Senior knowledge lawyer at law firm TLT Sarah Maddock, reviews upcoming changes in employment law owners and managers of pubs and bars need to be aware of.

Fire and re-hire

You may remember the outrage in the press in the wake of the mass dismissals of P&O Ferries staff. This led the government to review the practice of dismissal and re-engagement (or, ‘fire and re-hire’). Whilst the government stopped short of banning this process, it has committed to introducing a statutory Code of Practice.

Consultation on the draft code closes on 18 April 2023 and it will come into effect as soon as Parliamentary time allows. An unreasonable failure to comply with the code will incur an uplift of 25% on compensation for any relevant unfair dismissals.

It is unlikely that the main aspects of the draft code will change, so what does the draft cover? Employers will be required to:

• communicate the business rationale for the proposed dismissals;
• engage in meaningful consultation with employees;
• reassess plans in light of the above; and
• dismiss as a last resort.

Minimum wage increases

In the more immediate future, the annual minimum wage increases take effect from 1 April 2023, as follows.

• Workers aged 23 and over: from 9.50 to 10.42 per hour.
• 21 to 22-year-olds: from 9.18 to 10.18 per hour.
• 18 to 20-year-olds: from 6.83 to 7.49 per hour.
• 16 to 17-year-olds: from 4.81 to 5.28 per hour.

Payroll systems will need to be updated to take account of this change, staff notified of the...

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