UK: Increases to tribunal compensation caps and statutory pay rates from April 2020

The Government intends to make the following changes to statutory rates and tribunal compensation from April 2020:

• From 6 April 2020 the cap on the unfair dismissal compensatory award will increase from £86,444 to £88,519 and the cap on weekly pay (used to calculate the unfair dismissal basic award and statutory redundancy pay) will increase from £525 to £538. This will give a maximum unfair dismissal award of £104,659 (subject to the additional cap on the compensatory award of 12 months’ pay).

• The weekly rate of statutory sick pay will increase from £94.25 to £95.85 and the weekly flat rate of statutory maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental pay will increase from £148.68 to £151.20.

• The national minimum wage rates will increase from 1 April 2020. Workers of 25 years and older will be entitled to be paid a minimum national living wage of £8.72 per hour (increased from £8.21), the rate for workers aged 21-24 will be £8.20 per hour and the rate for those aged 18-20 will be £6.45 per hour.