1st April 2023 – National Minimum Wage increases to £10.42 (9.7% increase).

 There’ll also be increases to the rate for 16-22 year olds as well as those on apprenticeships. 

You’ll find more information in our employers’ guide to minimum wage where we cover how to make sure your business is compliant.

What’s the real living wage?

The national minimum wage shouldn’t be confused with the voluntary London Living Wage and UK Living Wage, which is calculated based on real living costs and isn’t connected to the government.

Set up by the Living Wage Foundation, the Living Wage is a campaign that encourages employers to pay a wage that reflects everyday costs in London and the UK. According to their data, the ‘real living wage’ in 2022 is £9.90 for the UK (up from £9.50 in 2021) and slightly higher in London at £11.05 (up from £10.85 in 2021).

National living wage vs minimum wage – what’s the difference?

In April 2016, the government introduced a new minimum rate of pay for workers who are at least 25 years old – this is called the national living wage. And since April 2021 more younger people have been eligible for the wage as the threshold now includes anyone aged 23 and over.

While the rate isn’t necessarily based on the cost of living, the government set a target to increase the living wage to two-thirds of median earnings of all employees across the country by 2024. This was achieved in 2021 following recommendations from the Low Pay Commission.

So to summarise, the difference between the national minimum wage and living wage is related to someone’s age:

• the living wage applies to workers aged 23+*
• the minimum wage applies to workers aged 16 to 22
• apprentices aged 16 and 17 get a different rate of pay

*The living wage is expected to include 21 and 22 year olds by 2024.

What is the current national minimum wage?

National minimum wage – under 25 threshold is now under 23

As mentioned earlier, the minimum wage now applies to workers under the age of 23. These are the rates from April 2022:

• 21 and 22 year olds – £9.18
• 18, 19, 20 year olds – £6.83

And from April 2023, the rates will be: 

• 21 and 22 year olds – £10.18
• 18, 19, 20 year olds – £7.49

What are the rates from April 2023? 

The national minimum wage and living wage rates from April 2023 are shown below.

	Current hourly rate (from April 2023)	% increase from 2022
National living wage	£10.42	9.7%
21-22 year old rate	£10.18	10.9%
18-20 year old rate	£7.49	9.7%
16-17 year old rate	£5.28	9.7%
Apprentice rate	£5.28	9.7%
Accommodation offset	£9.10	4.6%

To check if you’re paying the correct minimum or living wage to your employees, you can use the government’s national minimum wage calculator.

For more information : https://www.simplybusiness.co.uk/knowledge/articles/2022/09/what-is-the-national-minimum-wage/

What is annual leave?

If you employ people, they’ll have the right to a minimum number of days paid holiday each year. They can use this time to go on holiday, attend an event, or just have some time to rest.

Most employers allow staff to take a maximum number of holiday days a year, but it must meet the minimum number set by the government. In recent years there’s been a trend of employers introducing an unlimited holiday policy, although it comes with added complications.

As an employer, you should have a system for requesting holiday – either an online portal or using physical holiday forms. Staff can use the annual leave planner to request time off and keep track of how much holiday they’ve taken and how much they’ve got left.

The rules on how staff can request paid time off are usually set by a company holiday policy, covering issues such as notice, carrying over holiday, and what happens when two or more members of a team want to book holiday on the same day.

Who is entitled to holiday under your annual leave policy?

There are important statutory requirements when it comes to annual leave, and you’ll need to follow these regardless of what it says in your holiday policy.

The amount of leave your employees are entitled to will depend on the number of days a week they work.

If the employee works five days a week, they’ll be entitled to at least 28 days’ paid holiday (which can include bank holidays).

If they work part time, you’ll need to multiply the number of days they work a week by 5.6 to get their holiday entitlement. For example, if they work two days a week, they’ll be entitled to 11.2 days of paid holiday.

Remember that 28 days is the statutory maximum: even if employees work more than five days a week, they’re not legally entitled to more than 28 days’ leave – unless you choose to offer more.

If you’re not sure how much holiday your staff should be entitled to, you can use Gov.UK’s holiday calculator. It’s especially useful for working out holiday allowances for staff who’ve joined part way through a year.

Carrying leave over

The annual leave policy example generally requires that all annual leave is taken in the year to which it applies.

Towards the end of the year, many employers send a letter to remind employees to book and take their holiday leave entitlement.

However, there are certain ‘exceptional circumstances’ under which employees must be allowed to carry leave over, at their discretion.

The most common of these is an extended period of incapacitation, such as not being able to work due to illness or injury.

It’s important to remember that all employees have the statutory right to accrue holiday entitlement during periods of maternity, paternity, or adoption leave.

This document has been produced by Farillio so we can’t take responsibility for its contents. We’d recommend you take professional advice before making any important decisions based on its contents.

If you’re going ahead and writing a reference, there are a few things to remember:

1. It must be fair and accurate – the law says you must be ‘fair and accurate’ in your reference to protect workers’ rights, so if you give any opinions they should be backed up by evidence. 
2. Keep it simple and to the point – a reference can be as short or long as you like, depending on whether you choose to write a basic or detailed reference, but make it simple to read and concise.
3. Avoid irrelevant personal information – it’s against the law to include information on ‘protected characteristics’ when writing a reference, except on rare occasions where a characteristic is an ‘occupational requirement’. 

Further information on this link at Simply Business

What is a staff appraisal form?

A staff appraisal form is a document employers can use to record development discussions with their employees. For example, you might have an annual performance management meeting with each of your staff members to check in with how they’re performing against their individual and company objectives.

When it comes to what to write in an appraisal form, it should be a fair and clear communication of areas discussed in an appraisal meeting.

One element of your performance management policy

An appraisal form is just one element of a business’s performance management policy. If you don’t have a policy in place yet, it may be a good idea to write one.

Your policy should explain how line managers should be reviewing the performance of staff, for example: 

• timely, honest, and constructive feedback
• immediate feedback and development in cases of unsatisfactory performance
• immediate praise for success and exceptional achievements
• having regular one-to-one meetings, including a review of performance against objectives and expected behaviours
• recording formal appraisal meetings (for example annually)
• discussing development opportunities to help the employee improve

How to carry out an appraisal

An appraisal meeting should be part of your performance management policy. It’s designed as a formal opportunity for you to discuss the employee’s performance, usually against a set of objectives.

Normally objectives should be SMART – this stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely. These targets should give your staff a sense of what they should be working on, how they’re going to develop it, and when it needs to be completed.

If it’s your first appraisal with an employee, you’ll usually discuss performance against the job description and any training they may have completed since starting in their role.

The appraisal meeting is part of an ongoing cycle of objective setting, performance review and feedback – not a standalone event. It may also be linked to your salary review process.

What should you discuss in an appraisal meeting?

Appraisal meetings are a chance for a line manager and employee to discuss:

• what went well this year
• what didn’t go so well
• training needs

It’s important to remember the purpose of these meetings is around development, and they shouldn’t be confrontational.

Give your employees time to prepare

Make sure you give your employee advance notice of the meeting so they have time to prepare. For example, you may want them to complete a self-assessment document beforehand so they can think about what’s gone well and where they want to develop.

How to use our appraisal form template

Our appraisal form template, brought to you in collaboration with our partner Farillio, is an editable form in Microsoft Word format.

It’s ready to use for your business, so you can easily complete it as part of an employee’s performance review.

This appraisal form has sections for:

• summarising your employee’s current performance and achievements
• recording performance against key objectives
• identifying development and training opportunities
• career planning (for example if your employee is interested in developing in another area of the business or department)
• overall assessment of performance – with examples of where objectives have or haven’t been met

As a manager, you’ll keep a copy of the form, give one copy to the employee, and keep a final copy in their personnel file.

Here is a summary of the reforms from the September mini budget;

• Rather than reversing IR35 rules as a whole, the new government aims to abolish the reforms of 2017 and 2021.
• If the reversal goes ahead in April 2023 as planned, self-employed contractors and freelancers who work through their own limited company will once more be responsible for working out their own IR35 status.
• The reversal is still only a government aim and isn’t yet law. It will need to go through parliament in the usual way, drafted in the next Finance Bill.
• We have created this content for general information purposes and it should not be taken as advice. Always take professional advice

What is IR35?

• IR35 is another name for the off-payroll working rules
• Self-employed IR35 rules are designed to work out whether a contractor is someone who’s genuinely self-employed rather than a ‘disguised’ employee, for the purposes of paying tax.
• That’s because contractors who set up and work through a limited company enjoy some tax efficiency.
• While they don’t usually get employee benefits (like holiday and sick pay), they have flexibility and control over their work.
• When a contractor is a ‘disguised’ employee, they’re taking advantage of the tax efficiency of working through a limited company, but otherwise they should be classed as an employee.
• ‘Disguised’ arrangements benefit employers too, because they don’t have to pay employers’ National Insurance contributions (NICs) or give any employee benefits to contractors.
• Smaller businesses are exempt, which means it remains your responsibility to determine your IR35 status when working for them.

What is classed as a smaller business?

End clients are classed as small businesses if they meet two of the following criteria, for two consecutive financial years:

• annual turnover of no more than £10.2 million
• balance sheet total of no more than £5.1 million
• no more than 50 employees

Reference : https://www.simplybusiness.co.uk/knowledge/articles/2022/02/what-is-ir35/

BECTU TV rates

Employment Status Guidance – HMRC

PMA – Production Managers Association

TV Watercooler – Freelancer website for TV professionals (great for entry level)

Standard Broadcaster Budget Formats

HMRC Meal allowance rates

UK GDPR

Holiday Pay Calculator

BUDGET TEMPLATES DPP

OFCOM CODE

BAFTA

HMRC Employment Status Manual

WFTV – The leading membership organisation for women working in creative media in the UK

US CASTING AGENCIES DIRECTORY

PACT UK – Producers Alliance for Cinema and Television – the UK’s trade association for independent producers

CREATIVE DIVERSITY NETWORK

BRITISH FILM COMMISSION

FILMING IN ENGLAND

4SKILLS – Opportunities to begin and develop your career in the media industry with @Channel4 and friends! http://facebook.com/Channel4Skills http://instagram.com/Channel4Skills

DIRECTORS UK

THE TV MINDSET –

A place to support the mental health of TV & Film freelancers and bring meaningful change to working practices in the industry. Founded by @adeelamini.

RTS – The Royal Television Society is for everyone with an interest in TV. Follow us for TV news, events and awards

DCMSArtsandCulture

PACT

SCREENSKILLS

SHARE MY TELLY JOB – promoting flexible work and job share opportunities for TV freelancers. Creators of The Time Project

COVID-19 ISOLATING GUIDANCE  – ((18.JUN.21)- always check the latest guidelines from GOV UK when isolating, and advising production teams and crew to isolate.

Info on isolation due to testing positive from COVID-19 from GOV UK

What are Covid-19 symptoms ?

a new continuous cough

a high temperature

a loss of, or change in, your normal sense of taste or smell (anosmia)

What types of covid tests are available ?

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests

Lateral Flow Device antigen (LFD) tests also known as Rapid Lateral Flow tests

What happens if I have received one or more doses of COVID-19 vaccine?

While COVID-19 vaccines have been shown to reduce the likelihood of severe illness for those who have received them, we do not yet know for certain by how much they reduce the likelihood of a vaccinated person spreading COVID-19 to others.

What happens if I have COVID-19 symptoms or have received a positive COVID-19 test result?

Your isolation period starts immediately from when your symptoms started, or, if you do not have any symptoms, from when your test was taken. Your isolation period includes the day your symptoms started (or the day your test was taken if you do not have symptoms), and the next 10 full days. This means that if, for example, your symptoms started at any time on the 15th of the month (or if you did not have symptoms but your first positive COVID-19 test was taken on the 15th), your isolation period ends at 23:59 hrs on the 25th.

What happens if have a negative COVID-19 PCR test?

You can stop isolating as long as:

you are well

no-one else in your household has symptoms or has tested positive for COVID-19

you have not been advised to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace

What do I need to do if I am isolating at home ?

You should spend as little time as possible in shared spaces such as kitchens, bathrooms and sitting areas.

Use a separate bathroom from the rest of the household where possible

You should use separate towels from other household members, both for drying yourself after bathing or showering and for drying your hands. Keep your room well-ventilated by opening a window to the outside.

Those who are clinically extremely vulnerable should be supported to minimise their contact with other people in the household during this period, regardless of whether others have symptoms or not.

You should make sure you wash your hands, cover coughs and sneezes, and clean your home to reduce spread of infection.

Keep indoor areas well-ventilated with fresh air, especially shared living areas

What should I do to look after my health and well being ?

There are many sources of support and information, such as guidance on looking after your mental health and wellbeing and on supporting children and young people.

Every Mind Matters provides simple tips and advice to take better care of your mental health, including a COVID-19 hub with advice for those staying at home.

Remember by staying at home, you are helping to protect your friends and family, other people in your community and the NHS.

If you need medical advice

Health and care services remain open to help people with all health conditions, including COVID-19. Most people with COVID-19 will experience a mild illness which can be managed at home. Find out more about managing the symptoms of COVID-19 at home

Resources;

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance/stay-at-home-guidance-for-households-with-possible-coronavirus-covid-19-infection

https://siangwilliam.com/2021/02/04/test-and-trace-how-it-works-gov-uk/

• NBCU / Covid Consultant
• Snowglobe
• ITV Studios / Covid Executive
• The Big Breakfast
• The Palooza
• Get Me Out of Here
• The Voice
• Saturday Night Takeaway, Saturday Night Takeaway Drama,
• Dancing on Ice,
• Gary Barlow’s Night At The Museum and across all entertainment departments. Worked closely with ITV Risk Team.
• Tiger Aspect / Covid Executive
• Work across all labels/ scripted productions, Worked closely with Cat Fox HOP, and First Option Safety
• Naked (part of Fremantle) / Covid Consultant/Supervisor
• Tonight With Target, The Rap Game
• Mitre Productions / Covid Supervisor
• Ant & Dec social media shoots
• Alaska Productions / Covid Consultant
• Various development projects
• ZNAKTV Covid Consultant
• Masquerade Ball for FOX US
• 2LE Media / Covid Consultant/ Supervisor
• Language of Love for Channel 4
• Next Of Kin / Covid Consultant
• Primetime Pilot for ITV1
• Entertainment One,/ Covid Consultant
• Mousetrap for FOX US
• LocazoPro / Covid Consultant

Info for Positive Covid-19 Cases in the Workplace

The Virus

The virus can be spread by an individual 48 – 72 hours before their symptoms appear. It is therefore important to ensure open communication with other crew, cast and contributors who may have worked in close contact. However, it is also important to ensure that the individual’s privacy is maintained as medical information is deemed sensitive personal data.

Symptoms

If you have recent onset of any of the most important symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19):

1. a new continuous cough
2. a high temperature
3. a loss of, or change in, your normal sense of smell or taste (anosmia)

you and your household must isolate at home: wearing a face covering does not change this. You should arrange to have a test to see if you have COVID-19.

Confirmed Positive Case

If a case is confirmed, those crew, cast and contributors who have been in close contact and/or in the same cohort, should be identified to the best of your abilities. Those individuals should be advised to seek medical advice and be asked to work from home for 10 days to monitor their symptoms, as a precautionary measure in conjunction with local health agency instructions.

What is a ‘contact’?

A ‘contact’ is a person who has been close to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 anytime from 2 days before the person was symptomatic up to 10 days from onset of symptoms (this is when they are infectious to others).This includes anyone you have been within 2 meters of for 15 minutes or more. The same rule applies if you have been in a car or vehicle with someone.

Keep a Record

The recording of key dates, location of meetings, recces and movements of the crew, cast or contributor will help inform local health agencies and help the production to identify other staff/crew or cast members who may have been in close contact. 

Positive Result

A positive result means the individual had COVID-19 when the test was done. If their test is positive, they must self-isolate immediately.

• If they had a test because they had symptoms, they should keep self-isolating for at least 10 days from when their symptoms started. 
• If they had a test but have not had symptoms, they should self-isolate for 10 days from when they had the test. 
• Anyone they live with, and anyone in their close contact bubble, must self-isolate for 10 days from when you start self-isolating. 

Inconclusive Test

An unclear, void, borderline or inconclusive result means it’s not possible to say if the individual had COVID-19 when the test was done. Another test should be arranged as soon as possible. If the individual had a test but did not have not any symptoms, they do not need to self-isolate while they are waiting to get another test. People they live with, and anyone in their close contact bubble, do not need to self-isolate.

Self Isolating ASAP

They should self-isolate as soon as possible, if they are at work they should return home directly, and order a test online athttps://www.nhs.uk/ask-for-a-coronavirus-test. If they don’t have access to the internet, a test can be ordered by calling 119 (in England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or 0300 303 2713 (in Scotland).

It is important that they do not get too close to other people and maintain a minimum of 2m distance from others in order to reduce the risk of transmitting infection.

Resources;

Isolating Guidance Gov UK

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance/stay-at-home-guidance-for-households-with-possible-coronavirus-covid-19-infection

ICO Data Protection in the Workplace

https://ico.org.uk/global/data-protection-and-coronavirus-information-hub/coronavirus-recovery-data-protection-advice-for-organisations/

Gov UK List of Covid Testing Providers

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/list-of-private-providers-of-coronavirus-testing

To count towards the regional production quota by hours, relevant productions must meet two out of the following three criteria:

(1) Substantive base

The commissioned production company must have a substantive business and production base in the UK outside the M25, and the production in question must be managed from that substantive base.

The base will be taken to be substantive if it is the usual place of employment of:

• executives managing the regional business; and
• senior personnel involved in the production in question; and
• senior personnel involved in seeking programme commissions.

(2) Production spend

At least 70% of the production spend must be spent in the UK outside the M25.

Production spend should be based on the entire production expenditure including any funding from third parties and spend outside the UK, and excluding the cost of on-screen talent, archive material, sports rights, competition prize-money, copyright costs and any production fee (other than where some of the production fee is used to fund the costs of the production). Legal fees count as relevant spend.

(3) Off-screen talent

At least 50% of the production talent (i.e. not on-screen talent) by cost must have their usual place of employment in the UK outside the M25. Freelancers without a usual place of employment outside the M25 will nonetheless count for this purpose if they live outside the M25.

Resources:

Home

Why Quarantine is important

Quarantining will help prevent family, friends and the community from contracting coronavirus, as well as helping to protect the NHS

What is Test-to-Release?

Any Travellers arriving into the UK must undergo a mandatory 10 day quarantine as per current Government Guidelines. This quarantine period can be reduced to 5 days by producing a negative result using the government approved Test-to-Release scheme on day 5 of your arrival.

How the Test to Release scheme works

If you arrive in England from somewhere outside the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man you must quarantine for 10 days on arrival.

Under the Test to Release scheme you can choose to pay for a private COVID-19 test. If the result is negative, you can end your quarantine.

You cannot take a test until you have been in England for 5 full days.

The scheme is voluntary and applies to those quarantining in England only.

If you do not want to opt into the Test to Release scheme, you will need to quarantinefor 10 days.

What do I need to do to take part in the scheme?

To take part in the scheme you need to:

• book a test with one of these private test providers
• choose to opt into the scheme on the passenger locator form

You will be asked to enter details of your test in the passenger locator form. You must do this to take part in the scheme.

When do I book the tests?

You should book your test before you travel to England. This is so you can enter details of the test when you opt into the scheme on the passenger locator form. If you decide to take part in the scheme after you have arrived in England, you will need to complete another passenger locator form.

Do I pay for the test myself?

Yes, You will have to pay the private test provider for your test. You will need to book an individual test for each person opting into Test to Release, including children.

The test provider will either send a test to your address or you can attend a testing site. You may leave your house to post your test or to travel directly to and from the testing site. You should follow safer travel guidance and avoid public transport if possible.

What do I do If me test is negative?

If the test result is negative you can stop quarantine as soon as you receive the result.

What do I do If I test positive for COVID-19?

If the test is positive you need to quarantine for another 10 days. Count the 10 days starting from the day after you took the test, or from when you first had symptoms if that is earlier.

People you live with in the UK, or people you are staying with, should also quarantine for 10 days from the date of your positive test.

You do not need to take the coronavirus test on or after day 8.

What happens if my test is inconclusive?

If the result from your test is inconclusive you must continue to quarantine. You can choose to take another privately provided test to find out if you can stop quarantine early.

You may be fined if you do not quarantine. The fine is £1,000 for the first time, up to £10,000 for further breaches.

Resources;

GOV UK Guidance

https://www.gov.uk/uk-border-control/ending-self-isolation-early-through-test-to-release

Private Test Providers

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/list-of-private-providers-of-coronavirus-testing/list-of-private-providers-of-coronavirus-testing

Fill in the Passenger Locater Form

https://www.gov.uk/provide-journey-contact-details-before-travel-uk

Travelling to Northern Ireland

https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/coronavirus-covid-19-international-travel-advice

Travelling to Wales

https://gov.wales/how-isolate-when-you-travel-wales-coronavirus-covid-19

Travelling to Scotland

https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-international-travel-quarantine/pages/overview/