News: Income tax and national insurance integration hits delays
The government has delayed a consultation on possible options for integrating the operation of income tax and National Insurance Contributions. The consultation was originally due to start after the March Budget, following discussions with employers and other groups. But due to the technical challenges involved in the move – and the potential disruption […]
Ask the Expert: Is being rude to a colleague’s mum grounds for a disciplinary?
The question An external agent, a non-employee, has raised a grievance against a colleague of mine, a first line manager, claiming that she was unsympathetic and cold during a telephone conversation, in which the external agent had asked if her son could leave site immediately to attend a funeral (his grandfather’s). My colleague had […]
News: Case for no-fault dismissals unproven, say experts
Experts from all areas of business have agreed that, while the benefits case for introducing compensated no-fault dismissal is unproven, there is a strong risk that it could damage employment relations. The coalition government’s request for evidence on the controversial measure, which was put forward by venture capitalist Adrian Beecroft earlier this year, is due […]
News: BA cabin crew sue for loss of travel discounts during strike
A number of cabin crew living outside of England are seeking compensation from British Airways for indirect racial discrimination over its withdrawal of travel concessions during strikes two years ago. According to the Guardian, the claims are being heard at an employment tribunal this week, where five air stewards are looking for redress of up […]
Legal Insight: Expect the unexpected when hiring
Most HR departments already have efficient recruitment policies in place that outline the whole process, from the initial decision to hire through to making an appointment. If this sounds like you, you may be feeling quite smug that you’ve got the process more or less sorted out – and in part, you could be right. […]
News: Former Olympus CEO settles unfair dismissal case out-of-court
Former Olympus chief executive Michael Woodford has reached an out-of-court settlement with his ex-employer for unfair dismissal. Woodford was sacked just two weeks after his appointment on blowing the cover on a $1.7bn accounting scandal at the Japanese company. The terms of the settlement have not been disclosed, but the Financial Times has reported […]
News: 60% of workers plan to watch Olympics – with or without consent
More than half of employers plan to enable their staff to work more flexibly during the Olympics – which is just as well as nearly three out of five employees intend to watch Games, with or without consent. According to the initial findings of a joint survey undertaken by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and […]
Blog: The disciplinary power of slapping someone’s legs with a wet fish
Disciplinary stages: 1 – verbal warning. 2 – written warning. 3 – a slap round the back of the legs with a wet fish. 4 – final written warning. Well, not really, but I’m sure I’m not the only one to have fantasised about having an additional, more impactful sanction somewhere along the line! […]
News: Olympus whistleblower hearing gets under way
Former Olympus chief executive Michael Woodford is expected to seek up to $60 million in compensation this week from his former employer, after he blew the cover on a $1.7bn accounting scandal. The five-day hearing gets underway today at an employment tribunal in east London and will shed light on why Woodford was sacked after […]
Legal Insight: Homeworking during the Olympics
So your company has decided that over the course of the Olympics period, it will allow staff to work from home. Great news – the business carries on as normal and employees don’t have to suffer the hassle of commuting. But it’s not just a simple case of plugging in a laptop. There are […]
Ask the Expert: What is the holiday situation for sick workers going through redundancy?
The question An employee of ours has been on long-term sick leave since May 2011 until the current time. We have just confirmed her redundancy. But she has now asked a holiday-related question about which I would like clarification. She did not take any holidays last year (the holiday year is from January […]
Legal Insight: Pre-Olympic casual worker considerations
With the start of the Olympic Games coming ever closer, many businesses are looking to engage casual workers in order to meet the growing demands that they face as a result. It is routine for casual workers to be used in industries where the work is seasonal or varies from week-to-week and month-to-month. But as […]
News: Half of pubic sector workers got zilch in April pay settlement
As the April pay bargaining round in the public sector gets into full swing, it appears that just over half of all workers can expect to get nothing this year. The latest figures from online resource, XpertHR, based on 29 pay reviews that came into force last month, indicated that in 55.2% of cases, staff […]
News: Stringfellows’ dancer goes back to tribunal
The epic case of topless dancer Nadine Quashie will be heading back to the employment tribunals after a judge ruled that she had been an employee at the Stringfellows club in London. Quashie, a former accountancy student, lost her unfair dismissal case at an employment tribunal in late 2010, which found that she was self-employed. […]
News: Cable blasts Beecroft Report as “complete nonsense”
The Business Secretary has blasted plans to make it easier for firms to sack under-performing staff as “complete nonsense”, warning that they would leave a “dead hand of fear” hanging over workers’ heads. Vince Cable told the BBC that it was not the job of government to “scare the wits” out of people by introducing […]
Blog: Social media – Opportunity or danger?
And so it was that recently I took part in the People Managements webinar entitled Social Media: Opportunity or Danger? expertly facilitated by PM‘s Editor in chief Rob McLaughlan and Digital Marketing Manager Zoe Bearne. I was one of three ‘speakers’, the other two being Al Shah, Social Media Demand Manager for GlaxoSmithKline and Lucy Turner, […]
Ask the Expert: When can restrictive covenants be enforced – or not?
800×600 Normal 0 false false false EN-GB X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 The question I think that I am familiar with the general issues surrounding the enforcement of restrictive covenants, but would welcome advice on this specific matter: If the covenant is part of an employment contract that an employer has unlawfully breached (for example, where a […]
Give & Gain Day: Lloyds’ talent director Richard Buxton on volunteering
Thousands of employees from across the UK – and throughout the world – are donating time to the communities in which they live or work today by taking part in the world’s only national day for employee volunteering – Give & Gain Day 2012. Now in its fifth year, Give & Gain Day is run […]
The HR Headmistress: How to select candidates for redundancy pools
In a redundancy situation, it is really important to implement a fair process in order to avoid unfair dismissal claims. Part of this activity involves identifying an appropriate redundancy pool and ensuring that the selection criteria used are not tainted by discrimination. 1. Defining a redundancy pool There are no set rules about […]
News: Female Network Rail staff to fight for equal pay
Network Rail bosses were accused today of treating women like “second class citizens” after research revealed that they were being paid on average £4,500 per year less than their male colleagues. The findings of the survey of more than 2,000 workers will result in some 34 female middle managers launching an initial claim for […]