With the Conservatives winning the General Election, here are the changes we can expect to see based on their manifesto.
Minimum wage
to increase to £10.50 per hour by 2024, with the age threshold incrementally lowered to 23+ in 2021 and finally 21+ by 2024.
Immigration
A new Australian style points-based immigration system has been proposed which, will treat EU nationals and non-EU nationals equally and permit them entry to the country where they meet the criteria.
Family/carer friendly
Neo-natal leave will be introduced for parents, extending maternity/paternity leave where newborn children are poorly and must stay in hospital; there will be a weeks’ extra leave for every week in hospital (where the stay is two weeks or longer). Those with caring responsibilities will get a right to a week off work; access to paternity leave will be made easier; will be made the ‘default arrangement’ unless employers have good reasons not to, and pregnant women and new parents will have extra protection during redundancy procedures.
Training/skills
A new £3bn ‘National Skills Fund’ has been promised, which is also designed to help organisations find and hire the workers they need. The Conservatives insist the fund would provide equal amounts for individuals and smaller organisations to access high-quality education and training, which could prove extremely beneficial in filling existing knowledge gaps in many key industries. The manifesto also mentioned making improvements to the apprenticeship levy.
Single enforcement body
A single enforcement body will be created to crack down on any employer abusing employment law. This will include enforcement of plans to prevent employers from keeping any part of workers’ tips.
Unstable work
Zero hours workers and others with variable working patterns will be given the right to request a more stable contract, the right to minimum notice of shifts and to compensation for cancelled shifts.
Good Work Plan
Don’t forget that other Good Work Plan promises are also still in the pipeline, including:
- A review of the employment status framework to add clarity (i.e. the features that make someone an employee, worker or self-employed).
- Measures to make it easier for ad hoc employees to accrue continuous service.
The changes to statements of main terms (timing, content and scope) will also continue as planned for 6th April, as will the changes to calculating holiday pay, agency worker contracts etc.
For further information on how the election result affects your business, please call 0800 028 2420
