In March 2023, the UK Government published its AI White Paper, setting out its proposals and expectations for the regulation of artificial intelligence (AI) in the United Kingdom. The White Paper discusses the empowerment of regulators and a principles-based approach to aid the use of AI in the United Kingdom.
In our latest AI
On 18 April 2023, the German Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (BMAS) presented the long-awaited draft amendment to the Working Time Act and other regulations. Following the decision of the Federal Labor Court of 13 September 2022 (case no. 1 ABR 22/21), the new law is intended to specify how employers must precisely
In April 2023, the latest round of annual increases relating to the maximum awards available at Employment Tribunals and other statutory rate increases, such as statutory sick pay and the national minimum wage, take effect. Perhaps not unsurprisingly given the current inflationary environment, the increases are significantly higher than in previous years, most notably in
Many of our clients (in the US and outside) are tracking the progress of the Federal Trade Commission’s proposal to ban non-compete agreements. It remains to be seen whether that rule will be introduced, and if it is, there will undoubtedly be litigation challenging it. In the meantime, however, it is worth noting that the
The case of Meaker v Cyxtera Technology UK Limited serves as an important reminder to employers of the importance of ensuring that letters of dismissal are appropriately clear and unambiguous. The employer in this case wanted to rely on a letter it had sent to an employee referring to a termination date but which was
The Government is consulting on a draft Code of Practice that will regulate the practice of dismissal and re-engagement, or “fire and re-hire”, as it has become known more recently. This is the practice that became particularly controversial following the dismissal by P&O of 800 staff in 2022, in order to replace them with lower-cost
With 2022 now over, we look ahead to the key developments that look set to shape the UK employment legal landscape in 2023 and beyond.
New employment rights
Whilst the Government’s promised Employment Bill now looks unlikely to materialise, in 2022 the Government instead announced that it intended to support a raft of private members’
In response to its ‘Making Flexible Working The Default’ Consultation (the “Consultation”) published on 5 December 2022, the government set out a raft of new measures designed to improve the existing framework for the right to request flexible working which it anticipates will extend the right to an additional 2.2 million people.
The
Reversing his predecessor’s pledge, the new Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, announced in an emergency statement on 17 October 2022 that the off payroll rules will not be scrapped after all. See Government news story here. Pending any further announcements, employers should therefore ignore the previous Chancellor’s announcement and continue to follow the off
IR35 regime
Among possibly more eye-catching headlines, last week the Chancellor made a significant announcement in respect of the IR35 reforms by announcing that these will be repealed from 6 April 2023. Changes were made to the IR35 regime in April 2021, aimed at preventing tax avoidance through the use of intermediaries between clients and