very lucky early in my career that I had many women (and men) in leadership positions who encouraged me to take on new roles, education, projects and challenges and guided me throughout my career. Some people may not have the belief in themselves and so, if you are in a senior leadership position, actively seek out and support talented women in the organisation, take them in as a mentee and offer them the encouragement to advance their career.

Question: Have you faced any barriers in your career due to being a woman? If so, how did you overcome them?

Aisling: I have not had barriers as such but have had challenges to overcome. One of these was juggling a career, studying and 2 children as a single mum. Despite the challenges I faced, I managed to overcome these with the support of family, friends, and colleagues. I don’t think this is unique to me, or to me as a woman, as many people face barriers and challenges as they navigate their own careers. I think sometimes attitudes of others can have an impact at times and create barriers. I personally don’t see my gender as a barrier to achieving success. I appreciate that this is not the same experience as others have had and continue to face. For a large part of my career to date, I worked in the healthcare industry which typically had more female than male employees and as a result quite a few women in senior leadership positions. Perhaps this is why I do not see these barriers and I have certainly not seen them since joining Bright last year.

There's much to celebrate about women's achievements. Gains are made for women worldwide, but there's more to do. Collectively, we can all challenge gender stereotypes, call out discrimination & draw attention to bias. Let's #EmbraceEquity to create places & spaces where women thrive.

Happy International Women's Day!

Happy International Women's Day! 

At Bright we celebrate all our employee's achievements and progress in the Tech industry every day, but with International Women's Day being upon us we wanted to shed a light on some of our amazing women by gathering a few of our Bright women and hearing what International Women's day means to them, who the inspiring women in their lives are, an important piece of advice they have been given and much more. We also included some of our Bright men who shared their experiences and opinions with us too.

On IWD2023 and beyond, everyone everywhere can help forge an inclusive world. Let's #EmbraceEquity to create places & spaces where women thrive.

Posted in Events, Social Media

What we Expect to see in the Coming Months: GDPR

It looks like 2023 will be another busy year in data protection, with some significant changes expected to the UK data protection regime, as well as further guidance for employers from the ICO. We have set out some of the principal data protection themes relevant to employers below.

Updates to UK GDPR

In 2022 the UK government set out plans for a number of substantial updates to the UK GDPR. Discussions will recommence later this year. It is anticipated that the changes indicated by the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill will be the minimum changes made to the UK data protection regime. More far-reaching changes could be introduced in an attempt to reduce the burden on businesses.

The minimum changes that we expect to see that will affect the way in which employers deal with data subject access requests include:

• An amendment to the circumstances in which employers can say no and refuse to respond to a DSAR. The draft bill had proposed that employers can charge a fee or refuse to respond to a DSAR where the request is "vexatious or excessive". Previous governments had indicated a desire to move away from DSARs being processed where personal data or concerns about its processing are not the purpose of the request.
• A change to the definition of "personal data" so that it only needs to be considered whether an employer or others likely to receive the data are reasonably likely to be able to identify the individual in question. Essentially, this would be a more subjective test and may limit what is in scope of a DSAR.

Information Commissioner's Office Updates (ICO)

The ICO has indicated that it plans to provide individuals with a better understanding of how their information is used and accessed over the course of this year. Data subject access requests (DSARs) form a major aspect of this and the ICO has specified that it plans to introduce a new "subject access request tool" which will help individuals to identify where to send their requests and explain what they should expect from the DSAR process. It has also indicated that it will provide individuals seeking to exercise their rights with "easy to access answers" (that is, FAQs).

The ICO has also expressed its goal to reduce the burden or cost of compliance with data protection laws. It is seeking to accomplish this through a series of services, tools and initiatives "so organisations can benefit from the advice and support of the regulator when planning, innovating and managing information risk".

Posted in GDPR, General Data Protection Regulation

Holiday Pay Calculations: Consultation Period

The government has issued a consultation containing proposals for legislative reform to address the challenges faced by many employers in response to the Supreme Court’s decision in Harpur Trust v Brazel last year.

Last year the Supreme Court ruled that all workers (including part-year and other irregular-hours workers) are entitled to 5.6 weeks’ paid leave per year, irrespective of the number of weeks worked, and that their holiday pay should be calculated in line with the relevant statutory provisions. Further details can be found here.

The key proposal in the consultation document is that the statutory annual leave entitlement for part-year and casual workers should be calculated in two steps:

- Calculate the total hours a worker has worked in the previous 52-week reference period, including any weeks without work
- Multiply the total hours worked by 12.07% to determine the worker’s total annual statutory holiday entitlement in hours

At the beginning of a leave year, an employer will be required to look over the total hours worked in the previous 52 weeks (including non-working weeks) and use that figure to determine the worker’s annual leave entitlement for that leave year.

How does this work for the first year of work or casual workers on short-term assignments? Employers will be required to work out a worker’s statutory holiday entitlement, in hours, on a monthly basis by reference to the number of hours worked in the previous month multiplied by 12.07%.

Agency workers are also covered by this consultation. When an agency worker is on assignment, their holiday entitlement should be calculated by 12.07% of the hours worked over the previous month. If an agency worker is not on an assignment, they will not accrue holiday.

The consultation document also proposes a new means of calculating how much of their holiday entitlement a worker uses when they take one day off. The suggestion is that employers calculate a flat average working day based on the average number of hours worked during the relevant reference period.

The consultation closes on 9 March 2023. Due to a short consultation period, it suggests that the government is keen to crack on with its proposals and that we can expect implementing legislation sooner rather than later if the proposals gain the backing of affected employers.

Related articles:

Case Law: Harper Trust v Brazel

Posted in Annual Leave, Employment Law

The Benefits of Hiring Seasonal Workers

Seasonal workers are usually encountered in the tourism, hospitality, construction and agricultural industries, mostly in the summer months but they can also be hired in the lead-up to Christmas too to assist with the busy period.

Some may think that seasonal workers are unskilled and a lower-paid alternative to permanent employees, however, that is not the case. There are many benefits to seasonal workers such as:

• Meet business demand and customer expectations: seasonal employees provide you with the flexibility to increase the size of your team during peak trading periods so that you can continue to provide customers with the service they expect even during busy times.
• Improve morale for the permanent team: you can’t expect your permanent employees to start working double shifts or deferring their annual leave. It’s best practice to ensure that there is sufficient cover for this annual leave.
• Meets skills shortage: temporary workers can help fill the gap with a particular skill shortage during busy periods.
• Return year on year: many seasonal workers are happy to return to work for the same company each year- which is a win for both the employer and the employee.

Legal obligations as an employer

A temporary, seasonal worker hired under a fixed-term contract is entitled to the same working conditions and the same legal rights as permanent employees.

Your main obligations are to:

• Ensure every employee has the right to work
• Provide a Contract of employment
• Pay at least the national minimum wage
• Provide a payslip
• Ensure that the employees’ working week does not exceed 48 hours

A contract of employment for a seasonal worker will be largely the same as for a permanent employee. However, a fixed-term contract will need to have an end date.

Posted in Employee Contracts, Employee Handbook, Employment Law

Bills on the horizon for 2023?

With 2022 having now come to a close, we look forward to the key developments that will shape the UK employment legal landscape in 2023 and beyond.

A new set of employment rights

2023 looks set to be a busy year on the legislative front with a number of bills currently making their way through Parliament, which are likely to become law during 2023/2024. These include:

• The Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Bill 2022-23: Once passed, this bill will allow regulations to be introduced that will extend the existing redundancy protections to women on maternity leave, so that women's pregnancy protections are also available for a period of six months after they return to work. The same enhanced protections will also be available to those employees on adoption or shared parental leave. The bill's progress can be tracked here.
• Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Bill 2022-23: This bill will require employers to (i) take reasonable measures to prevent employees from suffering harassment from third parties (such as customers or clients) during the course of their employment; and

  (ii) require employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of employees while on the job. Sexual harassment compensation can be increased by up to 25% if this duty is breached. You can track the progress of the bill here.

• The Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Bill 2022-23: Will enhance employees' rights to request flexible work by (i) allowing employees to make a maximum of two flexible working requests during a 12-month period; and

  (ii) Employers must consult with employees before refusing flexible working requests. The bill's progress can be tracked here.

• Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Bill 2022-23: As a result of this Bill, parents of neonatal care recipients, or those who have received neonatal care, will be entitled to a minimum of one week of neonatal care leave that can be taken up to 68 weeks after delivery. Employees will have this right from day one, regardless of their service length. Furthermore, employees who take the leave will be protected from dismissal or detriment. In addition, employees with at least 26 weeks’ service, will be entitled to be paid for the neonatal care leave at the prescribed rate. You can track the progress of the bill here.

• Carers Leave Bill 2022-23: Upon passing, the Secretary of State will be able to create new regulations defining an employee's right to carer's leave. An eligible employee will be entitled to unpaid carer's leave of at least one week within a 12-month period for caring for a dependent, such as a spouse, civil partner, child or parent. As with neonatal care leave, the right to carer's leave will be a day one right that protects workers from dismissal or detriment. It is expected that the Bill will pass in 2023, and the Regulations will follow in 2024. You can track the bill's progress here.
• Employment (Allocation of Tips) Bill 2022-23: Upon passing, this Bill will compel employers to distribute tips, service charges, and gratuities fairly among their employees. A written policy setting out how employers allocate qualifying tips among their employees will also be required, as well as keeping, and sharing, records of qualifying tips received and allocated between employees if requested by the government. It is important to note that the Bill will only apply to tips received by employers or controlled by them - it will not apply directly to cash tips paid to workers. The bill's progress can be tracked here.

Despite not knowing the exact timeline for implementation of the Bills above, each is set to begin its report stage by the end of February 2023. Royal Assent is therefore expected in 2023, and secondary legislation is likely to follow in 2024.