1. From 1 October, the National Minimum Wage (NMW) hourly rates increased: Standard adult (workers aged 21 and over): GBP 6.70; Youth development (workers aged 18-20): GBP 5.30; Young workers (workers aged 16-17): GBP 3.87. Of greater significance for employers, however, is the introduction of the National Living Wage (NLW) in April 2016 of GBP 7.20 which will apply to workers aged 25 and over, and will effectively replace the existing NMW for these workers.
2. Expected to come into force this Autumn is the requirement that businesses with an annual turnover of at least GBP 36 million will have to publish an annual ‘slavery and human trafficking’ statement on their website.
3. The Trade Union Bill is expected to become law early 2016. Proposed changes include a higher turnout threshold for strike ballots and a new 4-month time limit on the mandate of each ballot to ensure strike action cannot be called on the basis of ballots “conducted years”.