Compliance

The Equality Act 2010 legally protects people from discrimination in the workplace and in wider society. It replaced previous anti-discrimination laws with a single Act, making the law easier to understand and strengthening protection in some situations. It sets out the different ways in which it is unlawful to treat someone.

The Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 places a legal responsibility on employers to only recruit new staff from those eligible to work in the United Kingdom. 

From 6 April 2014, the maximum civil penalty for employing an unauthorised migrant worker doubled to £20,000. The increased penalty will apply to employers who continually breach the prevention of illegal working rules.

The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) helps employers make safer recruitment decisions and prevent unsuitable people from working with vulnerable groups, including children. It replaces the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA).

The Government has also introduced new Regulations to provide tougher penalties for employers who breach the National Minimum Wage legislation. Employers who breach the legislation could incur a penalty of up to 100% of unpaid wages and a financial penalty of up to £20,000. Previously the maximum penalty was 50% of unpaid wages and a maximum financial penalty £5,000. Employers who receive a notice of underpayment must pay the penalty within 28 days of service, unless stated otherwise.

The National Minimum Wage rate per hour April 2016  

21 to 24             £6.70  
18 to 20             £5.30  
If under 18         £3.79
Apprentice         £2.73

The National Living Wage rate per hour April 2016  

25 and over       £7.20 (newly introduced) 

The Agency Workers Regulations (AWR) came into force in England, Scotland and Wales on 1st October 2011. The Agency Workers (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2011 came into effect on 5th December 2011.

The AWR provides agency workers with equal treatment to that of permanent employees with regard to pay and working conditions after 12 weeks of service in the same job. Also, from day one, they have equal access to facilities and permanent employment opportunities.

From the 6th April 2014, new legislation introduced under the Finance Bill 2014 came into effect relating to the tax treatment of workers that are employed and remunerated via a UK-based intermediary on a self-employed basis (“Onshore Intermediary”), or via a company incorporated outside the EU or Isle of Man (“Offshore Intermediary”).

The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 exists to allow people with convictions to be reintegrated back into society by having the right to legally ignore their conviction after a period of time. The Act allows convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings in respect of a certain offence to be considered ‘spent’ after a specified period of time known as the ‘rehabilitation period’ which is decided by the sentence or disposal received.

Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (“ROA”) ex-offenders only have to disclose previous criminal convictions to potential employers if they remain “unspent”. ROA provides that, if an offender does not reoffend for a certain period following their conviction, they are deemed to have been rehabilitated. In these circumstances the ex-offenders convictions are spent and they are not required to inform a prospective employer of their criminal past.

The period of time following which a criminal conviction will become spent will depend on the sentence imposed. Prior to 10 March 2014, if an offender had been subject to a custodial sentence of two and a half years or more their conviction will never have been spent. However, from 10 March 2014 changes to the ROA came into force which will mean that the periods following which a criminal conviction will become spent shall be reduced dramatically. As a result the period during which a potential employee is required to disclose their criminal past to their employer will also reduce.

Under the new regime the only circumstances in which a conviction will never be spent are those where an individual receives a custodial sentence of over 4 years or has received a public protection sentence following a conviction for certain sexual and violent offences.

The Data Protection Act controls how your personal information is used by organisations, businesses or the government. Everyone who is responsible for using data has to follow strict rules called ‘data protection principles’. They must make sure the information is:

Used fairly and lawfully
Used for limited, specifically stated purposes
Used in a way that is adequate, relevant and not excessive
Accurate
Kept for no longer than is absolutely necessary
Handled according to people’s data protection rights
Kept safe and secure
Not transferred outside the UK without adequate protection
There is stronger legal protection for more sensitive information, such as:
Ethnic background
Political opinions
Religious beliefs
Health
Sexual health
Criminal records

The Working Time Regulations 1996, which came into effect on 1^st October 1998 (on 23 November 1998 in Northern Ireland) provides for paid holiday each year for all workers. All workers are covered, irrespective of the hours that they work and whether or not they are referred to as “employees”. 

The EAS enforces the Employment Agencies Act 1973, and the associated Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations, across Great Britain.  The Inspectorate has powers to tackle rogue employers through the issue of warnings; seeking prosecutions; and prohibiting individuals from running an employment agency for up to 10 years.