Employment Edit – what's new in employment law 4 June 2015

Welcome to Employment Edit, our pick of the key employment law developments from the last couple of weeks:

• Zero hours contracts – On 26 May 2015, the ban on exclusivity clauses in zero hours contracts came into force together with the power for the Secretary of State to introduce regulations in relation to zero hours contracts. The Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 (Commencement No. 1) Regulations 2015 (SI 2015/1329).
• National minimum wage – From 26 May 2015, the maximum penalty for breach of the national minimum wage increased to £20,000 in respect of each underpaid worker.
• Discrimination – In a case which highlights the tension between protected rights, the County Court in Northern Ireland has held that a bakery's refusal to bake a cake for a homosexual customer with the caption 'Support Gay Marriage' amounted to direct discrimination on grounds of his sexual orientation. The McArthur family who run the bakery have announced that they are appealing the decision. Lee v Ashers Baking Co Ltd
• Immigration – From 16 May 2014, there have been some changes in the right to work checks that employers are required to carry out and employers should ensure they revise existing practices and procedures to comply with the new rules. Please see our briefing Immigration: review your right to work checks for further information and An employer’s guide to right to work checks produced by the Home Office.

If you would like more information, or specific advice, please contact Roger Bull or get in touch with your usual Burges Salmon contact.