What is employment law?

In its simplest form, employment law refers to how the relationship between employers and employees is governed. It covers a variety of aspects, such as hiring practices, wages, workplace safety, discrimination and wrongful termination. 

HR and Employment law is designed to protect employees rights, and prevent employers from exploiting their staff. On the flip side, it’s also in place to provide guidance to businesses on how to manage their workforce and stay compliant. 

What obligations do employers have?

In order to abide by UK regulations, employers have certain obligations that they must fulfil. This covers everything from pay, to flexible working and redundancy. 

In the interest of making these obligations as accessible as possible, we have broken down some of the key ones that all business owners should be aware of. 

Minimum wage

Are you paying all of your employees and workers at least the minimum wage?

The minimum wage as of 1 April 2024 is: 

• £11.44 for those 21 years above
• £8.60 for 18 to 20 year olds
• £6.40 for 16 and 17 year olds

Keep in mind that minimum wage obligations change regularly, and the Government has proposed to adjust the process for determining the minimum wage so it takes into account the costs of living. There are also proposals to remove age bands so all adults are entitled to the same minimum wage. Find out more about the proposed changes here. 

Maximum working hours and breaks

The Working Time Regulations state that employees and workers must generally not work more than 48 hours per week, averaged over a 17 week period. The caveat to this is that employees and workers can opt out of this right. Opt out agreements can be included as part of an employee contract. 

It’s important to remember that this does not apply to workers under 18. For people under the age of 18, the Regulations state that they cannot work more than 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week. 

The Regulations also have rules around breaks. All employees and workers must have: 

• a 20-minute rest break if they’re expected to work more than 6 hours during the day
• a break of at least 11 hours between shifts
• at least 24 hours off every 7 working days (or 48 hours every 14 working days)

Leave

As an employer you are responsible for providing leave to your employees. This includes statutory sick pay, paid annual leave and leave associated with pregnancy and childbirth. 

Employees are entitled to: 

• Statutory sick pay (SSP). It is paid once an employee is sick for more than 3 days in a row at the rate of £116.75 per week (as of 1 April 2024) for up to 28 weeks
• At least 5.6 weeks of paid annual leave per year
• 52 weeks’ statutory maternity leave, regardless of length of service, and this can also be shared with another parent (shared parental leave). There are a range of other leave entitlements for pregnant employees and parents
• Statutory maternity pay (SMP) of up to 39 weeks if they have been employed for at least 26 weeks in the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth 

Flexible working

The Government is proposing to strengthen individuals’ rights to work flexibly. So the requirements employers must adhere to may change. However, current legislation states:

• All employees (but not workers) are entitled to make a flexible working request from day one of their tenure
• This could be to reduce their hours, work from home, work compressed hours, etc
• Employers must respond to the request in writing within two months, which can only be refused on reasonable business grounds
• If an employer does not handle a request in a reasonable manner, the employee can take them to a tribunal who can award compensation

Health & safety

Do you understand your obligations regarding health and safety at work including having a health and safety policy, carrying out regular risk assessments, displaying information and consulting staff?

Legal requirements for health and safety include: 

• All employers with 5 or more employees/workers must have a written health and safety policy
• Businesses are required to regularly carry out risk assessments to identify hazards in the workplace and appropriate ways to eliminate/minimise them
• It is mandatory to display a health and safety poster or provide a leaflet to all staff
• Businesses are required to regularly consult staff on health and safety matters 

Minimum notice periods

Do you understand the requirements to provide all employees with a minimum notice period when terminating their contract? 

The obligations in regards to minimum notice periods include: 

• Employees with continuous employment of at least one month but less than two years are entitled to at least one week’s notice from the employer
• Employees with two years’ continuous employment or more are entitled to one week’s notice for each complete year of service, up to a maximum of 12 weeks’ notice
• The minimum notice to be given by an employee with at least one month’s continuous employment is one week
• Workers are not entitled to be provided with any minimum period of notice 

Redundancy

In some situations, redundancies are unavoidable. But there is still legislation in place that protects employees and that employers have to adhere to.

It’s important to remember that employers must follow a fair selection and consultation process. Failure to do so could result in a claim for unfair dismissal. 

Employees who have had at least two years of service are entitled to statutory redundancy pay. This is paid in addition to the minimum notice requirements, they get:

• half a week’s pay for each full year they were under 22
• one week’s pay for each full year they were 22 or older but under 41
• one and half week’s pay for each full year they were 41 or older

Still confused? 

We get it, HR and employment law is confusing and complicated. To make sure you aren’t putting your business at risk, download our employment law factsheet! 

For more information, our HR Advisory service also includes unlimited access to HR and employment law advice from a team of experts, as well as representation in the event of a claim brought by an employee.

With our HR help in your corner, we can help you comply with your HR and employment law obligations and make sure your workplace is a great place to work.

For more information about how Employment Hero can help your business stay compliant, automate HR and payroll and drive employee engagement, speak to one of our team today.