Tag Archives: employment law

Employment Law Changes – What’s New for 2014?

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Twice a year we run an Employment Law update workshop, where we go through all the recent and forthcoming changes. This helps our clients keep up to date on the law, without getting bogged down in all the details.

Here’s what we covered at our workshop in October 2014:

January 2014

  • TUPE – collective redundancy consultations can now be started before the transfer, with a requirement for service provision to be fundamentally the same before and after the transfer
  • The right to be accompanied – workers can now choose any companion to be with them in a meeting, providing they are a work colleague or a trade union representative.

March 2014

  • Employers will face penalties of up to 100% of the unpaid wages and a maximum penalty of £20,000 for not paying the National Minimum Wage
  • Rehabilitation periods have been reduced and fewer convictions now need to be disclosed.

April 2014

  • Early conciliation – Acas must now be contacted before a tribunal application can be made
  • The discrimination questionnaire has been abolished
  • Tribunal financial penalties – tribunals have the power to order penalties for the losing employers, ranging from £100 to £5000 where breach has “one or more aggravating factors”.

June 2014

  • Flexible working – this has been extended to all employees with 26 weeks service
  • Small Business and Enterprise Bill – this includes changes to National Minimum Wage breach penalties and restricting the number of postponements of tribunal hearings.

July 2014

  • TUPE changes – from 31 July businesses, employing less than 10 people are able to consult individually.

October 2014

  • National Minimum Wages were increased
  • Antenatal rights – time off must be given for an employee to accompany a pregnant partner for two appointments.

Watch this space for news of our next Employment Law workshop, which will be held in April or May 2015, when we’ll discuss the next round of changes. These will include changes to parental leave, adoption rights and shared parental leave in April 2015; and a new tax free childcare scheme in the Autumn 2015.

Or subscribe to our email newsletter and you’ll receive details as soon as they’re published.

Getting to Grips with Grievance

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I’ve been working with one of my clients to look at how their employees feel they’re being treated by their managers. Unfortunately, in one case, it has resulted in a member of staff being signed off sick due to stress. They have been asked to come back to work, but they don’t want to return and have to work for the same manager. In this particular small business, there is no one else for whom they could work.

It is a sad story and it is one that can be avoided.

If you think that one of your employees is unhappy, it really is best to deal with it early. Find out as soon as you can what the problem is. Look at using regular appraisals or ‘job chats’ to keep in touch with your employees, so that no small issues are ignored. The small ones can be the ones that escalate into much larger, more complex issues, if they’re not dealt with while they’re still small.

If you find out that someone is unhappy about working under you, find someone else to deal with the situation. An employee with a problem is more likely to speak to someone more impartial than the person with whom they have the actual grievance.

To find out more about how to prevent problems occurring, have a look at this blog about how to make appraisals really easy; for tips on improving performance, watch some of our videos here.

For more advice on how to deal with grievances and discipline at work, have a look at this Acas guide.

Our Guide to Employment Law Changes – 1 October 2014

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On 23 October we’ll running our next Employment Law Update workshop. This half day session is aimed at business owners and managers who need to keep up to speed with the changes, to make sure they stay legal. We’ll go through all the new changes and give you the opportunity to find out how they might affect your business.

There are still some places available, so to join us at Hennerton Golf Club in Wargrave, Berkshire for just £15 +VAT, click here.

Here are a few of the changes we’ll be looking at.

Antenatal rights for fathers and partners

Working fathers will have the choice to take unpaid time off to attend up to two antenatal appointments with a pregnant partner. These rights will be available for employees who are in “qualifying relationships”, which means they:

  • are the expected child’s father
  • are the pregnant woman’s husband or civil partner
  • live with the woman in an enduring family relationship and are not a relative
  • are one of a same-sex couple who is to be treated as the child’s parent under the assisted reproduction provisions
  • are the potential applicant for a parental order in relation to a child who is expected to be born to a surrogate mother.

From 1 October both employees are permitted to take time off to attend the same appointment. However you may refuse to grant an employee time off where it is “reasonable” to do so. But you must tread carefully as employees can bring a tribunal claim against you for unreasonably refusing time off. You should adopt a clear policy of how such requests will be dealt with and the parameters for refusal.

Employment tribunals must order equal pay audits

Greater sanctions are to come into force to ensure that employers are carrying out equal pay audits. As part of a new tougher regime, employers who are found in breach of equal pay legislation can be ordered by the Employment Tribunals to carry out an equal pay audit and make the results of that audit public. If the Tribunal determines that you have unreasonably failed to comply with its obligations, it can impose a fine of up to £5,000 at each hearing, in order to address your non-compliance.

Reservists better protected against unfair dismissal

To encourage more new recruits to sign up as a reservist of the armed forces, the Government is making signing up more attractive to people who worry that enlisting might cause problems with their job and career. From 1 October 2014, the statutory qualifying period for unfair dismissal will be removed in the case of a dismissal connected with an employee’s membership of the Reserve Forces. However, reservists will still have to prove that it was unfair to dismiss them because of their absences from work – they will not be treated as automatically unfairly dismissed.

The changes will apply to employees whose effective date of termination falls after 1 October 2014. Prior to these changes, reservists were at a considerable disadvantage when pursuing a claim for unfair dismissal as a period of call-up could not count towards the two year qualifying period needed to bring a claim.

The government is also reducing the financial burden on reservists’ employers.Small and medium-sized employers will now be able to claim £500 per month (pro-rated for part-months and part-time employees working fewer than 35 hours per week) from the Ministry of Defence during periods when a reservist employee is absent on military service.  Employers will also be able to claim up to £110 a day for additional salary costs incurred in providing cover for the absent reservist.

Increase in national minimum wage

Following the recommendations of the Low Pay Commission the Government has implemented the following increases to the national minimum wage which take effect from 1 October 2014: the standard rate for those aged 21 and above will increase from £6.31 to £6.50 an hour; the rate for those aged 18-20 will increase from £5.03 to £5.13 an hour; and the rate for those above the compulsory school but aged under 18 will increase from £3.72 to £3.79 an hour.

There’s a lot more happening, so to keep ahead of the changes and to find out more about these ones, join us on our workshop on 23 October 2014.

 

Three Stages to Successful Recruitment

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Recently I’ve been helping some clients sort out problems that have arisen because they didn’t carefully think through their recruitment process, when they were taking on new members of staff. There’s a great deal that you can do to avoid the problems, so in this issue of my newsletter I’m going to cover some of the basics of getting recruitment right – especially if you’re taking on your first member of staff.

We’ll look at how to find the best person, then we’ll look at what to do when they start working for you and finally I’ll talk about what to do at the end of their probation. This three stage process will help you find and keep hold of the best people for your business – and avoid some costly pitfalls!

Part One – How do you find the right person?

So your business is growing and you’re getting busier and busier. You’re working longer hours, just to keep up with the work and the demands of your clients. You don’t want to turn business away, so you keep working all the hours you can, including evenings, weekends and holidays. Eventually, when your friends and family are really fed up of not seeing you and you’re completely exhausted, you decide it’s time to take on your first member staff. Click here to see what you should do next.

Part Two – How do make sure they get off to the best start?

Recruitment can be a long, expensive and time consuming process. After all the effort of finding the right person to join your team, you want to help them settled in as quickly and smoothly as possible. Some new staff have been known not to show up after the first weekend, or even on their second day and you don’t want that!

Particularly if you’re taking on your first member of staff, take the time to plan their induction. Make sure they have somewhere to sit and a computer to work at – if that’s part of their job! Find out what to include in your induction training here.

Part Three – What do you do at the end of their probation?

The first thing to do is to make sure that you have actually agreed a probationary period with your new employee. Three months is the minimum and works well for simple jobs, but this can go very quickly. A six month probationary period is a good length of time for you to decide whether or not you want to keep your new employee within your business. Click here to see what else you need to do at this stage.

Recruiting can cost a lot in terms of time and money; getting it wrong can cost even more. You can avoid the pitfalls by following this advice. If you have any specific questions about recruitment for your business, do get in touch.

Holiday Pay – Is There a New Way to Calculate it?

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It was recently reported in the press that certain trade unions are encouraging their members to launch claims against their employers in respect of payments they may be owed as a result of the recent case of Lock v British Gas Trading Ltd. In that case, the European Court of Justice ruled that commission had to be taken into account when calculating holiday pay, rather than just basic pay.

As most UK employers only pay basic salary for holidays, the potential impact of the ECJ’s decision, and other similar cases that have been brought since, is substantial, and could include unlawful deductions claims stretching back a significant number of years.

It appears that two of the country’s biggest unions are taking steps to actively promote claims from their members. Meanwhile, employers groups are pressing the Government to introduce emergency legislation that will limit the impact of the rulings which are at odds with current UK law. Employers have warned that unless such measures are taken, the resultant legal costs could seriously threaten economic recovery.

The two main options open to employers remain unchanged. You can either:

1. Take steps to mitigate past liabilities and reduce future liabilities by introducing changes to holiday pay so that it includes all elements of normal pay (e.g. overtime and commission). The legal argument here would then be that this “breaks” the series of any unlawful deductions which an ET deems to have been made, meaning that employees have only three months from the date of the change to bring a claim (i.e. the clock would start ticking for employees). However, the success of this strategy is not guaranteed. Tribunals may determine that it was not reasonably practicable to bring a claim in time if the legal position was uncertain.

2. Wait for the outcome of the aforementioned EAT cases, and Employers’ appeals for emergency legislation to limit the impact of the rulings to date.

Whichever route you choose to take, it is advisable in the first instance to review your existing methods of calculating holiday pay and assess potential liability. It may also be worth considering establishing a fund in this regard wherever possible.

Acas Early Conciliation – What’s Involved?

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Acas Early Conciliation – What’s Involved?

If an employee is going to make a claim to an employment tribunal, they must now notify Acas first.

We discussed this new process at our last Employment Law update in the spring and the changes came into force on 6 May 2014. We’ll give you an update at our next workshop on 23 October 2014, but in the meantime, here’s what you need to know.

Before an employee can take a case to tribunal, they have to talk to Acas first, who will offer them the chance to use Early Conciliation, which is an opportunity to settle workplace disputes without going to court. They will ask your employee if they want them to contact you, their employer, about settling without going to tribunal. Some employees want their day at court, so this makes them think about it, before making a final decision. They are not obliged to take part in the conciliation process, but they must complete an Early Conciliation notification form before they can take you to a tribunal.

What this means to you, as an employer, is more waiting time. Previously, after an employee left your business, if you had not heard from them in three months about any issues, you would not have heard any more. Now the process can take longer. However, early conciliation is a good opportunity for you to either settle or get early warning of a case being brought against you.

Early Conciliation can help resolve the majority of workplace disputes which may lead to an employment tribunal, including:

  • unfair dismissal claims
  • workplace discrimination
  • redundancy payments or disputes around selection procedures
  • deductions from wages or unpaid notice/holiday pay
  • rights to time off or flexible working
  • equal pay.

Since its launch in May this year, the Early Conciliation service has been well used. According to Acas, around 1000 people have contacted them about the service every week since its launch, with 98% deciding to try the service. Even though there is an initial one month period for settling a claim, Acas’ first Early Conciliation case was settled within 24 hours.

Take a look at the Acas website for more information, where you’ll find a useful flow chart which will show you the process.

Three Stages to Getting Recruitment Right – Part Three

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In three blog posts I’m covering some of the basics of getting recruitment right – especially if you’re taking on your first member of staff. First we looked at how to find the best person (click here if you missed that post or would like to read it again.) In Part Two we covered what to do when your new recruits start working for you, which you will find here.

In this blog, the final part of the series, I’ll talk about what to do at the end of their probation. This three stage process will help you find and keep hold of the best people for your business – and avoid some costly pitfalls!

Part Three – What do you do at the end of their probation?

The first thing to do is to make sure that you have actually agreed a probationary period with your new employee. Three months is the minimum and works well for simple jobs, but this can go very quickly. A six month probationary period is a good length of time for you to decide whether or not you want to keep your new employee within your business.

The next thing to do is to book a meeting with your member of staff, once a week during their probation period. Put something in the diary at the same time every week for a few months, especially if you don’t work closely with them. If you don’t see them every day, then this is a good way to check in with them. It’s your chance to find out how they’re getting on – are they reaching their targets, or are there parts of their role that they’re struggling with?

What happens if they reach the end of their probation and you’re not happy with their progress? You need to take action! You can extend their probation period, to give them time to work the performance issues you’ve identified. If you’d been having regular meetings, you’ll know early on if there’s something wrong and be able to do something about it. Don’t leave it until the end of their probation period to tackle an issue, or spring the surprise on them!

And if you are both happy? Then you’ve got a fully fledged new member of staff on your team. But don’t think that you can just sit back and relax! Being a boss/manager of people is an ongoing job that doesn’t finish at the end of probation. We’ve talked more about useful tools like appraisals, performance plans and setting targets in other blog posts – just use the search box on the front page of this blog to find what you’re looking for.

If you have a specific question about one of your employees, do get in touch for a chat and some advice.

Settlement Agreements used to be called Compromise Agreements. What’s Changed?

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In the UK, a compromise agreement – now known as a Settlement Agreement – is a specific type of contract, regulated by statute, between an employer and its employee (or ex-employee) under which the employee receives payment in exchange for agreeing that he or she will have no further claim against the employer as a result of any breach of a statutory obligation by the employer.

Changes were made (other than just the name) in July 2013. What does this mean to you, as an employer?

A Settlement Agreement is a legally binding contract which can be used to end an employment relationship on agreed terms. Their main feature is that they waive an individual’s right to make a claim to a court or employment tribunal on the matters that are specifically covered in the agreement. Settlement Agreements may be proposed prior to undertaking any other formal process. They usually include some form of payment to the employee by the employer and may also include a reference.

For a settlement agreement to be legal, the following conditions must be met:

  • The agreement must be in writing
  • The agreement must relate to a particular complaint or proceedings
  • The employee must have received advice from a relevant independent adviser on the terms and effect of the proposed agreement and its effect on the employee’s ability to pursue that complaint or proceedings before an employment tribunal
  • The independent adviser must have a current contract of insurance or professional indemnity insurance covering the risk of a claim by the employee in respect of loss arising from that advice
  • The agreement must identify the adviser
  • The agreement must state that the applicable statutory conditions regulating the settlement agreement have been satisfied.

A Settlement Agreement can be proposed by both employers and employees although they will normally be proposed by the employer. A proposal can be made at any stage of an employment relationship.

Acas has produced a comprehensive Code of Practice on Settlement Agreements, which you can download for free here. It is very important to take HR advice before starting a process of discussing a Settlement Agreement with an employee so do get in touch if you have any questions.

Three Stages to Getting Recruitment Right – Part Two

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In three blog posts I’m going to cover some of the basics of getting recruitment right – especially if you’re taking on your first member of staff. Last time we looked at how to find the best person (click here if you missed that post or would like to read it again.) In Part Two we’ll look at what to do when your new recruits start working for you and in the third blog, I’ll talk about what to do at the end of their probation. This three stage process will help you find and keep hold of the best people for your business – and avoid some costly pitfalls!

Part Two – How do you make sure they get off to the best start?

Recruitment can be a long, expensive and time consuming process. After all the effort of finding the right person to join your team, you want to help them settled in as quickly and smoothly as possible. Some new staff have been known not to show up after the first weekend, or even on their second day and you don’t want that!

Particularly if you’re taking on your first member of staff, take the time to plan their induction. Make sure they have somewhere to sit and a computer to work at – if that’s part of their job!

Induction training must include the following elements:

  • General training relating to your business, including values and philosophy as well as structure and history
  • Mandatory training relating to health and safety and other essential or legal areas
  • Job training relating to the role that they will be performing
  • Training evaluation, including confirmation of understanding and feedback about the quality and response to the training.

You will also need to take up the references that they provided you with, check the qualifications they say they have and confirm they have the right to work in the UK. (The law about foreign workers has changed recently – there are more details here.)

Acas has produced a very useful Induction Checklist which will give you more ideas on what to cover during induction. You can download it here.

In Part Three of this series we’ll talk about what you need to do once your new recruit (who really is the right person and has started off well) reaches the end of their probation period.

Are Your Staff Still Legal? Employment Law Update

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Employment law is updated regularly. To keep you up to speed and on the right side of the law, I?m running a workshop in Reading on 20 November 2013. Click here to book your place for just £10 +VAT.

In the meantime, here is a quick summary of some of the more recent updates that you need to know about, that have been made since the update blog I wrote in July 2013.

Employment tribunal fees introduced. Fees are now charged for issuing and hearing tribunal claims and for various applications made during tribunal proceedings. Fees were introduced on 29 July 2013 in respect of claims issued on or after that date. Claims already before the tribunal at that date are unaffected. Click here to read a leaflet that tells you more about the exact charges.

New employment tribunal rules in force. The new rules are intended to simplify and streamline the tribunal process and to cut costs. They came into force on 29 July 2013 and apply to all claims irrespective of when they were issued.

Settlement agreements. Also from 29 July 2013, the Government’s proposals for facilitating the use of settlement agreements came into force. As an employer you can now offer a settlement agreement at any time, irrespective of whether there is an existing dispute. Neither you nor your employee can later refer to the fact that an agreement has been offered in subsequent unfair dismissal proceedings, should an agreement not be reached.

Compensatory award cap. A cap on the compensatory award of one year’s pay has been introduced.  The previous statutory maximum will apply, if lower. The new cap applies where the effective date of termination is on or after 29 July 2013.

Employee shareholder contracts. Since September 2013 you are able to offer employee shareholder contracts to new and existing staff, although existing staff cannot be forced to agree. Under these contracts, employee shareholders must be given free shares worth at least £2,000. Shares issued up to £50,000 in value will qualify for capital gains tax relief. In return, employee shareholders are required to give up their rights to claim unfair dismissal, a redundancy payment and to request flexible working and time off for training.

National minimum wage increases. The national minimum wage increased on 1 October 2013. Click here to see all the numbers and how they’ve changed.

And as if that’s not enough, there are more changes coming in April 2014! Some will affect maternity and paternity leave, so come to my next workshop to find out more.