Employment Law Changes From 6 April 2012

A number of employment law changes came into force on 6 April 2012 and we consider the main ones below.  In keeping with the Government's stated intention to stimulate the UK economy, some of the changes have a significant bias towards employers.

• An increase in the qualifying period required to bring a claim of unfair dismissal from one to two years. See our February 2012 update. 
• Important changes to the Employment Tribunal Rules, including an increase in the maximum costs order which can be made (from £10,000 to £20,000), an increase in the maximum deposit order which can be made against a party as a condition to continuing their claim (from £500 to £1,000) and a general rule that witness statements will be taken as read rather than being read aloud in the Tribunal.  These changes work in favour of employers and hopefully will deter more vexatious litigants.
• Statutory sick pay has risen from £81.60 to £85.85 per week. 
• Statutory maternity and paternity pay have risen from £128.73 to £135.45 per week.