Employment Rights Bill – the key points
After much anticipation, we are seeing the proposed changes that will take effect under the Labour Government. Just by way of clarification, these are the published proposals and they are now subject to consultation between Governments, Trade unions and interested employer stakeholders – such as FSB, CBI etc. It is anticipated that the changes will […]
Sexual Harassment Prevention
The new duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace What is the new law regarding sexual harassment prevention? From 26 October 2024, the Prevention of Sexual Harassment Act comes into force and requires all employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees in the course of […]
The Right to Disconnect
What do we mean by the right to disconnect? The right to disconnect (sometimes referred to as switch off) is a proposed human right that gives employees the right to disconnect from work and not engage in work related activities outside of normal working hours. This could include Not being contacted by e-mail or other […]
Labour party proposals for changes to Employment law
The Labour party’s proposals for employment rights have been set out in a document – Labour’s plan to make work pay – delivering a new deal for working people – and they commit to the introduction of legislation within 100 days of a new Parliament to implement the plan in full. Let’s look at some […]
Fire and Re-hire
What does Fire and Re-hire mean? Fire and Rehire is a practice where the employer wants to employ the employee on less favourable terms and conditions and effectively, the employer gives contractual notice of termination of their existing contract terms and then re-hires them on less favourable terms and conditions with the employee maintaining continuity […]
Expectant Mothers – Risk Assessment
Normally, when an employee advises the employer that they are pregnant, the employer will say “congratulations” to the expectant mother. However, depending on their job role, you may have to consider whether there are any aspects of the employee’s job which could be putting the expectant mother and unborn child at risk. This isn’t scare-mongering […]
Managing Menopause in the Workplace
The Menopause continues to be one of the biggest HR hot topics in the workplace. Why? The legal context The Menopause is effectively covered by various strands of legislation. Under the Equality Act, 2010, the Menopause is potentially covered under 3 protected characteristics – age, sex and disability. Also, the Health and Safety at Work […]
Employment law – upcoming changes and what you need to know.
In this article we’ll take a look at the upcoming changes to Employment law and what you need to know. Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Act 2023 Pregnant employees or those returning from maternity, adoption, or shared parental leave will be protected from redundancy. It will be the employer’s duty to offer these […]
Employee Loans
Employee Loans We are living through a cost of living crisis and employees are facing increases to all their utilities bills, rent and mortgage payments are going up and they struggle to make ends meet from one payday to the next. So, in amongst all this, employees are turning to their employers for either an […]
Interview Feedback
The vast majority of people who go for a job interview will say that they receive little or no feedback about how they performed. Candidates don’t normally receive any feedback other than a rejection and whilst some may say this is disappointing, it is clear that there are 2 opposing points of view that need […]
Varying Terms and Conditions
Most Companies at some stage, for whatever reason, will want to understand how to vary or change terms and conditions of employment. In short, it is possible to change terms and conditions but any change should follow a consultation process and wherever possible, a mutual agreement to change terms and conditions is always preferable. What […]
Medical Certificates
What is meant my medical certification? We all have different names for the same document – a note issued by the Doctor to certify that the employee is not fit for work. Sometimes, they’re called Fit notes, Medical Certificates, Doctor’s note, or maybe a Statement of Fitness for Work, Med 3 or sick note. Regardless […]
Christmas parties – the HR nightmare
It’s party time. The Christmas party should be fun and festive but for employers it can also be the worst nightmare with all the issues associated with unwanted advances, religious discrimination, drink driving, drugs, pictures on social media or dealing with the employee who fails to turn up the next day because they are too […]
Employment that comes with Accommodation
It is not uncommon for an employee’s employment to include the provision of accommodation. This may come about in many different ways – for instance – Residential tutors in the Education setting Accommodation on site for a school caretaker Chefs with Rooms in the hotel/hospitality sector Farm workers who have a cottage on the farm […]
Managing Cancer in the Workplace
At some point every business will be impacted by an employee who comes in with the dreaded words that they are either going through tests for cancer or they have had a diagnosis. So, what is the position and how should a Company manage the situation? The simple and generic answer is that the employer […]
Exit Interviews
What is an exit interview? An exit interview is a discussion or on-line questionnaire that takes place with an employee as they exit the business and the purpose of the discussion is to gather information about their new job role (although they aren’t obliged to tell you anything) but more importantly to get their views […]
SOSR Dismissals
You could easily be forgiven for not having heard of SOSR Dismissals– some other substantial reason – dismissal. So, let’s explain. An employer can fairly dismiss an employee for one of the 5 “fair reasons” Capability Conduct Redundancy Breach of a statutory restriction Some other substantial reason. SOSR is sometimes seen as the last resort […]
Constructive Dismissal
In this article we look at debunking some common constructive dismissal myths. How many times has an employer said – “I’m worried that they might resign and claim constructive dismissal?” Similarly, how many employees have bragged – “they can’t do that – I’ll take them for constructive dismissal” I’ve lost count so let’s shatter some […]
Probation Periods
Probation periods – what you need to know… It is common practice that when a new employee is recruited, they are advised that their employment is subject to a 3 or 6 month probation period. Everyone is familiar with the concept and the expression but how significant are they? Is a probation period a statutory […]
Managing Long Term Absence – when enough is enough
The Employment Rights Act clearly states that it is fair to dismiss an employee for reasons related to “capability”. There will come a point when an employee who is absent through long term sickness is incapable of doing the job they’re employed to do but the question is – when is that time? There is […]