Legal Insight: Dealing with the aftermath of whistle-blowing
The Court of Appeal has issued an important judgment on the subject of vicarious liability in whistle-blowing cases that result in accusations of victimisation. The ruling, which was handed down on Tuesday 25 October in the case of NHS Manchester v Fecitt and others [2011] EWCA Civ 1190, has led to calls for the Public […]
Ask the Expert: Do staff accrue holiday while on unpaid leave?
The question We have a part-time employee who has asked to take two periods of unpaid leave during the next calendar year so that she can go travelling. We are happy to grant her these periods of unpaid leave, but the question is, will she continue to accrue holiday leave entitlement during this period […]
Blog: Is it worth fighting discrimination claims in court?
The UK has never been so awash with solicitors and their numbers are growing at 4% a year. Although employment law cases account for around 10% of Solicitors’ time, threats of litigation are also rising as an increasing number of solicitors are signing up claimants on a “no win, no fee basis” and achieving substantial […]
Update: Government pension proposals not enough to stop industrial action
Coalition Government concessions on public sector pension changes have not proved enough for the unions to call off their proposed day of action at the end of this month. The point was rammed home earlier today when members of Unison, the UK’s largest union, voted overwhelmingly in favour of striking by 245,359 for to 70,253 […]
Legal Insight: Does your organisation pass the stress test?
Stress has become the most common cause of long-term absence from work for the first time, according to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development’s annual absence report, which was published last month. Given this development and that 2 November was National Stress Awareness Day, it would make sense for organisations to take the opportunity […]
HMRC staff balloted for action over call centre privatisation plans
A union representing more than 21,000 Revenue and Customs staff is threatening to stage regular walk-outs over the government agency’s plans to use private sector providers in order to answer taxpayers’ phone calls. At the end of last week, the Public and Commercial Services union began a two-week ballot of 12,000 of its members […]
Talent Spot: John Ainley, group HR director at Aviva
“Authenticity is very important. You can be authentically awful, but being comfortable with who you are, is crucial as an HR director,” says John Ainley, group HR director at Aviva. Ainley, who is a member of the insurance group’s executive committee and reports directly to its chief executive, started working there as a divisional HR […]
IT recruitment slows drastically after nine quarters of growth
Although overall activity in the IT recruitment sector had been increasing for nine consecutive quarters, growth over the last three months slowed to a grim 1%. Moreover, an increase in outsourcing by both public and private sector organisations as they attempted to cut costs led to both consultancies and software houses being the most active […]
Mediation: Part Three – How to prepare participants effectively
The prospect of attending a mediation session in order to try and settle a workplace dispute can be very daunting for everyone concerned. So what can HR professionals do to support people and help prepare them for the big day? 1. Clarify the mediation process Most providers supply all parties with a written document […]
UK lags behind rest of OECD in management skills
An influential HR body has called on the Coalition Government to find ways of encouraging UK employers to fill damaging gaps in current management and leadership skills profiles. The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development has published a Work Horizons report entitled ‘Good Management – A New (Old) Driver for Growth’, ahead of next month’s governmental […]
Blog: A Beecroft in a bonnet – is the leaked report really such a big deal?
There’s been a lot of hoo-ha this week over the leaked Government report proposing that – shock horror! – people should be fairly sacked for being no good at their job. The main bone of contention though seems to be the ‘compensated no-fault dismissal’ – the suggestion that employers should be able to dismiss incapable […]
How to guard against corporate social media discrimination
Corporate social media discrimination is becoming an increasingly tricky issue to deal with and HR is finding itself at the forefront of the struggle – often without having the necessary defences in place. Corporate social media discrimination refers to situations where employers use social networking sites such as Facebook to undertake research about a candidate’s […]
NHS staff expose confidential patient data 5 times per week
NHS staff are revealing highly sensitive information up to five times a week by posting messages about patients on Facebook, discussing their illnesses in public or losing their medical files. The news was relayed in a shock-horror Daily Mail expose, but was derived from a Freedom of Information request submitted by pressure group, Big Brother […]
Too many firms employing Mr and Ms ‘Unknown’, warns HMRC
The taxman has expressed concern over how much incorrect payroll paperwork he receives, after more than 800 returns in fiscal year 2009/10 claimed to employ Mr or Ms ‘Unknown’. Errors in the details of employees’ tax and national insurance contributions, sent by employers each year to HM Revenue & Customs as part of their PAYE […]
Garden centre worker unfairly dismissed for anti-hunting beliefs
A Dorset man was unfairly dismissed from his job at a garden centre because of his anti-hunting beliefs, an employment tribunal has ruled. Joe Hashman was fired from Orchard Park in Gillingham after acting as a witness in two hunting prosecutions. He took his claim for unfair dismissal to a tribunal after a judge […]
Ask the Expert: Can I give a bad reference?
The question Does a referee need to discuss a potentially damaging reference with the employee concerned before it is sent to a new employer? What is the legal position on references generally in terms of what can and can’t be said? The legal verdict Martin Brewer, a partner at Mills & Reeve […]
PAYE pooling proposals could cut costs – and lead to more tax probes
A proposal by HM Revenue & Customs to allow “connected” employers to pool employee PAYE returns may cut costs for some but could also create “bigger targets” for the taxman, an accountancy firm has warned. Many organisations such as corporate groups of companies, professional partnerships, charities and public bodies, are made up of a number of […]
Small businesses call for tax relief to help with sickness absence costs
The Federation of Small Businesses has called for the introduction of tax relief to help employers cope with the high cost and administrative burden of sickness absence. Ahead of the publication of findings from an independant review of the sickness absence system later this autumn, the FSB’s ‘Voice of Small Business’ survey revealed sickness absence […]
Legal Insight: The Bribery Act revisited
That the Bribery Act has claimed its first victim less than four months after coming into force serves as a timely reminder to employers to be aware of their responsibilities. Munir Patel, who worked at Redbridge Magistrates’ Court in east London, pleaded guilty to accepting £500 to ‘get rid’ of someone’s speeding charge, which amounted […]
Axing unfair dismissal rights “not beneficial” for employers or staff, warn experts
Radical proposals to allow employers to sack unproductive workers without explanation would “not be beneficial” to themselves, their staff or the economy, experts have warned. A leaked final draft report, commissioned by the Prime Minister and written by Adrian Beecroft, a venture capitalist and Conservative Party donor, suggests that UK workers should be banned from […]