Employment law in 2015 -and what to expect in 2016

摘要

1. The most significant legal development in 2015 was the introduction of shared parental leave (SPL), which came into force on 5 April 2015. Under SPL employees with a minimum of 26 weeks' continuous service have the option to end their maternity or adoption leave and share the untaken balance of that leave with their husband, partner, civil partner or father of the child. 2. The rules on adoption leave and pay were further aligned with those of statutory maternity leave/ pay and adopters given the right to take time off work to attend adoption appointments. While parental leave increased for parents with children up to the age of 18 (previously up to 5 years). 3. From 26 May 2015 exclusivity clauses in zero-hours contracts were banned, which means that employees engaged on zero-hours contracts cannot lawfully be prevented from working elsewhere.