Employment Law Update – Summary April 2022

One of the benefits for being a member of My People Partner is that you receive an in-depth Employment Law Update at the start of every month.  What follows is a summary of the April 2022 report.

COVID-19

Guidance for people with COVID-19 and their contacts

  • On 24 February 2022, the UK Health Security Agency issued new guidance COVID-19: people with COVID-19 and their contacts – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) for people testing positive with COVID-19 and their contacts. The guidance applies in England and is intended for those with COVID-19 symptoms, those who have tested positive as well as household and close contacts of positive cases.

From an employment perspective, the guidance states that:

  • Since the most effective way to avoid passing on COVID-19 infection is to stay at home and avoid contact with other people, those testing positive should not attend work. If they are unable to work from home, they should discuss options available to them (which may include eligibility for SSP) with their employer. The guidance suggests isolation of ten days after symptoms start (or the day of the test for someone without symptoms) and a resumption of normal activities after negative lateral flow tests on days five and six (or two later consecutive negative tests) if they don’t have a high temperature.
  • Household contacts of those with COVID-19 (or someone who has stayed overnight in the household of someone with COVID-19) should work from home if they are able to do so for ten days after the person’s symptoms started (or the day their test was taken if they did not have symptoms).
  • A contact of someone with COVID-19 but who does not live with them (or did not stay in their household overnight) is at lower risk of becoming infected and should follow the guidance Coronavirus: how to stay safe and help prevent the spread Coronavirus: how to stay safe and help prevent the spread – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). The guidance will be updated on 1 April 2022.

SSP

  • The Statutory Sick Pay (General) (Coronavirus Amendment) Regulations 2022 came into effect on 25 March 2022. The regulations revoke the “deemed incapacity” provisions entitling those self-isolating or shielding due to COVID-19 to statutory sick pay (SSP). The Statutory Sick Pay (Coronavirus) (Suspension of Waiting Days) (Saving Provisions) Regulations 2022, which also came into force on 25 March 2022, provide that the suspension of waiting days for the purposes of SSP entitlement continues to apply to periods of incapacity that started on or before 24 March 2022.

Vaccination of health and social care workers

  • On 15th March 2022, Regulations came into force revoking the statutory requirements for mandatory vaccination for workers in the health and social care sector in England. The DHSC also withdrew guidance on mandatory vaccination for workers in care homes and social care settings other than care homes.

Volunteering

  • On 7th March 2022, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) updated its guidance for voluntary organisations and groups in England on how to safely and effectively involve volunteers in their work during the COVID-19 pandemic Enabling safe and effective volunteering during coronavirus (COVID-19) – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). This now reflects the government’s “Plan for living with COVID-19”

The updated guidance:

  • Confirms that those with COVID-19 are no longer legally required to self-isolate. However, it advises volunteers to stay at home and avoid contact with other people if they have COVID-19 symptoms or have tested positive for COVID-19. A volunteer who lives with, or has stayed overnight in the household of, someone with COVID-19 is advised to volunteer from home if they can
  • Reflects the government’s decision to revoke, from 15 March 2022, the requirement for vaccination as a condition of deployment in health and social care in England.

NMW

The government has accepted the Low Pay Commission’s recommended increases to the national living wage (NLW) and national minimum wage (NMW) rates, to apply from 1 April 2022.  The new rates will be:

  • Age 23 or over (NLW rate): £9.50 (up from £8.91).
  • Age 21 to 22: £9.18 (up from £8.36).
  • Age 18 to 20: £6.83 (up from £6.56).
  • Age 16 to 17: £4.81 (up from £4.62).
  • Apprentice rate: £4.81 (up from £4.30)
  • Accommodation offset amount: £8.70 (up from £8.36).

It also confirmed that the government has accepted the Low Pay Commission’s conclusion that the exemption for live-in domestic workers is not fit for purpose and should be removed. Legislation to remove the exemption will be introduced “when parliamentary time allows”.

Members of the My People Partner programme also received information relating to:

  • Tribunal awards increase from April 2022 – The Employment Rights (Increase of Limits) Order 2022 has been laid before Parliament and will revise compensation limits for certain tribunal awards and other statutory payments from 6 April 2022.  In cases involving unfair dismissal, the new figures will apply where the effective date of termination falls on or after 6 April 2022.
  • Right to work Checks – The Immigration (Restrictions on Employment and Residential Accommodation) (Prescribed Requirements and Codes of Practice) and Licensing Act 2003 (Personal and Premises Licences) (Forms), etc, Regulations 2022 have been made and come into force on 6 April 2022
  • Fit Notes – From 6 April 2022, fit notes may be issued without a wet-ink signature enabling them to be issued digitally.
  • UK ratifies treaty tackling violence and harassment at work
  • Changes to UK Immigration Rules

Go to My People Partner for more information on the programme or for advice on employment law and HR matters


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