The Government has published the statutory rates for maternity pay, paternity pay, shared parental pay, adoption pay and sick pay from April 2019.
The weekly rate of statutory maternity pay at the moment is £145.18 or 90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings if this figure is less than the statutory rate. As of the 7th of April 2019 the rate will increase to £148.68.
The rates of statutory paternity pay and statutory shared parental leave will go up from£145.18 to £148.68 or 90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings if this figure is less than the statutory rate.
The rate of statutory adoption pay will increase from £145.18 to £148.68. Therefore from the 7th April 2019 statutory adoption pay will be payable at 90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings for the first six weeks with the remainder of the adoption pay period at the rate of £148.68 or 90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings if this figure is less than the statutory rate.
The rate of statutory sick pay is also increasing from £92.05 to £94.25.
To be entitled to these statutory payments the employee’s average earnings must be equal to or more than the lower earnings limit which is increasing from £116 to £118 in April 2019
Stephen Simpson, principal employment law editor at XpertHR says “These are the key minimum statutory rates many employers will have been waiting for.”
“This year Brexit and the earlier budget made the timing of their publication more uncertain, so it is good for employers that they have still been published well in advance of April 2019.”