Does the thought of performance reviews fill you with dread? In many organisations’, managers spend hours frantically scrolling through emails in attempt to recall who has done what throughout the year while questioning the value of what often becomes a box ticking exercise enforced by HR. From an employee’s perspective, they often have no idea what they’re supposed to write in the supporting documentation and dread being presented with a list of things they need to improve on. Performance appraisals are sometimes criticised for being…
Working at height led to the deaths of 40 people in the last year, compared to 35 the year before. According to recent HSE fatality statistics, it’s the number one cause of work-related deaths in the UK. It raises the question, are employers doing enough to protect workers? Time for more severe sentencing? This month saw the verdict from a fall from height case, following an accident in December 2016. Samuel Goemans of Cedar Ridge Construction Limited fell from a tower scaffold and suffered life-changing…
Tesco has admitted that hundreds of redundant workers were paid the wrong amount of redundancy pay. AND they wrote to those who were accidentally overpaid in an attempt to reclaim the money. The practical difficulties involved in reclaiming small amounts of money from former employees have recently been highlighted by Tesco. They offered that anyone overpaid by less than £500 could keep their money. But those overpaid by more than £500, could only keep £100. Where does an employer stand reclaiming money from employees? The…
Summer – the season of sun, sea and sand. Setting your out-of-office and jetting off on holiday for a week of rest and relaxation. However, from a HR perspective the summer months can be a very challenging time of year. Our advice line has seen a spike in enquiries relating to this very topic. Therefore, I have compiled some responses to questions we’ve received relating to unplanned absence, presenteeism, recruitment and notice periods. Unplanned absence An employee requested a holiday however it was rejected. The…
If your business is considering making staff redundant? If so it’s important that you understand the costs involved. This blog provides a step-by-step guide to calculating redundancy pay. The Origins of Redundancy Pay The Redundancy Payments Act 1965 brought in the principle that, providing an employee qualified based on a length of service, he/she would be entitled to a payment from their employer should work be considered ‘unviable’ for the employer to continue with. This was a policy shift by the Government at the time.…
Does a candidate in a recruitment exercise have a right to see employment references requested and received from their current or former employer? You’re part way through an extensive recruitment process. The hiring manager has decided to make an offer of employment to a candidate. The offer is of course subject to receipt of a satisfactory reference. However, you receive the reference from a current or former employer and it is anything but satisfactory forcing you to withdraw the offer. Your ‘would-be’ candidate might be…
As Police Sergeant Angel explained about his pocket notebook in the 2007 comedy film, Hot Fuzz: “This is the most important piece of equipment you will ever own. This notebook has saved my skin more times than I care to mention.” And when it comes to employment law, we agree. Best practise is any formal meeting with an employee should be recorded in some form and placed on the employee’s personnel file. This includes performance reviews and appraisals. However, because of the litigious nature of…
From 6 April 2019 two major changes to the rules on itemised pay statements take effect. The Employment Rights Act 1996 has been amended meaning that: Firstly, the right to an itemised pay statement has been extended to include workers Secondly, itemised pay statements must include the numbers of hours worked where the employee’s pay varies by reference to time worked Both changes are a direct response to the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices that called for greater clarity over pay for UK employees.…
1st April 2019 marks the beginning of Stress Awareness Month. It aims to increase awareness of the causes and cures of what has been labelled our modern stress epidemic. Stress-related absence has increased for two-fifths of businesses in the past year, according to new research from the CIPD and Simplyhealth. The top causes of stress-related absence were excessive workloads and management style. What is work-related stress? It is generally accepted that going to work is a good thing. However, according to the HSE there are…
The new UK tax year is coming! But why does it run from 6th April - why not January to January? Well, it all started a very long time ago when - in England and Ireland - the New Year started on 25th March. It was known as Lady Day to commemorate the angel Gabriel's happy news to the Virgin Mary, that she would soon give birth to Jesus Christ. Why the shift from 25th March to 6th April? Hundreds of years ago, people were…
