New work laws come into force in April affecting anyone with a job
Big changes to employment laws are coming in April 2024 that will impact anyone is in work.
The changes, which could improve the lives of people, are just over a month away. Changes to flexible working, which some find very useful, will come in meaning that people can ask for it from the moment they are employed - rather than months down the line. There are also changes to protect women from being made redundant during pregnancy.
Here's a look at the changes that are coming this April.
Flexible and predictable working
The Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023. Under this Act, workers can ask for flexible working from the first day of their job. This is different the current situation, where you have to wait 26 weeks. This change will start on April 6 2024, reports Hull Live.
Workers will also be able to ask for flexible working twice in a year, instead of just once. They won't have to explain why they want the change, like they do now. And bosses will have to decide on the request within two months, not three. These changes are meant to make flexible working more accessible, but the reasons a boss can say no haven't changed.
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Protection from redundancy during pregnancy and maternity leave
New rules are coming into play on April 6 for any pregnancies notified to the employer on or after that date and also any maternity leave ending on or after then. Currently, before making employees on maternity leave, shared parental leave or adoption leave redundant, employers are obliged to offer them suitable alternative employment where it exists in priority to anyone else who is provisionally selected for redundancy. Under the new rules, the redundancy protection during pregnancy will start when the employee tells their employer they are pregnant and extend during an additional period after they return to work from statutory maternity leave.
The protected period is calculated from the first day of the expected week of childbirth (or from the actual date of the birth where this is notified to the employer) for a period of 18 months. Therefore, if an employee takes their full 12 months statutory leave entitlement, they will be protected for an additional six-month period following their return to work. In respect of employees who have suffered a miscarriage the protection applies for a period of two weeks after the pregnancy ends.
If a woman is entitled to statutory maternity leave, the protected period of pregnancy will end on the day the maternity leave starts. If she suffers a miscarriage before 24 weeks of pregnancy, the protected period ends two weeks after the miscarriage. After 24 weeks of pregnancy, if the employee suffers a stillbirth, then she is entitled to full statutory maternity leave.
For maternity leave the additional protected period will end 18 months after the expected week of childbirth, unless the employee has informed the employer of the date of their child’s birth (prior to the end of maternity leave), in which case the additional protected period will end 18 months after that date. This means that, if an employee takes their full 12 months of statutory maternity leave, they’ll receive an extra six months of protection following their return to work.
Shared parental leave
For those taking six or more consecutive weeks of shared parental leave but who have not taken maternity or adoption leave, the additional protected period ends 18 months after the date of birth of the child/date the child was placed for adoption. For those taking less than six consecutive weeks, redundancy protection will apply where the redundancy situation arises during any period the employee is on shared parental leave (as is currently the case). The new rules will apply to shared parental leave starting on or after April 6 2024.
Paternity leave
Starting from April 6, employees expecting a baby or planning to adopt will have new rights. At the moment, they can take one week or two weeks off in a row for paternity leave. But from April 6, they can choose to split their paternity leave into two separate weeks. They can take this time off any time within a year after the birth or adoption. They only need to let their boss know 28 days before they want to take the leave.
Carers leave
From April 6 2024, workers who look after someone will also get new rights. They will be able to take one week off each year without pay to care for a dependant. This could be a husband, wife, partner, child or parent who needs long-term care. It could also be anyone else who relies on the worker for care. Long-term needs could be a disability, an illness or injury that needs care for more than three months, or old age. This right is for workers who need time off to give or arrange care for the person they look after.
Workers can take a week's unpaid leave each year to sort out care. This can be taken in half-days, full days or even a whole week at once. If it disrupts the business, bosses can delay the leave but must allow it within a month of the original start date. The rescheduling should be discussed with the employee.
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