The Exclusivity Terms In Zero Hours Contract (redress) Regulations 2015

EMLOYMENT LAW UPDATE - FEBRUARY 2016

These regulations came into force on 11^th January 2016.

S27A(3) of the Employment Rights Act 1996 provides that a provision in a zero hours contract which prohibits the worker from doing work under any other arrangement is unenforceable. In other words the employee cannot be prevented from doing other work for other employers.

If an employee is dismissed for taking on other work that dismissal will be automatically unfair.

Even if the employee is not dismissed but is subjected to a "detriment" (e.g.  being denied work that would otherwise have been allocated to them), that detrimental treatment is unlawful.

There is no qualifying period of employment before an employee is protected, so this is another exception to the "2 year rule" which applies to "ordinary" unfair dismissal and protects employees from day 1 of their employment.

The regulations are at http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2015/2021/pdfs/uksi_20152021_en.pdf

The Living Wage

The new "National Living Wage" will come into force on 1st April 2016.

It provides for a minimum rate of £7.20 per hour for employees age 25 and over. The national minimum wage will be revised every year on 1st April.

For workers under 25, the rates will remain the same, currently £6.70 for those age 21 to 25, £5.30 for those age 18 to 20 and £3.87 for those age 16 to 18.

Published: January 2016

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