July 01, 2011
Important changes took place on 6 April 2011 as follows:
• Statutory Sick Pay increased from £79.15 to £81.60 with the earnings threshold having risen from £97.00 to £102.00;
• The rate of Employees National Insurance Contributions NICs increased from 11% to 12% on earnings between the lower earnings limit (currently £110.00 per week but increasing to £139.00 per week) and the upper earnings limited (currently £844.00 per week but decreasing to £817.00 per week).
An increase of 15 pence per hour to £6.08 to the adult national minimum wage effective from 1st October 2011 has also been announced by the Government. The minimum wage for 18-20 year olds will increase by 6 pence per hour to £4.98, for 16-17 year olds the increase will be of 4 pence per hour to £3.68 and for apprentices there will be a 10 pence per hour increase to £2.60.
Agricultural workers are covered by the national minimum wage, but may also be entitled to higher minimum rates of pay set by the agricultural wages board. To check the rates and whether or not they apply to your employment, you should refer to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs website www.defra.gov.uk. There is a helpline which can also be contacted on 0800 917 2368. Further information is available on the Direct Gov website at www.direct.gov.uk.
Another important change which has taken place is the default retirement age which has now been abolished by the government. This means that employees can no longer be compulsorily retired at age 65. Older employees should now be in a situation of being able to carry on working for as long as they feel able to do so, without being forced into a retirement that they do not wish to accept. Further information about the retirement age and its abolition is available from the Age UK website at www.ageuk.org.uk.
A frequent issue which arises for agricultural workers is where they have not received a contract of employment from their employer and therefore do not know what their contractual terms are. All employees are entitled to receive a statement of the main terms and conditions of their employment within two months of starting with their employer. If the employer refuses to produce such a statement, it is possible to make an application to an employment tribunal to require the employer to produce this statement. This is an important right where employees need to know about factors such as their accommodation, fixed pay and holiday entitlement. Employees are also entitled to know when they will receive salary and this should be confirmed on the statement. If employees are dismissed without ever having received a written statement, a claim can be brought to an Employment Tribunal for up to two weeks’ pay.
If you require more information on Employment Law as an employee or an employer, please contact Debra Wetters, Solicitor, on 01295 204122 or e-mail her at dwetters@se-law.co.uk.
