Flexible Working News
The Department of Trade and Industry has published the results of its first survey into flexible working requests as the Regulations celebrate their first anniversary.
The survey shows that:
• 52% of all employees are aware of the right to request flexible working
• 25% of eligible employees have made such a request
• 86% of those were fully or partially accepted by employers
• 37% of eligible women compared with only 10% of eligible men have made such a request
To see the full survey go to www.dti.gov.uk
Potential Improvements to Family Friendly Working Rights
In a keynote speech at a conference held on the 5 th April 2004 by “Fathers Direct”, Patricia Hewitt said “ we need to consider how we support fathers who want to spend more time with their children ” The DTI is to hold a debate about possible improvements to these rights. This has also led to speculation that one change may be to allow mothers and fathers to share the second six months of maternity leave between them.
Changes to Compensation and Pay Limits
From the 1.2.04 the weekly rate for the unfair dismissal basic award has increased to £270 and the maximum compensatory award has risen to £55,000.
From the 4.4.04 the standard rate of statutory maternity adoption and paternity pay rose to £102.80 per week.
From 1.10.04 National Minimum Wage rate to increase to £4.85 per hour for workers over 21 and £4.10 for workers between the age of 18 and 21.
New Dispute Resolution Regulations to come into force on 1st October 2004
From October, employers and employees will be required to follow a minimum 3 stage process to ensure that disputes are discussed at work. A similar process will be introduced for disciplinary and grievance matters.
ACAS is updating its code of practice to assist employers with these new procedures. This is currently available in draft form at www.acas.org.uk .
Synergy Employment Law
This document reflects the law as at May 2004.
It is for general information only. Whilst we will make every effort to ensure that the content is accurate and up to date nothing in this page should be construed as legal advice. If you require advice on any legal problems we suggest that you contact us.
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