Employment Law Changes in 2024

By Faye Lewis

This year is proving to be particularly busy with employment law changes. To help you summarise, we have created this overview with changes that you can expect to see in date order.

Covid-19 Carry Over Leave - March 31st 

All annual leave carried over from Covid-19 must be taken by the 31st March 2024 or it is lost. If you require, we can provide you with a template letter to inform your team.

Increases to National Living Wage - 1st April 

Effective from April 1, 2024, individuals aged 21 and above will witness an increase to £11.44 per hour. Those in the 18-20 age bracket will be entitled to £8.60 per hour, while 16-17-year-olds and apprentices will receive £6.40 per hour. Notably, this marks the first instance of a minimum wage hike surpassing £1 per hour.

Changes to holiday rules - 1st April

For holiday years beginning on or after the 1st April 2024, holiday entitlement for part year and irregular-hours workers can be calculated by taking 12.07% of the hours worked in the pay period. Additionally, starting from this date, the practice of rolled up holiday will also be permissible for part year and irregular-hours workers only.

Flexible working requests - 6th April

On the 6th April 2024 employees will have the right to request flexible working from the start of their employment, eliminating the current 26-week service requirement. Still subject to parliamentary approval, employers must consult with employees to explore alternative options where the flexible working request can’t be accommodated. The response time to a request has been reduced from three months to two months. Notably, employees can now make two flexible working requests within any 12-month period, an increase from the previous limit of one. Additionally, there is no longer a requirement for employees to provide an explanation of the impact their request may have on the employer.

Carer’s Leave (exact date tbc 6th April)

One of the most anticipated changes to employment law is the Carer’s Leave Act that is currently expected to come into force on the 6th April 2024. Enacted to support employees responsible for the long-term care of dependents, this legislation will grant one week of unpaid leave annually. Dependents encompass spouses, civil partners, children, or parents residing with or relying on the employee for care arrangements. Qualifying care duties pertain to disabilities, old age, or illnesses or injuries lasting beyond three months.

Paternity Leave Amendment Regulations - (exact date tbc 6th April)

Pending final parliamentary approval, the proposed Paternity Leave (Amendment) Regulations 2024 are set to introduce substantial modifications, permitting paternity leave to be taken within the initial 52 weeks following birth or adoption, and in two separate weeks. These changes will be applicable to children expected to be born or adopted on or after April 6, 2024, including those anticipated to be placed for adoption or enter Great Britain for adoption after the mentioned date.

Maternity and Family Leave Priority Status in Redundancy - (exact date tbc 6th April)

Subject to parliamentary approval, the Maternity Leave, Adoption Leave and Shared Parental Leave (Amendment) Regulations 2024 will extend redundancy protection during pregnancy and for the period of 18 months after the birth or placement of a child for those taking maternity, adoption or shared parental leave.

Statutory Maternity, Paternity, Adoption, Shared Parental, Parental Bereavement Pay and sick pay - April 2024

Proposed new rate for statutory leave and pay, including statutory shared parental, maternity, adoption, paternity and parental bereavement is to rise to £184.03 (or 90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings, whichever is lower).

The proposed new rate for statutory sick pay from April 2024 is £116.75.

The Workers (Predictable Terms and Conditions) Act 2023 - (Exact date September 2024 tbc)

The Act will give eligible workers and agency workers the right to request more predictable terms and conditions of work.

Sexual Harassment - (Exact date October 2024 tbc)

Employers are liable for any act of harassment committed by employees and can only avoid liability if they demonstrate they have taken all reasonable steps to prevent the harassment.  So, while there is currently no proactive obligation to prevent harassment, preventive steps, such as policies, training, risk assessments, and outreach, can be helpful in defending tribunal claims. The new legislation The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act, introduces on employers an additional duty to take reasonable steps to prevent harassment, and tribunals will soon have the right to increase the compensation for sexual harassment by up to 25% if they find that an employer has breached this new duty.  

Future Updates with Dates tbc

• A new statutory code on "fire and rehire" to be introduced. 

• New law prohibiting confidentiality clauses in contracts or settlement agreements from preventing disclosures to the police, regulated health and care or legal professionals to be introduced.

• New law requiring confidentiality clauses to set out their limitations to be introduced.

• New law to increase the break needed to end continuous employment from one week to four weeks is to be introduced.

• GDPR will be replaced with a ‘common sense’ data protection system. Further details of the proposed new scheme are yet to be released.

• A new law proposed by the government will limit the length of non-compete clauses to a maximum of three months. 

Second Chapter is here to support you with the above changes. We recommend updating any pertinent policies and procedures in preparation for the upcoming regulatory changes, and to ensure that employees are informed of these modifications. We can provide template documents, training sessions, support and advice. Get in touch to find out more!

About Faye Lewis

Faye Lewis is HR Business Partner at Second Chapter. With a degree in Events Management and CIPD Level 5 in People Management, she looks to make an informed decision, working hard to achieve the best outcome for all. Her professional passion is providing training and development programmes to share information and learn from others. Outside of work her interests are finding new eateries and walking her Lhasa Apso Basil.