Work and Families Act 2006
By: Work and Families Act 2006
Summary
The Work and Families Act 2006 will, among other things, introduce a number of enhancements to employees’ maternity, paternity and adoption leave and pay rights and widen the category of employees who are entitled to request flexible working to include those with caring responsibilities for adults. Statutory holiday entitlement is also to be extended.
All employers will be affected. The majority of the provisions included in the Work and Families Act 2006 take effect in respect of employees whose child is due to be born or adopted on or after 1 April 2007.
Note that it is the expected week of childbirth/adoption that is relevant, and not the actual week on which the event takes place.
The provisions introducing additional paternity leave and the extension to 52 weeks of statutory maternity pay (SMP) and statutory adoption pay (SAP) are to be implemented at a later date, yet to be announced. According to the Government, this will be before the end of the current parliament, which is expected to be 2008.
It is important, when reading the checklist below, to distinguish between “leave” and “pay” because the provisions for maternity (adoption/paternity) leave and maternity (adoption/paternity) pay are legislated for separately.
Checklist
The Work and Families Act 2006 will introduce the following.
Maternity and Adoption Pay
Statutory maternity pay (SMP) and statutory adoption pay (SAP) are to be extended from 26 weeks to 39 weeks for all employees who are eligible from 1 April 2007.
Eligibility for SMP will continue to be dependent on the employee having a minimum of six months’ continuous service calculated as at the end of the “qualifying week” — which is the week that falls 15 weeks before the employee’s expected week of childbirth.
The maternity pay period and the payment of SMP normally begin from the Sunday of the week following the week in which the woman ceased work. For babies due on or after 1 April 2007, the maternity pay period can start on any day of the week.
Currently, SMP is payable at a weekly rate. From 1 April 2007 a daily rate, or 1/7th of the weekly rate, will be introduced to enable payments of SMP to correspond to the employer’s normal pay interval.
The current six-months’ length-of-service requirement for employees to qualify for additional maternity leave is to be removed. This means that all pregnant employees will be eligible for up to 12 months’ maternity leave, irrespective of their length of service (of which up to 39 weeks will be paid, provided the employee is eligible for SMP).
Eligibility for statutory adoption leave and statutory adoption pay will continue, as at present, to be dependent on the employee having a minimum of six months’ continuous service calculated as at the “relevant week” — which is the week in which the employee was formally notified by the adoption agency of the match with the child.
The first six weeks of SMP will continue to be paid at 90% of the employee’s average earnings, while the remaining 33 weeks will, as at present, be payable at a flat weekly rate (currently £108.85, but potentially subject to an annual increase in April 2007).
The Government has stated an intention to extend SMP and SAP to 52 weeks by the end of the current parliament.
When this occurs, employees who qualify will be entitled to receive SMP or SAP throughout the whole of their period of maternity or adoption leave.
Maternity and Adoption Leave
The distinction between ordinary maternity (or adoption) leave and additional maternity (or adoption) leave will be retained, because different contractual entitlements apply during each.
The period of notice required for an early return to work after additional maternity leave or additional adoption leave is to be increased from the current 28 days to eight weeks.
Employees on maternity or adoption leave will, by agreement with their employer, be able to go into work for up to 10 days (which may be either separate days or a single block) without losing their SMP or SAP or triggering the end of the period of maternity or adoption leave. This will be known as “keeping in touch days”.
Employers will not be obliged to offer “keeping in touch days”, nor will the employee be obliged to agree to do any work offered. It will not therefore be permissible for an employer to put any pressure on an employee to do any work during maternity or adoption leave.
For “keeping in touch days” to operate, both the employer and the employee will have to agree:
that the employee will do some work
the type of work, for example attendance at a training course
the amount of remuneration that will be payable in respect of the work done (the employer can offset the SMP or SAP paid in respect of the working days against the employee’s wages/salary).
In addition to any “keeping in touch days”, employers may maintain reasonable contact with employees on maternity and adoption leave, for example, in order to discuss the employee’s plans for returning to work or to provide an update on developments in the workplace.
The small-employer exemption, which applies to employers with five or fewer employees, is to be abolished. This exemption currently permits small employers to refuse to permit an employee who has taken additional maternity leave or additional adoption leave to return to work on the grounds that it is not reasonably practicable to permit him or her to return.
Additional Paternity Leave
There is a proposal to introduce a new statutory right to 26 weeks’ additional paternity leave and additional paternity pay for fathers/partners during the second six months of their wife’s/partner’s maternity or adoption leave, provided the latter is employed and has returned to work. This will be in addition to the two weeks’ paternity leave available to fathers/partners during the first eight weeks following the birth or adoption of a child.
Fathers will, if eligible, be able to take additional paternity leave once the child is at least 20 weeks old and the period of leave will have to be complete by the child’s first birthday.
If the employee, at the time of his or her return to work, has some entitlement to SMP or SAP left, the father or partner will be entitled to be paid an equivalent amount of SPP (statutory paternity pay) while taking additional paternity leave.
The additional paternity leave entitlements are expected to come into force in 2008.
Flexible Working
Employees who have caring responsibilities for an adult will be entitled to request flexible working, subject to their having at least six months’ continuous service.
To be eligible to request flexible working, the employee will have to be caring for an adult who is their spouse, partner, civil partner, parent, adoptive parent, guardian, adult child (including adopted children), brother, sister, uncle, aunt, grandparent or someone else living at the same address (step-relatives and in-laws are included).
Holiday Entitlement
Employers will be required to grant workers a minimum of eight paid public holidays per year, over and above the right to four weeks’ statutory paid annual holiday leave. Currently, employers may designate any paid public or bank holiday as part of employees’ four weeks’ statutory annual leave entitlement.
The additional eight days’ holiday are to be phased in, with the first four days to be introduced from October 2007.
This change will not entitle employees to be granted time off on public holidays, but will in effect give them an extra eight days’ paid annual holiday which may or may not be taken on actual public holiday dates (depending on the employer’s rules and on custom and practice in the organisation).
Employers who already grant 28 or more days’ paid holidays (including public holidays) will not be required to increase their workers’ entitlement.
I am offering aboutmybusiness members, a no obligation needs analysis to discuss 'face to face' their individual business needs on both HR and Health & Safety. To arrange your meeting, email me at alan.steel@cronerconsulting.co.uk
Summary
The Work and Families Act 2006 will, among other things, introduce a number of enhancements to employees’ maternity, paternity and adoption leave and pay rights and widen the category of employees who are entitled to request flexible working to include those with caring responsibilities for adults. Statutory holiday entitlement is also to be extended.
All employers will be affected. The majority of the provisions included in the Work and Families Act 2006 take effect in respect of employees whose child is due to be born or adopted on or after 1 April 2007.
Note that it is the expected week of childbirth/adoption that is relevant, and not the actual week on which the event takes place.
The provisions introducing additional paternity leave and the extension to 52 weeks of statutory maternity pay (SMP) and statutory adoption pay (SAP) are to be implemented at a later date, yet to be announced. According to the Government, this will be before the end of the current parliament, which is expected to be 2008.
It is important, when reading the checklist below, to distinguish between “leave” and “pay” because the provisions for maternity (adoption/paternity) leave and maternity (adoption/paternity) pay are legislated for separately.
Checklist
The Work and Families Act 2006 will introduce the following.
Maternity and Adoption Pay
Statutory maternity pay (SMP) and statutory adoption pay (SAP) are to be extended from 26 weeks to 39 weeks for all employees who are eligible from 1 April 2007.
Eligibility for SMP will continue to be dependent on the employee having a minimum of six months’ continuous service calculated as at the end of the “qualifying week” — which is the week that falls 15 weeks before the employee’s expected week of childbirth.
The maternity pay period and the payment of SMP normally begin from the Sunday of the week following the week in which the woman ceased work. For babies due on or after 1 April 2007, the maternity pay period can start on any day of the week.
Currently, SMP is payable at a weekly rate. From 1 April 2007 a daily rate, or 1/7th of the weekly rate, will be introduced to enable payments of SMP to correspond to the employer’s normal pay interval.
The current six-months’ length-of-service requirement for employees to qualify for additional maternity leave is to be removed. This means that all pregnant employees will be eligible for up to 12 months’ maternity leave, irrespective of their length of service (of which up to 39 weeks will be paid, provided the employee is eligible for SMP).
Eligibility for statutory adoption leave and statutory adoption pay will continue, as at present, to be dependent on the employee having a minimum of six months’ continuous service calculated as at the “relevant week” — which is the week in which the employee was formally notified by the adoption agency of the match with the child.
The first six weeks of SMP will continue to be paid at 90% of the employee’s average earnings, while the remaining 33 weeks will, as at present, be payable at a flat weekly rate (currently £108.85, but potentially subject to an annual increase in April 2007).
The Government has stated an intention to extend SMP and SAP to 52 weeks by the end of the current parliament.
When this occurs, employees who qualify will be entitled to receive SMP or SAP throughout the whole of their period of maternity or adoption leave.
Maternity and Adoption Leave
The distinction between ordinary maternity (or adoption) leave and additional maternity (or adoption) leave will be retained, because different contractual entitlements apply during each.
The period of notice required for an early return to work after additional maternity leave or additional adoption leave is to be increased from the current 28 days to eight weeks.
Employees on maternity or adoption leave will, by agreement with their employer, be able to go into work for up to 10 days (which may be either separate days or a single block) without losing their SMP or SAP or triggering the end of the period of maternity or adoption leave. This will be known as “keeping in touch days”.
Employers will not be obliged to offer “keeping in touch days”, nor will the employee be obliged to agree to do any work offered. It will not therefore be permissible for an employer to put any pressure on an employee to do any work during maternity or adoption leave.
For “keeping in touch days” to operate, both the employer and the employee will have to agree:
that the employee will do some work
the type of work, for example attendance at a training course
the amount of remuneration that will be payable in respect of the work done (the employer can offset the SMP or SAP paid in respect of the working days against the employee’s wages/salary).
In addition to any “keeping in touch days”, employers may maintain reasonable contact with employees on maternity and adoption leave, for example, in order to discuss the employee’s plans for returning to work or to provide an update on developments in the workplace.
The small-employer exemption, which applies to employers with five or fewer employees, is to be abolished. This exemption currently permits small employers to refuse to permit an employee who has taken additional maternity leave or additional adoption leave to return to work on the grounds that it is not reasonably practicable to permit him or her to return.
Additional Paternity Leave
There is a proposal to introduce a new statutory right to 26 weeks’ additional paternity leave and additional paternity pay for fathers/partners during the second six months of their wife’s/partner’s maternity or adoption leave, provided the latter is employed and has returned to work. This will be in addition to the two weeks’ paternity leave available to fathers/partners during the first eight weeks following the birth or adoption of a child.
Fathers will, if eligible, be able to take additional paternity leave once the child is at least 20 weeks old and the period of leave will have to be complete by the child’s first birthday.
If the employee, at the time of his or her return to work, has some entitlement to SMP or SAP left, the father or partner will be entitled to be paid an equivalent amount of SPP (statutory paternity pay) while taking additional paternity leave.
The additional paternity leave entitlements are expected to come into force in 2008.
Flexible Working
Employees who have caring responsibilities for an adult will be entitled to request flexible working, subject to their having at least six months’ continuous service.
To be eligible to request flexible working, the employee will have to be caring for an adult who is their spouse, partner, civil partner, parent, adoptive parent, guardian, adult child (including adopted children), brother, sister, uncle, aunt, grandparent or someone else living at the same address (step-relatives and in-laws are included).
Holiday Entitlement
Employers will be required to grant workers a minimum of eight paid public holidays per year, over and above the right to four weeks’ statutory paid annual holiday leave. Currently, employers may designate any paid public or bank holiday as part of employees’ four weeks’ statutory annual leave entitlement.
The additional eight days’ holiday are to be phased in, with the first four days to be introduced from October 2007.
This change will not entitle employees to be granted time off on public holidays, but will in effect give them an extra eight days’ paid annual holiday which may or may not be taken on actual public holiday dates (depending on the employer’s rules and on custom and practice in the organisation).
Employers who already grant 28 or more days’ paid holidays (including public holidays) will not be required to increase their workers’ entitlement.
I am offering aboutmybusiness members, a no obligation needs analysis to discuss 'face to face' their individual business needs on both HR and Health & Safety. To arrange your meeting, email me at alan.steel@cronerconsulting.co.uk
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