Launch date
National Minimum Wage increase
£6.50 for workers 21 and over
£5.13 for workers 18-20 yrs
£3.79 for 16-17 yrs olds
£2.73 for apprentices under 19 or 19 and over who are in the first year of apprenticeship 1 October 2014
Right to time off for antenatal appointments
Under the new shared parental leave it is proposed to allow the husband, civil partner or partner of the pregnant women the right to unpaid time off to attend up to 2 ante-natal appointments. 1 October 2014
Shared Parental Leave
For parents of children born or matched for adoption on or after 5 April 2015
Under this new system parents will be able to choose how they share the care of their child during the first year after birth. Mothers will still take at least the initial two week following the birth, following that they can choose to end the maternity leave and the parents can opt to share the remaining leave as flexible parental leave. 1 December 2014
Managing sickness absence
A health and work assessment and advisory service is to be introduced, offering free occupational health assistance for employees, employers and GPs. The service can provide an occupational health assessment after four weeks of sickness absence. Further information is available from GOV.UK - Government response to the review of the sickness absence system in Great Britain. April 2015
Parental Leave extended to 18
The right to unpaid parental