Going through the motions: Performance management
From 360-degree appraisals to the annual pay review, performance management can all too often become a box-ticking exercise, neglecting those all-important business objectives. Verity Gough asks, what are we really trying to achieve? When it comes to managing staff performance, HR can often have a battle on their hands. The universally hated performance review or […]
Managing fear in your organisation
Is your organisation paralysed by fear? Neil Twogood explains how HR can help senior managers to use authentic leadership to beat procrastination and stop the spread of fear. Fear is rife in the current economic climate. At a time when organisations need their employees to be productive, many are reacting like rabbits in the headlights. […]
Walking the redundancy tightrope
If you’re an HR professional and redundancies are on the cards, it’s not always the greatest job in the world. But what happens when one of the redundancies is your role? Hilary Jeanes advises on how to handle this difficult situation. It can be a very challenging situation – managing the redundancy programme for your […]
Improving productivity during a downturn
Times are tough at the moment so it isn’t surprising to find HR professionals turning their attention to productivity and performance, says Caroline Waters, who recommends implementing unified communications as one way of ensuring a focused and motivated workforce. For many, the financial crisis is reason enough to take a fresh look at how people […]
HR tip: Booking holidays
These questions are being answered by Learn HR, a market leader in the provision of HR and payroll training and nationally-recognised professional qualifications. Question: "We have had a flurry of applications for holiday from employees who have booked to go abroad. Some other employees are showing resentment because, they say, they don't yet know when they […]
Confidentiality and anonymity in 360 degree appraisal
I was reading a book “Leveraging the Impact of 360 degree feedback” and was interested in the author’s focus on anonymity. For them 360 degree feedback required anonymity even to the extent that they saw a downside of narrative feedback being the potential for identifying raters.One of our largest clients has just run 360 feedback […]
Big employers gear up for online P45 and P46 switch in April
April will see a new online filing deadline for companies with more than 50 employees, who will have to start submitting in-year forms via the internet. John Stokdyk sets the scene. After taking a year off to catch up with the housekeeping and tidy up some data protection issues, HMRC will roll out the next […]
Disability discrimination: Lack of knowledge defence
The Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT) has delivered a new judgment setting out what prior knowledge of a disability an employer should have if they are to be held liable for discrimination. Charles Price explains. Under the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) 1995, the definition of a disability is as follows:“A person has a disability for the […]
Ask the expert: Laying off staff
A small business has decided to lay off staff for two weeks, as an alternative to redundancies. Esther Smith and Matthew Whelan advise on the correct procedure to follow. The question:A small firm employing only three staff has hit a brick wall with orders and clients cancelling. There is no alternative but to lay off […]
Employment, pensions and share schemes in 2009
The legal landscape of 2009 is already shaping up for a year of reforms, so Kathleen Healy and Ben Dudley discuss what they expect to be key developments across employment, pensions and benefits this year. The current economic climate signals a busy and challenging time for HR professionals. The HR function is likely to come […]
Holiday accrual on sick leave: What you need to know
A recent ECJ ruling means employees now have the right to accrue annual leave during long-term sickness absence. Howard Lewis-Nunn explains what financial ramifications this will have on employers, especially in the current economic climate. The question of whether workers have a right to accrue annual leave during long-term sickness absence has finally made it […]
A week in HR: Agency workers angry over job cuts at Mini
Employment woes continue with yet more job cuts announced, prompting fears that the recession is being used as an excuse to flout employment laws. On a more positive note, a productivity boost is on the cards with a shake-up of engineering construction skills. Verity Gough reports. One of the biggest stories of the week has […]
Charity website links employers and disabled jobseekers
Leonard Cheshire Disability is calling on employers to post their jobs on a new online resource called Suitability launched today (16 February) which matches disabled jobseekers with the skills that employers need. Firms can post their vacancies for free, recruit great candidates and network with other companies through the Suitability Forum and sign up to […]
And they say romance is dead
This Saturday is Valentine’s Day, which means love is quite possibly in the air con. But how can HR ensure hearts and flowers do not give way to accusations of favouritism, atmospheres you could cut with a knife, and sexual harassment claims? Christiana Tollast finds out. In today’s long hours work culture, are office romances […]
COA Solutions Launches New HCM Portal for its HR Pro Human Resource System
COA Solutions (www.coasolutions.com), a leading provider of business management and information systems to the UK mid-market, announces the launch of its new HCM Portal. The HCM Portal, which is designed to work with COA Solutions’ HR Pro human resource (HR) system, is a user-friendly process driven system which allows authorised line managers across the organisation […]
Health and safety laws: Avoiding a prison sentence
Forgotten to clean up that spillage? Perhaps two years at Her Majesty’s pleasure will jog your memory next time. David Foster warns employers about the serious implications of the Health and Safety (Offences) Act 2008 that came into force last month. During the year 2007/8, 229 people were killed at work. Construction and agriculture had […]
Show me the rewards
Recognition and rewards are key to attracting and retaining employees, says Donna Sizemore, who asserts that an effective rewards programme is the missing piece in the puzzle of employee retention and motivation. It was a dark and stormy night. Or, more likely, it’s a normal workday in your company, and management is mystified about why […]
Colborn’s Corner: What life is there outside work?
HR professionals admit to searching social networking sites to gain a deeper insight into potential employees. Does this tell us that HR staff have time on their hands to go fishing, or is this the new reality of recruitment? Quentin Colborn discusses what is fair game in recruitment and selection. A recent survey of almost […]
HR tip: Help for redundant employees
These questions are being answered by Learn HR, a market leader in the provision of HR and payroll training and nationally-recognised professional qualifications. Question: "We have had to make a few people redundant because we are short of orders and therefore cash. Also, we are unable to extend our overdraft. In these limited circumstances is there […]
Developing your managers in a downturn
Now, more than ever, organisations need tough and determined managers, who are driven and motivated to see the business through the hard times. But how can employers ensure their managers are up to the job? John Pope has some advice. In case you hadn't heard, the world has changed. Most businesses are feeling the pinch […]
