Ask the expert: Alcohol policy and religion
An employer would like to develop an alcohol policy that takes into account employees who cannot drink due to religious reasons. Esther Smith and Martin Brewer advise. The question: We have two scenarios :- A manager may invite their team out after work to celebrate a fundraising success. We may crack open a bottle of champagne in […]
Paternity leave plans put on hold
Proposals to let parents share a year of leave to help raise a child have been put on hold by business secretary Lord Mandelson, due to the economic crisis. Despite backing by Equality Minister Harriet Harman, the plans to extend paid maternity leave to 12 months and allow fathers to share up to six months […]
The drive towards equality in the workplace
Cases involving discrimination on the grounds of age, religion and belief or sexual orientation are on the increase. Pam Loch discusses the opinion as to whether some equality rights are more equal than others. Since 1975 and the introduction of the Sex Discrimination Act, there have been many challenges in tribunals and courts which have clarified […]
A week in HR: Discrimination, data and Women’s Day
This week, Neil Davey reports on the mixed feelings surrounding the European Court of Justice's ruling on forced retirement, the rising number of unfair dismissal claims and a disturbing case of data misuse. Age discrimination was the top story last week. First of all it was revealed that the number of unfair […]
Overcoming age bias in recruitment
In the current economic climate, both older and younger individuals face even greater difficulties than usual in obtaining or changing jobs. Dianne Bown-Wilson comments on how improvements to the recruitment process might help cut down on age discrimination. Age discrimination in employee recruitment continues to be rife despite legislation which should by now have resulted […]
Women in the workplace: A career in interim management
This article forms part of our series on women in the workplace. Take a look at the full content series for more information, including insight into impostor syndrome, sick leave and much more. One reason why there is a lack of women in the boardroom is because many are becoming interim managers, which allows them to work at […]
HR tip: Retiring an elderly employee at 70
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 wish to retire a 70-year-old employee. Our normal retirement age is 65 but we let him stay on. Do we need to do anything other than give him notice? And at […]
HR tip: A new fair reason for dismissal
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: "I always understood that there are five reasons for fair dismissal, but have just been told that there are six. Is this so?" HR tip: Yes. For many years the five reasons […]
Female talent: Do we need different strategies?
How do we help manage female talent through the pipeline to executive level? Michelle Brailsford and Mary Ann Rettig-Zucchi discuss what strategies need to be implemented. 'The Pipeline to the Top', a study published in the Academy of Management Perspectives, found an acute shortage of female talent in the leadership pipeline of FORTUNE 1000 […]
HR tip: Advising retirement age employees of their rights
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:"Are we obliged to inform people approaching their retirement age of their rights or is it up to them to find out?" HR tip:Indeed you are. You are required to inform employees in […]
How’s your parrot? Why ‘shemail’ could harm your career. By Sarah Fletcher
If you want to be taken seriously at work, cut the fluff. Women risk being ignored as serious business minds because their email style is flowery and ambles around the point before reaching the real reason for contact, new research claims. According to Drs Monica Seeley and Niki Panteli in Gender and Communication at Work, […]
Bumps to babies
Businesslink has launched a new online interactive tool covering maternity in the workplace to help small businesses understand their obligations and employee entitlements. Research by the Equal Opportunities Commission indicates that half the respondents felt managers didn’t understand how to manage pregnancy in the workplace. Businesslink’s guide aims to help. Users are guided through a […]
Off the record: Navigating pregnancy discrimination rules
Are there any ways around the laws that make it unlawful to discriminate against women on the grounds of pregnancy? Can bosses that would like to take on women of childbearing age but fear the costs associated with maternity pay and leave get round the problem? Find out what the experts say. There are no […]
How Did I Get Here? Sue Schoormans, Managing Director, Complete People Management Ltd
Managing Director Sue Schoormans reveals why enforcing policies that are biased towards women may be the only way to get HR to board level. 1. How strategic is your current role and what does it involve?I am the Managing Director of my own HR consultancy company, founded in 2003. At present I am the business […]
Off the record: Transsexual employees
Ranjit Dhindsa, employment partner at Reed Smith explains how to handle the logistics when an employee undertakes gender reassignment including directions on which toilet should be used during the process. When an employee announces they are about to have a sex change, what they need (and are legally entitled to) is support and understanding. Gender […]
HR Tip: Return from maternity leave
These questions are being answered by Learn HR, a market leader in the provision of HR and payroll training and nationally-recognised professional qualifications. Q: A woman on maternity leave wishes to return early but has given us only one week's notice to do so. Can she do this? A: If she informed you about her pregnancy […]
Comment: Working longer and portfolio careers
"Not long after I became an independent consultant nearly 20 years ago, I realised that the notion of a date on which I would retire no longer had any meaning for me." Roy Gaynor, Managing Director of management consultants' training and support network, Navisys Academy explains. Under funded pension schemes exacerbated by the baby boomer […]
“More rights than a protected panda bear” – maternity in UK business. By Sarah Fletcher
More legal rights than a protected species panda bear” is how one HR professional describes the general attitude towards pregnant employees. From 1 April 2006 the statutory rates of maternity, paternity and adoption pay will increase from £106 per week to £108.85; but is this enough? Sarah Fletcher asked HR professionals if the financial support […]
Yawning European pay gap closes in
According to a report published by the Federation of European Employers (FedEE) the pay gap across Europe is narrowing. FedEE point to a number of contributory reasons: EU members are increasingly developing a more coherent labour market as people are enabled to move and work in different countries more easily. Western European countries are struggling […]
Pay gap widens
Whilst overall temporary and permanent pay rose across most job types in 2003, the gap widened significantly between those earning top rates and those at the lower end of the scale, according to new salary research by Kelly Services. National resultsOn average, temporary staff on the lower end of the scale (across the 16 job […]