EMPLOYMENT LAW CHANGES

April, and the new financial year always brings change when it comes to employment law and statutory pay. So what's new, what's changing?

National Minimum Wage Increases (Effective April 1, 2025):

The National Minimum Wage (NMW) rates will rise across all age groups, most notably workers aged 21 and over will increase from £11.44 to £12.21 per hour.

Employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) Increase (Effective April 6, 2025):

Employer NICs will rise from 13.8% to 15% of employee earnings, the threshold when employers start paying NICs will decrease from £9,100 to £5,000 per year, remember to review your costs to employ figures as this will, in most cases, increase.

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) Increase (Effective April 6, 2025):

The weekly rate for SSP will increase from £116.75 to £118.75.

Statutory Benefits (Effective April 6, 2025):

The statutory rates for maternity pay, adoption pay, paternity pay, shared parental pay, and parental bereavement pay will rise from £184.03 to £187.18 per week. The lower earnings limit for these benefits will also increase from £123 to £125 per week.

Neonatal Care Leave (NCL) and Neonatal Care Pay (NCP) (Effective April 6 2025):

Starting April 6, 2025, the UK will introduce Neonatal Care Leave (NCL) and Neonatal Care Pay (NCP) to support parents whose newborns require neonatal care.

Why not use this as an opportunity to review your internal policies and processes, if you need a hand, let us know.