United Kingdom

United Kingdom - Compensation & Benefit Legislation

CAPITAL

London

CLIMATE

Temperate. Moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current. More than one-half of the days are overcast.

LANGUAGES

English, Welsh (about 26% of the population of Wales), Scottish form of Gaelic (about 60,000 in Scotland).

LEGAL SYSTEM

Common law tradition with early Roman and modern continental influences. There is no judicial review of Acts of Parliament. The United Kingdom accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations. British courts and legislation are increasingly subject to review by European Union courts.

CURRENCY

United Kingdom Pounds (1 USD = 0.701000 GBP as/of February, 2002)

UNITED KINGDOM - COST-OF-LIVING

ERI's Relocation Assessor is a recommended source for cost-of-living data.

UNITED KINGDOM - EMBASSY/CONSULATES

U.S. Embassy at London, England

24-21 Grosvenor Square

APO AE 09498-4040

London, England

Telephone: [44] (171) 499.9000

Fax: [44] (171) 495.5012

http://www.usembassy.org.uk/

Consular Offices:

Consul General - Belfast, Ireland

Queen’s House

14 Queen Street

Northern Ireland BT1 6EQ

Telephone: [44] (1232) 328.239

Fax: [44] (1232) 224.8482

Consulate General - Edinburgh, Scotland

3 Regent Terrace

Edinburgh Scotland EH7 5BW

Telephone: [44] (131) 556.8315

Fax: [44] (131) 557.6023

Embassy of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland at Washington D.C.

3100 Massachusetts Avenue N.W.

Washington D.C. 20008

Telephone: (202) 588-6500

Fax: (202) 588-7870

http://www.britainusa.com/

UNITED KINGDOM - HOLIDAYS

New Year’s Day
Good Friday
Easter Monday
Early May Bank Holiday
Spring Bank Holiday
Summer Bank Holiday (excluding Scotland)
Christmas
Boxing Day

UNITED KINGDOM - LEAVE

Annual leave: The Working Time Regulations require employers to provide employees with 4 weeks paid leave each year.

Maternity leave: All pregnant women are entitled to 18 paid weeks of ordinary maternity leave, regardless of length of service. Additional material leave is available for women who have completed at least one year of service with their employer. For more information, see: http://www2.dti.gov.uk/er/matleafr.htm.

Emergency leave: The Employment Relations Act of 1999 provides employees with the right to take time off to handle family emergencies. This leave may or may not be paid at the discretion of the employer. Employees must notify their employers as soon as possible and let their employer know how long you expect to be off. For more information, see: http://www.dti.gov.uk/er/timeoff.htm.

For trade union duties and activities: Reasonable amount of paid time off for duties concerning matters subject to negotiation or duties agreed to by the employer and for training related to these. Reasonable amount of unpaid time off for union officials and members for union activities. Paid time off for duties of safety representatives.

For civic duties: Time off for jury service, with costs and subsistence allowances paid by the court. Though not legally obliged, many employers top up court payments to normal pay.

UNITED KINGDOM - MINIMUM AGE

School attendance until age 16 is compulsory. Children under age 16 are not permitted to work in an industrial enterprise except as part of an educational course. Forced and bonded child labor is prohibited, and the Government effectively enforces this prohibition.

UNITED KINGDOM - MINIMUM REMUNERATION

The country’s first minimum wage went into effect on April 1, 1999.

Minimum wage (as of October 2001): Ł 4.10/hour (beginning October 2002: Ł 4.20/hour)

Development rate for workers ages 18-21 (as of October 2001): Ł 3.50/hour (beginning October 2002 Ł 3.60/hour)

UNITED KINGDOM - REMUNERATION

ERI's Geographic and Salary Assessors are recommended sources for international remuneration covering 189 countries. United Kingdom data includes geographic differentials among 201 unitary aggregates and counties, along with 250 cities and areas.

UNITED KINGDOM - REPORT OF HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES (2001, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE)

Section 6 Worker Rights

a. The Right of Association

Workers have the right to form and join unions, and workers exercised this right in practice. Just under 30 percent of the workforce is unionized. Coverage is most widespread in the public sector, where 60 percent of workers are organized. In contrast 19 percent of private sector workers are unionized. Unions, although often affiliated with political parties, are free of government control. The Employment Relations Act affords protection to union organizing efforts and sets minimum employment standards. Workers are protected by law against dismissal or other retaliation for campaigning or voting for or against recognition. The law also prohibits the compilation of lists of union members and labor activists for use by employers and employment agencies.

The Employment Relations Act affirms the statutory right to strike. The law prohibits retaliation by strikers. Dismissed strikers are able to claim unfair dismissal if fired within 8 weeks of when they first undertook a legal strike or "trade dispute." The law defines a "trade dispute" in great detail; in summary, a strike must be confined to workers and their own employers ("secondary boycotts" are illegal), the dispute must be wholly or mainly about employment-related matters (e.g., pay and conditions), workers must be properly and secretly balloted before striking (with notice to the employer), and mass picketing is prohibited.

Unions may join federations and participate freely in international organizations. The largest federation is the Trades Union Congress. Former British union leaders frequently occupy leadership positions in international labor organizations.

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

Collective bargaining is long standing and covers approximately 30 percent of the work force. Under the Employment Relations Act, labor-management contracts are enforceable legally.

Under the act, unions can file a request for recognition, identifying the proposed bargaining unit, to the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC), a tripartite group that includes representatives from government, business, and labor. The act covers employers with more than 20 workers and encompasses an estimated two-thirds of all workplaces. Once the CAC determines the appropriate bargaining unit, it assesses whether a union is likely to have majority support. If union members already make up a majority of the bargaining unit, the CAC may issue a declaration that the union is recognized for collective bargaining without a ballot. In those instances where the CAC orders a ballot (typically, when the majority of bargaining unit employees are not already union members), the employer must cooperate by providing a list of names and giving the union access to the workplace to campaign. Unions win recognition when a majority of those voting agree, including at least 40 percent of those in the bargaining unit.

Although the law encourages voluntary agreements between employers and unions, the CAC may, if necessary, impose a legally binding procedure for bargaining about pay, hours, and holidays.

Union members are protected by the Employment Rights Act against "being subject to any detriment" due to union activity or membership, and this is generally observed in practice. Previously it was legal for employers to withhold fringe benefits otherwise available to nonunion employees. The Employment Relations Act also extends its protection to contract and part-time workers in an attempt to close loopholes that previously allowed some employers to evade labor regulations.

There are no export processing zones.

c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

The Government prohibits forced or compulsory labor; however, the trafficking of persons to the country was a problem (see Section 6.f.).

The law prohibits forced and bonded labor by children; however, children were trafficked to the country for sexual exploitation (see Section 6.f.).

d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment

Children under age 16 are not permitted to work in an industrial enterprise except as part of an educational course.

The Government prohibits forced and bonded labor by children; however, children were trafficked to the country for sexual exploitation and forced labor (see Section 6.f.).

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

As of October 1, 2001, the adult minimum wage was 4.10 pounds per hour and the youth wage, paid to youth ages 18 to 21, was raised to 3.50 pounds per hour. When introduced in 1999, the new pay thresholds were expected to benefit some 1.5 million workers directly; however, according to Government figures from the spring, 320,000 jobs were held by persons age 18 and over that paid less than the national minimum wage. Government departments aggressively were instructing employers that they must bring pay practices into compliance. The Board of Inland turnover examined over 5,000 cases in the 8 months leading up to November and recovered $2.9 million (2 million pounds) for 5,478 underpaid employees nationwide.

The national minimum wage does not provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family; however, other benefits of the welfare state fill the gap. Of nearly 28 million workers, approximately 6 million (21 percent) benefit from a social insurance scheme, in addition to receiving free universal access to the National Health Service. The working families' tax credit and disabled person's tax credit are designed to ensure a working family a weekly income of $319 (214 pounds), which constitutes a living wage. No family earning less than $380 (255 pounds) per week is obligated to pay income tax. The Government also provides a minimum income guarantee for low-income pensioners, which increases the basic state pension that all retired employees receive. Effective in April, the Government increased the threshold of total personal assets to allow more low-income pensioners to avail themselves of this benefit.

A working time directive brought domestic legislation into compliance with the European Union's 48-hour workweek. The maximum compensation level for unfair dismissal claims is $80,000 (50,000 pounds). Parental leave provisions are available for employees with more than a year's continuous service. The Human Rights Act added additional rights in the workplace.

The 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act stipulates that the health and safety of employees not be placed at risk, and in practice the act is updated constantly. The Health and Safety Executive effectively enforces regulations on these matters and may initiate criminal proceedings in appropriate cases. Workers' representatives actively monitor enforcement of the act. Workers may remove themselves from dangerous work conditions without jeopardy to their continued employment.

Foreign workers are protected by the same labor laws and have the same rights as other workers, and foreign workers exercised these rights in practice.

f. Trafficking in Persons

No laws specifically criminalize trafficking in persons, although a range of laws are used to prosecute traffickers; the trafficking of persons was a persistent problem. The United Kingdom is a destination country for trafficking in women and girls for prostitution and in men, women, and girls for manual labor. While the Government estimated that 1,400 women and girls are trafficked each year for prostitution, there is no reliable data on the number of persons trafficked as laborers.

Female trafficking victims are mainly from the Balkans and other Central European countries. Women are also trafficked from South America, West Africa (particularly Nigeria), and Southeast Asia (Thailand and Vietnam). For example, a police investigation in 1999 of the brothels in London's Soho area revealed 148 victims, of whom 125 were from the Balkans, 14 from other parts of Central Europe, 6 from South America, 2 from Africa, and 1 from Southeast Asia.

According to media and NGO reports, girls were increasingly trafficked for prostitution and labor from West Africa and Central Europe. The laborers often are brought to the country under false pretenses and then used in addition to collect increased welfare benefits by distant relatives or even strangers.

Most female victims are lured into the country by deception. Many pay exorbitant fees to criminal middlemen for visas or smuggling arrangements. The victims often agree to pay off the balance by working in the sex industry; however, upon arriving, they are required to perform sexual services they did not agree to, their documents are confiscated, and they are forced to work a longer time than anticipated. Although victims usually are not physically coerced or threatened, they are deceived into not seeking help. The women are duped into believing that the police are corrupt or abusive and that they will be deported if they alert the authorities. In addition there is evidence that a small number of victims are forcibly abducted and brought into the country against their will.

According to the National Criminal Intelligence Service, trafficked laborers come from countries including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, the former Yugoslavia, Romania, China, Congo, Angola, Colombia, and Ecuador. Laborers are trafficked actively by China-based criminal gangs, "snakeheads," also by deception. Would-be migrants pay high fees; however, those who cannot pay are forced into servitude, often in London sweatshops run by the gangs. Some also work in agriculture. Many victims are unwilling to come forward, due to fears of retribution from traffickers, fear of being deported or abused by authorities, or because they cannot speak English well enough.

The United Kingdom generally is not a country of origin for trafficking; however, each year hundreds of persons, usually young women, are forced into marriages outside the United Kingdom, particularly in India. They usually are deceived by their parents and believe that they are visiting family. Upon arrival their relatives force them into marriage.

A May 2000 Home Office report on trafficking in women estimated that up to 1,400 women were trafficked into the country in 1998. The report highlighted that police largely are unaware of the scale of the problem and do not treat it as a priority. The Government was considering the report's recommendations, which include the creation of a new crime category of "sexual exploitation," allowing trafficked women to sue their exploiters, and a focus on prevention campaigns in host countries. However, no action had been taken by year's end.

Government agencies involved in antitrafficking efforts include the Home Office, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), the National Criminal Investigative Service (NICS), police, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department for Education and Employment, the Department for International Development (DFID), the National Crime Squad, and the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND). The Metropolitan Police has a special unit of 14 officers to investigate sexual exploitation: trafficking is one of the unit's special concerns. The DFID sponsors education campaigns overseas, particularly in Central Europe and Southeast Asia, to discourage trafficking. For example, the DFID and the FCO have distributed antitrafficking literature and videos in the Balkans and other points of origin. The FCO has posted immigration officials at overseas points of transit for traffickers to identify trafficking cases before they reach the United Kingdom. The Government supports numerous private organizations that combat trafficking and is significantly involved in international discussions on trafficking.

http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2001/eur/8364.htm

UNITED KINGDOM - STANDARD WORKWEEK

The Working Time Regulations provide the following basic rights and protections:

A limit of an average of 48 hours a week which a worker can be required to work (though workers can choose to work more if they want to),
A limit of an average of 8 hours work in 24 which nightworkers can be required to work.
A right for night workers to receive free health assessments.
A right to 11 hours rest a day.
A right to a day off each week.
A right to an in-work rest break if the working day is longer than six hours.
A right to four weeks paid leave per year.

UNITED KINGDOM - SOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security Office of International Programs:

http://www.ssa.gov/SSA_Home.html

UNITED KINGDOM - TOTALIZATION AGREEMENT WITH U.S.

Effective Date of Agreement: January 1, 1985.

Coverage and Social Security Taxes:

For employees sent by a U.K. employer to work in the U.S. for five years or less, taxes and coverage fall to the U.K. If the employee is sent to work in the U.S. for more than five years, was hired in the U.S., or is a U.S. citizen, taxes and coverage fall to the U.S.

Certificate of Coverage Request:

To establish an employee's exemption from coverage under the U.S. Social Security system, an employer must request a certificate of coverage from the U.K. at this address:

Department of Social Security

Overseas Branch

Central Office Longbenton

Newcastle Upon Tyne

NE98 1YX

ENGLAND

The same information required for a certificate of coverage from the U.S. is needed to get a certificate of coverage under the U.K. system.

Minimum Credits Needed:

Although an employee's U.S. credits may be counted to meet minimum eligibility requirements for a basic pension, U.S. credits may not be counted to determine an employee's eligibility for the additional pension which is based on both length of work under the U.K. system and the amount of earnings.

Summary of Social Security Benefits:

Full retirement benefits are payable for men and women at 65. A U.K. contributor who has not retired can get an invalidity benefit if he/she has been in capable of working (and entitled to a sickness benefit) for 28 weeks. Under family benefits, a wife will receive retirement pension at age 60 if she does not qualify for a higher Pension based on her own contributions; if under 60, an increased pensions is paid to the husband (a wife cannot claim extra retirement pension for her husband, but can claim increased invalidity benefit). Provisions are made for children up to 16. Under survivor benefits a widow receives full benefit at 55 (widower at 65), or at any age of caring for a dependent child of the worker. Surviving children receive the same benefits as children of retired or disabled contributors. There is no lump-sum death benefit.

Additional Information: