Essential updates for employers - April 2022

06 Apr 2022

By Katherine Irvine, Associate solicitor at Lindsays. 

Each April new rules for employment law are introduced and employers need to be sure to incorporate the appropriate changes to their rates and policies. Below we summarise some of the key changes or you can download our Employment Essentials guide for full details.

Increase to minimum wage and other statutory pay rates

From 1 April 2022 the following rates apply for National Minimum/Living wage:

• 23 years and over – rate will increase to £9.50 per hour (increase of 61p)
• 21 to 22 years old - rate will increase to £9.18 per hour (increase of 27p)
• 18 to 20 years old - rate will increase to £6.83 per hour (rise of 27p)
• under 18 years old (above compulsory school age) - rate will increase to £4.81 per hour (up by 19p)
• apprentices under 19 years or over 19 in year 1 of apprenticeship) - rate will increase to £4.81 per hour (increase of 51p)

On 6 April the rates of statutory sick pay (SSP) rise from £96.35 to £99.35.

From 3 April statutory family payment rates also increase, therefore maternity, paternity, shared parental, parental bereavement and adoption pay increase from £151.97 to £156.66.

Compensation limits for certain tribunal awards and other statutory payments

Where termination of employment occurs on or after 6 April 2022, the following rates apply:

• The limit on a week's pay increases from £544 to £571.
• The same weekly limit will apply to the calculation of statutory redundancy payments.
• The maximum compensatory award for unfair dismissal in Employment Tribunal awards increases from £89,493 to £93,878.
• The minimum basic award for certain unfair dismissals (including health and safety dismissals) increases from £6,634 to £6,959.

Right to work checks

Adjusted Right to Work checks were introduced March 2020, allowing for virtual checks.  From 6 April 2022 the new Identity Document Validation Technology (IDVT) process is introduced, which allows certified Identity Service providers (IDDPs) to check and verify a British or Irish citizen’s right to work remotely (with additional phasing out of Biometric Residences cards, Biometric Residence permits or Frontier Worker Permits).

Undertaking Covid adjusted virtual checks can continue but only until 30 September 2022.

Bank holidays – The Queens Jubilee

There is an additional Bank Holiday 3 June 2022, to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, with the usual late May bank holiday moved to Thursday 2 June to give a four-day weekend.

Gender pay gap reporting

Employers with 250 or more staff must publish annual gender pay gap reports and although paused in 2020, the requirement returned in 2021.  For 2022 the deadlines for reporting are 30 March 2022 (public sector) and 4 April 2022 (private sector and voluntary organisations).

Covid-related SSP

Employers with fewer than 250 employees (as at 30 November 2021) have been able to recover two weeks' of SSP for each eligible employee who is off work due to COVID-19 since 21 December 2021. The Scheme will apply to COVID-19 related absences until 17 March 2022 and employers will only have until 24 March 2022 to submit claims to recover.

Personal protective equipment (PPE)

From 6 April 2022 the Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 2022 extend the duty on employers to provide suitable PPE, where there is a health and safety risk, to all workers not just employees.

If you would like to discuss any of the above employment law changes our employment team will be happy to help.