Happy New Year, everyone!

I hope you’re all back into the swing of things and your business resolutions include looking after your people even better and dealing with any people-related issues you may have head-on to make your business work even smarter in 2025 and beyond.

The employment law and landscape in the UK is changing, but Mint HR is here to guide and support our clients every step of the way.

I hope you find this newsletter informative. We are always on the lookout for ways to improve, so do let us know if you have any suggestions or topics you would like to be covered.

Need To Know

Minimum wage increases

To help you plan for the year ahead, here’s a reminder of the confirmed National Living Wage and Minimum Wage increases which come into effect as of 1st April 2025.

The increases are big and intended to reflect the cost of living and bring younger workers’ pay in line with older employees.

◾ Age 21 and over:  £12.21   (up from £11.44) *National Living Wage
◾ Age 18 to 20:         £10.00 (up from £8.60)
◾ Age 16 to 17:          £7.55   (up from £6.40)
◾ Apprentice:           £7.55    (up from £6.40) *under 19 or aged 19+ if in first year

What you need to do:

✅Check if these effect anyone on your payroll and, where necessary, implement pay increases to keep in line with/above the new NMW
✅If your team’s pay is higher than NMW – still review salaries and decide with the new minimums if your rate is competitive enough to retain your people and help to them feel valued

✅Communicate pay increases in writing to each individual in the form of a change of terms letter.

Other upcoming increases in April:

• Employer National Insurance contributions will increase from 13.8% to 15% (with the Class 1 NIC threshold decreasing from £9,100pa to £5,000pa) and Lower Earnings Limit will increase to £125 per week. However, Employment Allowance will increase from £5,000 to £10.500 to help small businesses with these changes.
• Statutory Maternity Pay and family-related leave pay rises to £187.18 weekly

Employment Rights Bill – get ready for 2026 

Mint HR continue to monitor the progress of each element of The Bill and will keep our clients up to date with any newsworthy developments as and when they occur.

Most of the changes are due to be implemented in 2026. However, in order for businesses to plan ahead and be as prepared as possible, Tracy has decided to provide greater detail of one of the key proposed changes in each of our Newsletters throughout the year.

This month, it’s Day one rights – the right to protection from unfair dismissal.

Please click on the link below to read Tracy’s explanation of what this means, plus her thoughts on the changes and what actions you should now be considering. It really is worth a read!

Employment Rights Bill – amendments

At the end of November 2024, the government’s ‘Next Steps’ document relating to the Employment Rights Bill included the proposal to increase the time limit for employment claims from three to six months.

This will give employees more time to bring a claim at employment tribunal. This means even more uncertainty for employers and a longer waiting game to see if a claim will be brought.