A week in HR: The return of the British seasonal worker and other tales
More British workers are turning to seasonal agricultural jobs despite low pay as employment prospects worsen. The trend reflects growing job market desperation, while major employers like BT announce significant redundancies and UK pay rises remain among the world’s lowest.
Keeping stress down and motivation up in challenging times
Learn practical strategies to maintain team motivation and reduce workplace stress during challenging times. Open communication, stress management training, and early intervention help boost productivity and prevent burnout when your business needs it most.
Up in smoke: One week until ‘quit’ day
Becky Midgley continues her eight-week smoking cessation program with renewed confidence as fewer participants attend the sessions. With one week until her quit date, she discusses personal triggers, daily cigarette consumption, and specific strategies to replace smoking habits with healthier alternatives.
So you want staff who are engaged?
Staff engagement is crucial for business success, yet “best companies to work for” assessments oversimplify complex needs. Employee engagement depends on individual circumstances, career stage, industry, and what employees truly value—making a universal “best” employer difficult to define.
Ask the expert: Reduced working hours and pay
Employers seeking to reduce working hours and pay must obtain employee consent or follow formal dismissal procedures. Making unilateral changes without agreement risks constructive dismissal claims, so legal advice is essential to navigate this complex area properly.
Food Buyer in Good Health after Cutting Staff Absence and Improving Payroll with COA Solutions HCM System
The Health Store, the UK’s largest independent health food buying group, reduced staff absence from 7% to 2% after implementing COA Solutions’ HCM system. The integrated platform streamlined HR and payroll processes, eliminated paper-based inefficiencies, and improved employee management through automated time and attendance tracking.
Case study: Health and wellbeing at First ScotRail
First ScotRail’s comprehensive health and wellbeing programme addresses musculoskeletal and mental health challenges among its predominantly male, shift-working workforce. The initiative includes occupational physiotherapy, employee assistance services, and on-site wellness support to improve staff engagement and customer service.
How does your organisation impact on work-related health?
Organisational culture, policies, and structures significantly impact employee work-related health and wellbeing. While individual job factors matter, broader organisational characteristics like leadership style, safety climate, and change management also influence workforce health outcomes and the success of health interventions.
HR tip: Refusal to supply references
When a candidate refuses to provide references, employers must weigh the risks carefully. While some refusals may have legitimate reasons like past harassment, references remain important for roles involving money or vulnerable people. Consider a longer trial period to assess performance if you proceed without them.
Up in smoke: An employee’s attempt to quit the cigarettes
Employee Becky Midgley joins an NHS-supported eight-week smoking cessation programme arranged by her employer. In her first session, she finds the group dynamic discouraging and the advisors’ approach unconvincing, despite her own strong commitment to quit.
Ask the expert: Off sick or working from home?
When an employee calls in sick but works from home, employers face legal risks. Experts advise establishing clear policies distinguishing between sick leave and work-from-home arrangements, as continuing work discussions may breach the employer’s duty of care and create liability if the employee’s condition worsens.
Wellbeing at work gets personal
Modern corporate wellness programs are shifting from one-size-fits-all offerings toward personalized approaches tailored to individual employee needs. Targeted initiatives like coaching, healthy cooking classes, and relaxation sessions deliver stronger engagement and better returns on investment than generic gym discounts.
Restructure for success, not just for recession
Organizations should restructure for long-term efficiency, not just recession survival. A lean structure with optimized employee deployment improves performance during any market condition and prepares companies to seize opportunities when growth returns.
HR blogosphere bulletin: 10 of the best
Jon Ingham curates 10 standout posts from the HR blogosphere covering topics including autism employment, organizational commitment, workplace confidence, CEO pathways, layoffs, flexible working, and recruitment innovation.
A week in HR: Employment law changes and cost-cutting
New employment law regulations came into force this week, including flexible working extensions and increased minimum wage penalties. Meanwhile, UK businesses face significant cost-cutting challenges, with 90% of major firms planning major reductions and 620,000 jobs at risk.
What the experts said: Flexible working and the new Acas Code
On 6 April 2009, the right to request flexible working expanded to parents of children up to age 16, extending eligibility to an additional 4.5 million workers. Employment experts and business leaders highlighted the benefits of flexible working for both staff retention and productivity, even during economic downturns.
Employee wellbeing: Is it at the top of your agenda?
During economic downturns, employee wellbeing programs become even more critical as redundancies increase stress and workload. Rather than cutting these initiatives, organizations should prioritize affordable wellness strategies to maintain productivity and staff morale.
HR blunder of the month: Walking CV lands job
A Manchester engineer wore a sandwich board CV to find work after five months of job hunting yielded no results. The unconventional tactic worked on his first day—a local company owner offered him employment, though only a temporary two-and-a-half month position.
HR tip: Informal warnings
The revised Code of Practice on discipline removed informal warnings, but employers should continue using them if they’re part of their internal procedures. Informal warnings can resolve issues without formal processes or affecting employment records.
The cycle of grief: The key to handling redundancy
Understanding the grief cycle—shock, denial, anger, bargaining, and acceptance—helps HR professionals and managers support employees through redundancy more effectively. When companies recognize this psychological process affects both departing and remaining staff, they can communicate more clearly, address wellbeing needs, and help teams reach acceptance faster to restore productivity.
