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Webinar Objectives & Signpost
Introduction
What Are The New Challenges?
What Are The New Family Friendly Rights?
Existing Challenges: Problem Clinic
Top Tips & Suggestions
Questions
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Existing Challenges – Problem Clinic
• Administration!
• Flexible Working Requests
• Prioritising: Parents v Carers?
• Pregnancy/Maternity Cover
• Additional Paternity Leave
• Associative Discrimination
• Pregnancy
• Disability
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Family Friendly Rights: All Change!
March 2013: Parental Leave from 13 to 18 weeks
Autumn 2013 :New Employee Shareholder Status
S 23 Growth & Infrastructure Bill
Waiver of some flexible working rights
Longer Notice Periods for Return following SML/SAL
2014: Right to Request Flexible Working For All Employees
2015: NEW Flexible Parental Leave System
2015: Parental Leave until child aged 18
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April 2013: NEW Employee Shareholder Status
S 23 Growth & Infrastructure Bill
Employees receive between £2000 and £50,000 of Employer shares
Waiving:
- Standard Unfair Dismissal rights –Cannot waive protection for Automatic Unfair Dismissal Reasons
- Some flexible working and training rights
- Statutory Redundancy Pay
- Giving longer notice to return from maternity leave or adoption leave
Employee shares will be exempt from Capital Gains Tax
Employer allowed to include a clause in contracts requiring surrender of shares when employee left employment; dismissed; or made redundant.
- buy back at "their unrestricted market value".
No fault dismissals dressed up as the enfranchisement of employees?
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2014: Flexible Working Requests For All Employees
Right to Request Flexible Working
– All employees
– Abolition of current statutory procedure
– New Statutory Code of Practice
– Employer Duty to consider “Reasonably” within “Reasonable” time period
– Still 1 request in single 12 month period
– Guidance for Employers
• Prioritising requests
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2015: Children And Families Bill
From 2015: Retained Default System
Statutory Maternity Leave (SML)
Up to 52 week period
Pay:
Statutory Maternity/Adoption Pay (SMP/SAP) or
Maternity Allowance (MA)
2 week’s Ordinary Paternity Leave
Qualifying Criteria
BUT Mother can elect to end SML/SMP for NEW
FLEXIBLE PARENTAL LEAVE
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NEW: Children And Families Bill
From 2015: NEW Flexible
Parental leave system (FPL)
Abolition of Additional Paternity
Leave
Eligibility/Qualifying Criteria
including:
Earnings Criteria
Service Criteria Each
Parent: 26 Weeks service
by 15th week before EWC
Detail Required
Elected by Mother for Shared FPL
with fathers/ partners
After Compulsory Maternity
Leave
balance of SML/Additional
Paternity Leave & Parental
Leave
Minimum FPL Period: 1 week
with Employer Agreement
No Employer Agreement: Default
position: 1 continuous period of
Leave
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NEW: Children And Families Bill
From 2015: New Ante-Natal Appointments System
Pregnant Women: Continued Right to Paid Time Off for Ante-Natal Appointments
Fathers/Partners: Unpaid time off to attend two Ante-Natal Appointments with Partner
Extended to surrogate parents
No Qualifying Conditions
From 2015: Enhanced Adoption Rights
Eligibility criteria and pay rates will mirror “birth parents”
From 2015: New Surrogacy Rights
SAL and SAP and /or FPL &FPP
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New Challenges – Problem Clinic
• All Change – Again!
• Administration
• Communication
• Flexible Working Requests
• Prioritising
• Discrimination
• Occupational Maternity Schemes
• Flexible Working
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Addressing the Challenges: Employer Action
START NOW!
Review & Amendment of Employer HR Policies
Flexible Working Policy
Equal Opportunities Policy
Family Friendly Policies
Parental Leave
Maternity Leave
Paternity Leave
Adoption Leave
NEW Surrogacy Leave
Enhanced Maternity/Parental Leave Benefits?
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Addressing the Challenges: Employer Action
Planning/Administration
Review existing notification processes
Link to Existing Childcare Incentives
Manager Guidance/Training
• Flexible Working Requests
• Managing off-site workers
• The Opportunities Available
• Dealing with competing requests
• Parents v Older Workers
• Objective criteria
• Flexible Parental Leave Requests
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Family friendly benefits
Childcare Voucher Scheme – govt scheme operated through employer that allow employees to pay for childcare from PRE-tax salary
New tax-free childcare scheme announced to launch in autumn 2015
Maternity and Paternity coaching
Informative seminars and webinars on family and eldercare issues
Flexible working/parental leave
Back up care
Opportunity to communicate with staff