First published on Thursday, Mar 23, 2023
Last updated on Thursday, Mar 23, 2023
Have you heard the latest news?
Welcome to HR Heartbeat, where we give you a rundown of the week's top employment law stories. Stay on the pulse of current trends impacting your business, plus get up-to-the-minute commentaries on all things HR and legal.
So, let’s check out this week’s headlines…
Redundancy pay is rising!
The weekly cap for statutory redundancy payments will increase on the 6th of April from £571 to £643.
Employers, you may need to put in some extra financial planning to prepare! Any redundancy dismissals that take effect on or after this date will require a higher rate of pay.
Beat the changing clock
The clocks will go forward one hour this weekend (Sunday the 26th of March). This means we lose an extra hour of precious sleep.
But more importantly, for your resident night owls—Staff working night shifts could end up working one hour less than usual, or worse they could be late!
Be sure to review the wording in your employee’s contract and clearly communicate any changes to make sure you don’t get left with late staff. Or, stay ahead of the trend and plan your staff rota ahead of schedule. Find out more about rota planning here.
Ramadan begins
Ramadan starts this week, (Wednesday the 22nd of March) and marks the beginning of a four-week fasting period for Muslims worldwide. Fasting for hours may affect your staff’s productivity at work. That’s why it’s important you put certain measures in place to support your Muslim staff during this period.
To help you learn how fasting will affect your staff's daily routine, check out our useful blog on the five best HR practices to support your employees through Ramadan.
Time’s running out on gender pay gap reporting
Employers with 250+ employees must publish a gender pay gap report. Those in the public sector have a deadline of the 30th of March, whilst private sector organisations need to publish reports by the 4th of April.
The report should include an action plan which outlines how the business will close their gender pay gap. Read more on your responsibilities when it comes to pay gap reporting here.
New Acas cost-of-living advice
63% of employees feel stressed about rising living costs. So, as a way to help, Acas released new guidance on how to support staff through the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.
They advise businesses to:
- Be approachable and available.
- Stay in regular contact with teams.
- Clearly communicate the support available.
- And consider offering practical help.
Examples of practical help could be offering your staff cost-effective perks. Bright Exchange has thousands of discounts to help your staff through the cost-of-living crisis. From discounts on fuel to their weekly shop, you can show your support and keep your staff engaged.
And that’s a wrap. Tune in next week for more headlines and make sure you stay ahead of major employment law changes!