As we head into the Easter weekend, it’s not all about Coronavirus!
We recognise that most people’s focus is on the impact, both commercial and personal, of Coronavirus at the moment. However there are some non-Coronavirus related changes that came into effect 1st and 6th April which we need to make you aware of. We’ve drafted an easy reference guide for you which you can and you can access by subscribing to our Advice Line scheme.
Three things strike us as being top of the list:
- The increase, from 1st April 2020, in the National Minimum Wage. This needs to be implemented from 1st April 2020 for any employees/workers who are paid NMW. This will affect the amount you pay to your employees and can reclaim from HMRC if the employee is on Furlough Leave; from 1st April you pay the new NMW rate and reclaim 80% of that new rate. We have drafted a letter for you to send your employees affected by the increase and you can access that by subscribing to our Advice Line scheme.
- The increase in Statutory Sick Pay which increases to £95.85 per week applied from 6th April 2020. Again you must pay this new rate to all employees currently entitled to SSP (whether Coronavirus related or not) and if Coronavirus related you can reclaim up to the first 14 days from HMRC.
- The referencing period for calculating holiday pay for anyone on variable hours also changes (so will apply if you have put anyone on holiday during furlough leave). The referencing period is now the average earnings (including overtime, commission and contractual bonuses) over the previous 52 weeks (rather than 12 weeks). Remember, you must pay 100% (not 80%) to employees on holiday (including Bank/Public Holidays e.g. Good Friday and Easter Monday) during furlough leave and you can reclaim 80% of the basic wage from HMRC as furlough pay.
There are also some changes relating to contracts of employment. There’s nothing you need to do right now in relation to your current employees so don’t worry about that. We are working on providing everything you need in relation to these changes (we’ve been just a bit busy in the last couple of weeks!) and will get these to you within the next week or so, but in the meantime, if you have any new starters or would like to discuss it please let us know.