Employment law changes due in 2024

The government has decided to make a lot of employment law changes this year, so please make sure you are aware of them!

Duty to prevent sexual harassment at work

This is the biggest change for golf clubs. From October 26, 2024, employers will have to “take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment” of employees at work. If you go to tribunal and you cannot prove that you have taken steps to prevent sexual harassment, then the award against you can be increased by 25 percent.

Under prevention, you will need to make sure not only that your employees are trained, but also that the members of the golf club understand what they can and can’t do. Clubs will need to at the very least make sure the committee or board are trained, so that they can deal correctly with any membership disciplinaries that arise. Prevention is training and also dealing effectively with any issues that arise, to show the whole membership that inappropriate behaviour will no longer be tolerated. It will not be enough now to try to claim that ‘Bob is just a bit handsy after a few pints, don’t mind him’ and allow him to remain a member once a complaint has been made.

National minimum wage

The new hourly rates, applicable from April 1, 2024 are as follows:

National living wage (21yrs + ): £11.44 per hour (from £10.42)

18- to 20-year-olds’ rate: £8.60 per hour (from £7.49)

16- to 17-year-olds’ rate: £6.40 per hour (from £5.28)

Apprentice rate: £6.40 per hour (from £5.28).

Rolled-up holiday pay for part-year workers and irregular-hours workers

For those of you that have been around long enough, it will feel like déjà vu. Back before October 2019, we were allowed to pay out zero hours / casual and part year workers their holiday every month. The way we did that was by multiplying their hours worked that month by 12.07 percent to get the holiday hours to be paid at their normal rate of pay. From April 1, 2024 we will have gone in a huge circle and you can now legally go back to using 12.07 percent.

The rolled up part of this holiday pay is that they get paid their holiday every month, not when they take holiday. Rolled up holiday pay had been illegal in the UK for many years, but has now been reintroduced for zero hours, casual and part year workers.

The holiday does have to be clearly shown on the pay slip so that the workers can see when and how much has been paid. You can use this holiday payment method for new staff from April 1. For existing staff, please check their contracts to see if other provisions apply.

Flexible working

All employees will be able to request flexible working from their first day of employment. There will no longer be a 26-week qualifying period. There is a right to request, not to have. You now need to have a meeting with anyone making a request before you make any decisions. There are legitimate business reasons for you to reject the request.

Paternity leave

This can now be taken any time in the 52 weeks following the birth of the child.

Carer’s leave

From April 6, 2024, employees will be able to take up to one week of unpaid leave per year to provide, or arrange, care for a dependent with a long-term care need. The leave does not have to be taken all in one go and the minimum period to take is half a day. Similar to holidays, at least twice as much notice has to be given by the carer as they are requesting, subject to a minimum of three days. For example, if one week is requested, then at least two weeks’ notice must be given. Employers are able to postpone the leave for up to one month if their business will be unduly disrupted.

Redundancy and pregnancy / maternity

From April 6, 2024, the existing regulations will extend so that if an employer is considering redundancies, steps should be taken to prioritise pregnant staff / those on maternity remaining in work before others, including suitable alternative roles.

Right to request a more predictable working pattern

From September 2024 zero hours and casual workers will be able to request more predictable hours. Again, like flexible working, it is a right to request, not have. However, if you have staff on zero hours who consistently work the same number of hours a week (and many golf clubs do), it will be almost impossible to refuse their request to transfer to a new contract guaranteeing those hours.

Parental bereavement leave

This can now be taken within 56 weeks of the death.

For advice on any staff or member issue affecting your golf club, please contact Carolyne Wahlen, Golf HR, on cw@golfhr.co.uk or 01491 598 700