New limits for unfair dismissal and redundancy payments
It was announced today that payments and awards made to workers in employment rights cases are to rise in line with inflation.
An Order made by the Department for Employment and Learning brings the new limits into operation from 4 February 2007.
A spokesperson for the Department said: “The increased limits affect statutory redundancy payments; the basic and compensatory awards for unfair dismissal; the limit on guarantee payments made when employees are not provided with work; and the minimum basic award for unfair dismissal in health and safety and certain other cases. For example, the limit on the award for unfair dismissal is raised from £58,400 to £60,600 while the maximum amount of ‘a week’s pay’ for the purpose of calculating redundancy payment rises from £290 to £310.”
Printed copies of the Order are available from the Stationery Office, 16 Arthur Street, Belfast, quoting ISBN No: 978-0-337-96809-9, priced £3.00.
NOTES TO EDITORS:
1. Article 33 of the Employment Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 provides that the limits on various awards and payments under employment legislation will be index-linked, i.e. will be varied by Order if the Retail Prices Index (RPI) for September is higher or lower than the index of the previous September.
2. The new limits reflect changes in the RPI between September 2005 and September 2006 (+3.6% - source: ONS, all items RPI).
3. The Department for Employment and Learning is legally required to make the up-rating Order and to bring the new limits into operation as soon as practicable. The changes being made involve no changes to the structure of awards and other payments, or to employers’ management systems.
4. A table of the increase in limits from 4 February 2007 is attached below.
5. Media queries to the Department for Employment and Learning Press Office on 028 9025 7872.
| Relevant Statutory Provision | Subject of Provision | Old Limit | New Limit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Article 40(6) of the 1995 Order | Minimum amount of compensation awarded by the industrial tribunal where individual expelled from union in contravention of Article 38 of the 1995 Order and where, when the application is made, the applicant has not been re-admitted to the union. | £6,300 | £6,600 |
| 2 | Article 23(1) of the 1996 Order | Maximum amount of “a week’s pay” for the purpose of calculating a redundancy payment or for various awards including the basic or additional award of compensation for unfair dismissal. | £290 | £310 |
| 3 | Article 63(1) of the 1996 Order | Limit on amount of guarantee payment payable to an employee in respect of any day. | £18.90 | £19.60 |
| 4 | Article 154(1) of the 1996 Order | Minimum amount of basic award of compensation where dismissal is unfair by virtue of Article 132(1)(a) and (b), 132A(d), 133(1), 134 or 136(1) of the 1996 Order. | £4,000 | £4,200 |
| 5 | Article 158(1) of the 1996 Order | Limit on amount of compensatory award for unfair dismissal. | £58,400 | £60,600 |
| 6 | Article 231(1) of the 1996 Order | Limit on amount in respect of any one week payable to an employee in respect of debt to which Part XIV of the 1996 Order applies and which is referable to a period of time. | £290 |
£310 |