Toxic Blacklist
The BBC has reported that Employers have begun a blacklist of “bad” employees who have been dismissed or those who have left before disciplinary proceedings can be commenced. To critics it sounds like a scenario from some Orwellian nightmare. An online database of workers accused of theft and dishonesty, regardless of whether they have been […]
Illegal workers: Prosecutions on the rise
In the four months since the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 came into force, almost 300 fines have been imposed on UK organisations. Laura Mitchell outlines what employers need to do to ensure they don’t fall foul of the law. It may have only been four months since the government introduced stricter penalties on […]
Ethical Q&A: Persistent lateness
Over the next few months, Tor Goldfield will be looking at what it takes to be an ethical employer, each month answering a different question on common business issues. This month, she discusses what to do when an employee is persistently late. QuestionOur start time is 9am and while most employees arrive on time or […]
Innovative internal communications get better results
Tim Moore and Breda O’Connor discuss how spending some time improving your business-to-employee communications can drive your organisation forward and enhance your employee engagement strategy. New media technologies, Web 2.0 and experiential marketing techniques are changing the way brands communicate with consumers. Today, simply asking them directly to buy into your brand will no longer […]
Understanding your employees’ demographic differences
Different demographic groups of employees have different needs and priorities. By adopting a more flexible approach, HR professionals can take advantage of this to enhance employee commitment and job satisfaction, claims Ron Eldridge. Why do people leave your organisation? What proportion of your turnover is due to a mismatch between the personal priorities of employees […]
HR Software Show round-up
HRZone.co.uk’s technology editor John Stokdyk spent last Thursday at the annual HR Software Show in London. This is what he found. NorthgateArinso adds PeopleChecking to its portfolioThe first thing visitors encountered at the HR Software Show (HRSS) exhibition was the stand of NorthgateArinso. One of the HR software industry’s bigger players, and the winner of […]
Harman defends positive discrimination plans
Equalities minister Harriet Harman has defended plans to encourage organisations to discriminate in favour of female and ethnic minorities job candidates.In plans to be published today, it is reported that the Equality Bill will also make private companies demonstrate whether they pay male and female staff equally, in a bid to make the pay gap […]
Flexible working business case more compelling than legislation
Over 90% of businesses say that they would operate a flexible working policy even if there was no legislative requirement, a survey from the Institute of Directors (IoD) has found. However, over a quarter of respondents said that the proposed extension of the law to allow parents of older children to request flexible working would […]
HR tip: Time off 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 made some employees redundant and they are now demanding that we let them have time off to seek other work. How do we and they stand?" HR tip:Employees who have two […]
Fall in productivity since smoking ban introduced
Many employers have reported a drop in productivity amongst their workers, as a result of the smoking ban that was introduced a year ago.This is according to a survey of 1,100 company bosses and HR managers, by Employment Law Advisory Services (ELAS), which found that 71% have seen a decrease in productivity levels in the […]
Applicants not selling their achievements
Not putting workplace achievements on their CVs is stopping people securing the jobs they want, research from the online CV provider iProfile.org has found. In a survey of recruiters, 73% said they had rejected candidates because of vague CVs containing no evidence of workplace achievements. Over half said that applicants who sell their achievements effectively […]
Employees unmotivated due to lack of training
Two out of every three UK workers whose employers do not contribute to their skills training are unmotivated and have little desire to progress, according to a report.An independent survey commissioned by the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) questioned a UK cross-section of over 1,000 individuals to ascertain how much impact training has on staff […]
The mechanics of salary sacrifice car schemes
Salary sacrifice car schemes are a shrewd way of getting tax breaks while offering a perk to attract new talent; but are they all they are cracked up to be, or will they end up driving you mad? Verity Gough looks at the pros and cons. Not only do salary sacrifice programmes offer employees the […]
Do your managers have tantrums?
We all get angry and frustrated sometimes, but how do you handle managers who constantly throw their toys out of the pram? John Pope offers some advice. A long time ago I was working in an oil refinery and ran a plant where we had to take samples of some very heavy oils, almost tar, […]
Managing your talent to secure a successful future
Managing your future talent is not a new concept, but it is becoming an even more vital component of the HR strategy. Alyson Pellowe has some top tips on how to be ready for the future success of your organisation. Talent management and succession planning aren’t new crazes. Good companies have always been able to […]
Discrimination law skirts around transvestite issue
Barrister Charles Price examines a recent case in Australia involving alleged discrimination against a transvestite, and looks at the equivalent law in the UK in an employment context. Luck certainly wasn’t a lady for transvestite Paul Hurst recently, when he was rejected from a casino for being dressed ‘inappropriately’. Last month, The Age reported from […]
No bones about the ban say workers
A year on from the introduction of the smoking ban, research suggests that employees feel it has had a positive effect on their working environment. Almost two thirds of workers told the employment website Monster that the ban had improved working conditions, though one in three complained that time was being wasted through colleagues leaving […]
Credit crunch leads to increase in county court judgments
County court judgments have risen by 500% over the past two years, signalling further corporate distress in the UK and a rise in company insolvencies. According to the latest Business Credit Index, published by the Credit Management Research Centre (CMRC) at Leeds University Business School, the early signs of financial stress in the corporate sector […]
UK employers look abroad to address talent shortage
Talent shortages are forcing UK employers to recruit foreign workers, research has shown.The global survey of almost 30,000 workers and 28,000 employers, carried out by employment services firm Manpower, found that 20% of employers are looking overseas for talent to address the skills shortage; whilst 53% of UK workers have admitted they would consider moving […]
Ask the expert: Volunteers – does employment law apply?
If someone who volunteers in a charity shop is summarily dismissed, can this person bring an unfair dismissal case? Esther Smith, partner at Thomas Eggar, and Martin Brewer, partner at Mills & Reeve, advise. The question:A friend of mine is a volunteer manager in a charity shop, managing volunteer workers in the shop. She summarily […]
