What is good work?
Good work benefits individuals, communities, and the economy, but experts are still defining what it actually means. The UK Department of Work and Pensions is convening businesses, charities, and government to establish a clear definition and identify practices that create healthier, more productive workplaces.
Equalities Review publishes final report
The Equalities Review’s final report reveals that motherhood remains the biggest barrier to women’s employment, with mothers of young children 40% more likely to be out of work than men. At current progress rates, closing the gender pay gap will take until 2085, prompting calls for new frameworks to tackle entrenched inequalities.
Age discrimination – Tackling transition
Employers must move beyond basic age discrimination compliance to implement strategic age management practices that enable seamless transitions to retirement. This requires flexible career planning, recognition that older workers have different motivations, equal workplace interactions across age groups, and ongoing skills development to retain engaged mature employees.
Absence policies and line management training: what if they don’t work?
Many UK employers fail to effectively implement absence policies and line manager training despite having access to world-leading healthcare solutions. Without clear policy wording, trained managers, and genuine organizational commitment to health management, investments in occupational health and benefits remain largely unutilized.
HR tips 2006
Explore a comprehensive collection of HR tips and guidance from 2006, covering employment law topics including disciplinary procedures, redundancy, resignations, appraisals, grievances, and workplace rights. Browse monthly archives to find practical advice on specific HR challenges.
How’s your parrot? Why ‘shemail’ could harm your career. By Sarah Fletcher
Research suggests women’s flowery, personable email style may undermine their credibility at work. Experts claim overly chatty emails with social niceties risk making professionals appear less serious about business matters compared to male colleagues’ direct, concise approach.
Ask the expert: Reversing appeal decisions
An appeal manager who verbally agrees to overturn an employee’s dismissal but then reverses course overnight faces significant legal risks. Tribunals are unlikely to support such reversals, as employees reasonably rely on verbal decisions and employers typically lack legitimate grounds to change course without new evidence or proper procedure.
Why use training needs analysis? By Matt Henkes
Training needs analysis (TNA) helps organizations identify skill gaps between employee capabilities and business objectives, preventing wasted spending on irrelevant training programs. By assessing workforce skills against organizational goals, companies can develop targeted, effective training that actually engages employees and delivers measurable results.
EOC takes government to court over ‘unclear’ law
The Equal Opportunities Commission is taking the government to court over its implementation of the European Equal Treatment Amendment Directive, arguing the regulations are too narrow and create legal uncertainty for employers and employees. The EOC specifically challenges unclear definitions of harassment, maternity leave protections, and pregnancy discrimination standards.
HR Tip: Issuing contracts of employment to employee with no contract on record
When an employee demands a contract but no record exists, draft one based on your understanding of their role and discuss it with them to confirm accuracy. Address any disagreements promptly and consider established customs and practices, which may legally constitute contract terms if management knew about them.
Pensions turmoil continues for government
The government has suffered a second High Court defeat in a month over a pensions case, with a judge ruling that the work and pensions minister acted unlawfully by ignoring the parliamentary ombudsman’s findings of maladministration in official pension advice given to thousands of people.
Employee benefits: Fit the person to the perk
Effective employee benefits require matching rewards to individual preferences and roles. Executive-level staff may value luxury experiences, while middle managers often prefer time-saving perks and salespeople respond to competitive incentives. Tailoring benefits to employee needs increases motivation and demonstrates genuine appreciation.
How CSR can boost HR: an interview with TomDunn by Sarah Fletcher
TomDunn, an ethical recruitment firm, demonstrates how corporate social responsibility can elevate HR from administrative support to strategic business driver. In an interview, the company’s HR head explains how values-based practices attract major clients and improve hiring fairness.
Colborn’s corner: Empowerment – Who’s kidding who?
Staff empowerment has become a hollow promise at many retailers. When companies remove all discretion from frontline workers to avoid liability, they sacrifice both customer satisfaction and employee morale while claiming to value their teams.
Why a learning and development function is key
A learning and development department is essential for developing employees to increase business competitive advantage. Effective L&D focuses on performance outcomes, efficiency, and helping managers identify root causes of workplace problems rather than simply delivering training on demand.
Don’t forget sexual orientation when reviewing equal opps policies
Employers must review equal opportunities policies to include sexual orientation protection, following a record £118,309 discrimination award to a gay employee. With no upper limit on compensation in such cases, firms face potentially significant financial penalties for harassment or bias related to sexual orientation.
Consultation on protecting agency workers
The government has launched a consultation on protecting vulnerable agency workers, proposing measures including worker rights to withdraw from agency-provided services, clearer guidance on talent agency fees, and reduced paperwork for short-term placements. The proposals aim to prevent exploitation while the TUC argues the scope doesn’t go far enough to address pay and conditions disparities.
Long hours not the real workplace issue
Work-related stress stems primarily from poor management and workplace organization rather than long working hours, according to the CIPD, which challenges the focus on hours reduction as the key workplace issue.
Employers confident about managing religious issues in the workplace
Most employers feel confident managing religion-related workplace issues, yet only one in three has an explicit policy in place. While many support religious dress codes and time off for observance, confusion persists about which faith days employees will celebrate.
Ask the expert: Can they do this at interview?
Employment lawyers explain whether a senior staff member can tell a job candidate their “attitude stinks” during an interview process. While not inherently illegal, such unsolicited feedback from someone uninvolved in interviews raises legal and practical concerns, particularly regarding discrimination claims.
