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August, 2010
National Minimum Wage
Some interesting Employment Tribunal news
A holiday should relax you...
but 50% are more stressed !
From October 2010, National Minimum Wage rates are confirmed to increase by around two percent. These rates will increase from: - 5.80 to 5.93 an hour for workers aged 21 and over
- 4.83 to 4.92 an hour for workers aged 18 to 20
- 3.57 to 3.64 an hour for workers aged 16 to 17
Previously the qualifying age for the National Minimum wage rate for adult workers was 22, with the government confirming that they have now extended this to 21 year olds from October this year. In addition to the above, there is also an apprentice minimum wage being introduced of £2.50 per hour. This will apply to: - apprentices under 19
- apprentices aged 19 and over, but in the first year of their apprenticeship
The introduction of the apprentice minimum wage extends the existing protection following recommendations made by the Low Pay Commission to the government earlier this year.
The Employment Tribunals Service has published its annual statistics for 2009-10 showing that the number of claims in the Employment Tribunal was 236,100 in 2009-10, which represents an increase of 56% on 2008-09. The key statistics in the annual report are: - a 90% rise from 2008-2009 in the number of multiple claims
- a 14% rise from 2008-2009 in single claims
- Both the above have namely been as a result for reasons associated with the changing economic climate (i.e. the recession).
In addition to the above, other interesting statistics include:
- a 17% increase in the number of tribunal claims associated with unfair dismissal, breach of contract and redundancy (this is the equivalent of 126,300 cases)
- 95,200 cases related to working time (which included 10,600 airline cases)
- 75,500 were unauthorized deductions (an increase from 33,800 the previous year).
These levels are the highest ever level of claims accepted by Employment Tribunals and at the end of the year, the Employment Tribunal had 404,800 cases outstanding, which is up from 290,200 the previous year. The advice is very much to continue receiving help on any employee related issues at a period where litigation has greatly increased.
Nearly half of UK Managers return to their job more stressed than when they went on holiday Recent research reported in the media during July conducted by the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) reported that: - Over a third of UK managers work while on annual leave
- 40% of managerial staff return to work more anxious than before their break
The research from survey respondents further indicated that: - Of the third above that worked while on annual leave, 80% frequently responded to emails, almost half took phone calls and one in 10 went into the office
- Half the respondents surveyed said it took them at least 2 days into their holiday to unwind from work stresses and a further one in 10 confessed they needed at least a week or more to relax.
The survey findings are very interesting where many managers reported that the reason for them returning to work more anxious was the thought of the waiting deluge of emails which caused the greatest worry. Other reasons were also associated with fears over job security leading managers to check their smartphone or PDA devise at least once a day whilst away. The Chief Executive (Penny de Valk) of the ILM made an excellent summary to the findings by concluding: "Gone are the days when people cut off contact with work for a fortnight over the summer and made a complete break... While technology means that it is easier than ever to work remotely, it also makes it extremely hard to switch off. Uncertain economic times also mean that many UK employers are keeping one eye on their job at all times, when what they really need is time away from the office to rest and re-energise."
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