The Enterprise Bill has received Royal Assent and has become the Enterprise Act 2016. There are three key employment law provisions, but implementation dates have yet to be confirmed:

1. Restricting the total amount of exit payments made to a person in respect of a relevant public sector exit to a maximum of £95,000.

2. Protecting and strengthening the apprenticeship brand, introducing targets for apprenticeships in public sector bodies in England, and establishing an Institute for Apprenticeships – an independent, employer-led body that will make sure apprenticeships meet the needs of business.

3. Strengthening: (i) the rights of shop workers to ‘opt out’ of working Sundays by only having to give one month’s notice, as opposed to the current three months; and (ii) the duty on employers to notify employees of their Sunday-working rights. These provisions remain even though the Government’s plans to devolve power to local authorities to extend Sunday trading hours were defeated in the Commons.

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