As we begin a new year, we are looking ahead to some of the issues that may affect HR/employment law in Northern Ireland in 2022 and have summarised, what we consider to be the key areas below.

NORTHERN IRELAND EMPLOYMENT LAW

Employment law is devolved in Northern Ireland which means that employment law changes in GB do not automatically take effect here. The current Minister for Economy (Dianne Dodds DUP) is responsible for employment law. Beyond May 2022 (when the current mandate ends and the next Assembly election), the direction of NI employment law could very much depend on the political party who takes up that Ministerial position.

Whilst we believe there will be limited employment law developments between now and May 2022, we have listed below some of the main legal developments and themes we anticipate, at this early stage, for the months ahead.

ANNUAL INCREASES TO AWARDS/STATUTORY PAYMENTS

These are the annual increases to basic award, week’s pay, compensatory awards that tend to come into force sometime between first week of February – mid March each year. We will notify members of the increase in rates when this information becomes available.

STATUTORY PARENTAL BEREAVEMENT LEAVE

The Consultation for this ended in August 2020 which recommended the introduction of statutory parental bereavement leave and pay in Northern Ireland, akin to the rights in GB, namely two weeks paid leave, taken in consecutive or non-consecutive weekly blocks, in the event of the death of a child.

There was consensus in the Assembly for such a right to be implemented in Northern Ireland before this mandate ends. The delay has been caused as the Executive is seriously considering expanding the right beyond that in force in GB, to include those who have had a miscarriage. We remain hopeful that such a right will be in force before the end of 2022.

NEW PRESIDENT OF INDUSTRIAL & FAIR EMPLOYMENT TRIBUNAL.

The current President, Ms Eileen McBride, announced her retirement late last year and a recruitment process has been conducted to appoint a new President. This is currently at ‘pre-appointment checks’ stage so the successor should be announced imminently. It could herald some changes in how the Tribunal operates.

HOLIDAY PAY

All holiday pay cases in the Tribunal are currently stayed until June 2022. Agnew v PSNI (the case that had been listed in Supreme Court in June 2021) seems not to have completely resolved.

However, there are a few other noteworthy holiday pay cases in GB in which Judgments are awaited that include:

• from Supreme Court (Harpur Trust v Brazel) in respect of part year / term time workers and;
• from Court of Appeal (Smith v Pimlico) about the carry-over of holiday pay when business have not paid holiday pay on basis that the person is a self-employed contractor and therefore not entitled to it.

DOMESTIC & SEXUAL VIOLENCE ABUSE WORKPLACE POLICIES

Last year, we saw many Organisations embracing Menopause at Work Policies.

Some of the big public sector bodies also implemented Domestic & Sexual Violence / Abuse Workplace Policies late in 2021. This may have been influenced by the Minster of Justice, Naomi Long having campaigned for better rights and protections for victims over the last 18 months. In 2022, private sector businesses might consider adopting similar policies.

SOFT APPROACH TO GOOD EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS

With cases like Uber hitting headlines, coupled with difficulties in recruitment, you might also see a levelling up of rights in a non-legalistic way.

The Labour Relations Agency has already published some good practice guidance on Hybrid Working and Menopause and we could see more such Guides coming from them on this area.

ESG – ENVIRONMENTALLY AWARE

Many businesses are considering ways that they can be more aware of what their business can do to promote environmental, social, and governance (ESG). It is a hot topic in business with employees driving the agenda for change.

HYBRID WORKING

If the pandemic is nearing the end, it will be interesting to see the legacy it leaves in the workplace, particularly in respect of hybrid working. Without doubt, many businesses that would not have previously considered hybrid working are now embracing some form (albeit perhaps through necessity).

Businesses may also be faced with flexible working requests if employees do not obtain the type of flexible work pattern they want. Employers could also see an increase in sex and disability type claims, unless requests are considered appropriately.

DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

Having a diverse workforce continues to high on business agenda. Many businesses are considering what more they can do to promote diversity and inclusion in their workplace. Training employees on the importance of equality and diversity in the workplace, and their rights and responsibilities in relation to this, remains high on the agenda for many employers. This is also imperative when seeking to rely on the statutory defence should an employer face a discriminatory complaint.

Parental Bereavement (Leave and Pay) Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 received Royal Assent on 21 March 2022 and came into force today (22 March 2022).

This Act will now allow for some of these new employment rights to be introduced from April 2022.

The new employment rights that will come into force in April 2022, on a final date yet to be confirmed, are:

• Entitlement to 2 weeks’ Statutory Parental Bereavement Leave;
• Entitlement to 2 week’s Statutory Parental Bereavement Leave Pay (the statutory rate in GB increases to £156.66 on 11 April 2022);
• Protection from dismissal or detriment as a result of exercising that entitlement.

This will bring Northern Ireland in line with the entitlements that have place in place in GB since April 2020. However, the Northern Ireland Act does provide for further rights to be brought into force at a later date (but before April 2026) which are:

• in relation to miscarriage and;
• removal of service requirement for statutory pay.

These further rights will mean that Northern Ireland’s entitlements are more generous than those in place in GB.

Members should start considering their existing policies to determine if they give effect to these new entitlements or if they require amendment. For Members with a presence in GB, then their GB policies will provide a good starting base.

We hope to provide Members with a Template Policy and some further guidance on these new entitlements in the coming week. In the meantime, if you have any query about this, please do not hesitate to contact the Legal Team.