A number of changes have occurred this month that will be relevant to employment law. These are the annual changes that take effect and which usually increase certain rates that cover statutory payments or calculations which are applied by employment tribunals.
Firstly, as many people will be aware, the national minimum wage increased from 1st April 2025 to £12.21 per hour for workers aged 21 and over. The national minimum wage for 18 to 20-year-olds has risen to £10 per hour and the rate for apprentices and 16 to 17-year-olds has increased to £7.55 per hour.
With effect from 6th April 2025, the upper cap on a week’s pay for statutory redundancy pay purposes and for the calculation of a basic award for unfair dismissal has been increased from £700 to £719. This means that the maximum award for statutory redundancy pay is now £21,570.
In claims involving discrimination or victimisation, employment tribunals will have regard to Vento guidelines when determining what should be awarded for injury to feelings. These rates generally increase year on year and the new rates will apply from 6 April 2025 to events that took place from that date. The lower Vento band, usually for less serious or one-off acts of discrimination, is now £1,200 to £12,100. The middle Vento band for more serious and multiple acts of discrimination, but not the most extreme cases of injury to feelings, runs from £12,100 to £36,400. The upper band, reserved for the most serious cases and which is quite rare in practice, is from £36,400 – £60,700. Tribunals do also have discretion to apply an injury to feelings award in excess of £60,700 in the most exceptional cases.
As these rates continue to increase year on year, it is ever more important for employers to be mindful of the risks of failing to act as they should towards their employees and workers. It is particularly important that employers are mindful of the need to eradicate discriminatory behaviour that might give rise to a potential award for injury to feelings.
Finally, the rate for a week’s pay for statutory maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental pay has gone up from £184.03 to £187.18