Last week we held a webinar advising employers what’s in store for employment law in 2018/19. You can watch the full session here.

Today, using a simple timeline of events to come, we blog on the key milestones your company should be keeping an eye out for….. 

July 2018 – Apprenticeship Levy Transferring of Funds
OK, so technically we are now in August, but in case you missed it – did you know that if you pay the Apprenticeship Levy and you have funds to spare, then you can now transfer up to 10% of those unused funds to another employer? They can be a fellow Levy payer or a non-Levy payer. Details on how this works in practice are on our webinar with the ESFA.

Summer 2018 – Ethnicity Pay Gap Reporting
With Gender Pay Gap reporting now in full swing we expect that the Government will shortly consult on Ethnicity Pay Gap Reporting, having made a commitment in the Conservative Party Manifesto. We’ve heard that it is sitting in BEIS (Department for Business, Energy and Industry Strategy) as opposed to the Government Equalities Office (GEO) so expect reporting requirements to look different from what we have now.

September/October 2018 – MAC report on EU labour and post-Brexit migration plans published
This is a big one. We expect that the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) will publish their report looking at the impact EU nationals have on the UK labour market – a report EEF inputted into extensively. Using this evidence, Government is then expect to announce what a future migration system will look like post Brexit and post-transition (from 1st January 2021 onwards). We know what manufacturers want – but will the Government’s model mirror that?

4 October 2018 – Childcare voucher scheme ends
From 4 October 2018, childcare voucher schemes will close to new applicants. If you want more details, head to this government website.

October/November 2018 – LPC publishes NMW/NLW report and Government accepts or rejects
Around this time the Low Pay Commission (LPC) will publish their report on what the NMW/NLW rates should be from April 2019. This year was interesting in that the LPC focused heavily on whether youth rates are used and of course were tasked at looking at the proposal to have an additional NMW rate for those on non-guaranteed hours. The Government will then accept or reject the recommendations and announce the rates from April 2019. You can read our response to the LPC here.

29 March 2019 – UK leaves the EU
In case you have been living under a rock since 23 June 2016 you will know that on 29 March 2019 the UK officially leaves the EU aka Brexit. It will be 11pm UK time (midnight Brussels time). Will we have a deal? We’re still waiting to find out…

April 2019
We have a few things happening in April 2019. First up will be increases to National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates (see above). Then it will be the second Gender Pay Gap deadline (how do your figures compare to others in the manufacturing industry), and some changes to payslips following the Matthew Taylor Review

2020 – Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay
Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay is due to come in during 2020. The Government recently consulted on this following a Private Members’ Bill in Parliament. It will entitle bereaved parents to be given two weeks parental bereavement leave and pay following the loss of a child. The detail of how this will work is expected in the Government’s response to the consultation.

And let’s remember that when it comes to Autumn Budgets and Spring Statements, the Government often likes to pull a few rabbits from the hat, so make sure you keep up to date with EEF’s e-alerts so you know what else might be on the horizon.

For HR and employment law support for your business speak to your EEF Adviser, email [email protected], or call 0808 168 5874.