IBM settles out of court for bribery campaign
IBM has agreed to pay $10 million to US regulators in order to settle accusations of a decade-long campaign of bribery in China and South Korea out-of-court. The Securities and Exchange Commission alleged that the world’s largest computer company had given cash and gifts, which included travel and entertainment, to Chinese and South Korean officials […]
Health and safety cuts will put employees at risk
Cuts of a third to the number of automatic health and safety inspections from April will put employees at risk and inevitably lead to more workplace injuries and deaths, lawyers have warned. The Work and Pensions Minister Chris Grayling announced yesterday that automatic inspections would now take place only at high risk installations such as […]
Ask the expert: Accusations – how do we handle bad mouthing of the company?
This time the experts, Esther Smith and Martin Brewer give their advice on what to do about an employee bad mouthing the company at social events in front of clients. The question: Accusations – how do we handle bad mouthing of the company? I’m investigating an accusation by one of our senior staff against a […]
Budget Britain: Save money, banish employee rights…
Balancing the rights and responsibilities of employers and employees is a trite phrase in the HR world. Recent political change coupled with the challenging economic backdrop has shifted this balance, generally, in the favour of employers. Whether the latest government proposals go too far in their fight against the “enemies of enterprise”, depends on your […]
Prepare for childcare tax changes
How is your organisation going to be affected by changes to the tax system in regards to childcare? Expert Rebecca Benneyworth gives her advice. Employers operating childcare voucher and similar schemes will have their work cut out after 5 April if new employees join the scheme. Changes brought forward to reduce the cost of the […]
Government plans to drop maternity for SMEs and weaken bribery act revealed
Controversial proposals by the coalition government to exempt some foreign companies from prosecution under the Bribery Act and drop maternity and paternity regulations for small businesses could bring it into conflict with other administrations. Draft guidance being drawn up by the Minister of Justice and seen by the Guardian appears to indicate that foreign companies […]
Ask the expert: HR reviews – do we need to consult?
This time the experts, Esther Smith and Adam Partington advise on whether a consultation period is required before an HR review. The question: HR reviews – do we need to consult? We are an organisation that has grown quite organically. It started with one staff member in 2002 and we now have eight currently employed […]
HR can do complicance but struggles with strategy, says survey
Although HR professionals are performing well in dealing with tactical statutory compliance issues, they are failing miserably in more strategic areas such as mapping and managing staff competencies. These are the key findings of a survey among HR directors and board members in 53 organisations across Europe undertaken by HR services provider Aon Hewitt. The […]
Recruiters suggest NI holiday to boost job creation
Recruiters have called for a year-long national insurance holiday to support hiring by small businesses in order to tackle rising youth joblessness as the TUC warned of an imminent female employment crisis. The Report on Jobs published by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation and management consultancy KPMG revealed that, even though demand for staff […]
Tribunal system broken: time for overhaul says CIPD
The employment tribunal systems must be radically overhauled as it is now “broken” and no longer offers value for money, according to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. A survey undertaken by the HR body revealed that just under seven out of 10 employers believe they have no effective protection against employees taking unjustifiable […]
Ask the expert: Redundancy of backfilled post
This time the experts, Esther Smith and Martin Brewer give their advice on what to do in the case of making this backfilled post redundant. The question: Redundancy of backfilled post We have a seconded employee whose post may be made redundant – given that he has been in this post for 11 months and […]
Default retirement age amendments announced
As official figures showed that the number of people aged 65 or over who work has doubled over the last 10 years, the coalition government moved to amend controversial draft regulations governing the end of the default retirement age. The initial version of the draft regulations laid before Parliament on 16 February had indicated that […]
Ask the expert: Discriminatory comments to pregnant employee
This week the experts, Adam Partington and Esther Smith advise on what to do about discriminatory comments made about a pregnant employee. The question: Discriminatory comments to pregnant employee We have heard that a manager within our small company has made some discriminatory comments to a pregnant employee – along the lines that […]
Ex employee held to ‘non-compete’ agreement by judge
A judge has barred the former government team head of Microsoft’s Dynamics CRM business from taking on a similar role at Salesforce.com but said that he could do something else instead. Washington’s King County Superior Court Judge Kimberly Prochnau extended a temporary restraining order preventing Matt Miszewski from looking after Salesforce’s US-based government accounts as […]
Tackling tribunals – coping with the changes
The Government’s consultation document ‘Resolving workplace disputes’, published at the end of January, proposes a number of changes to the way in which the employment tribunal system currently operates with a view to ensuring that the process is as swift, user-friendly and effective as possible. The consultation, which closes on 20 April, also seeks […]
How to: support dyslexic employees – spot the signs
Sharon Goldie, consultant at iansyst Ltd (www.re-adjust.co.uk), looks at how to recognise the signs of dyslexia and offers simple strategies which Human Resources can utilise to ensure they create a dyslexia-friendly workplace. What do Richard Branson and Steve Jobs have in common with Walt Disney, Salma Hayek, John Lennon and Pablo Picasso? In addition to […]
TUPE still protects workers in bought out company
Workers are fully protected under TUPE regulations if their employer comes out of administration and is purchased by another company, an employment tribunal has ruled. Bruce Caldow and Paula Skinner, lawyers with commercial law firm Harper Macleod, welcomed the findings in the case of AE Olds versus Late Editions as much needed clarification of the […]
Ask the expert: Employee’ residence permit expires on maternity leave – what do we do?
This time the experts, Esther Smith and Martin Brewer give their advice on what an employer should do when an employee’s residency permit runs out during maternity leave. The question: Employee’ residence permit expires on maternity leave – what do we do? I realise that one of our employees’ residence permit expires shortly (whilst she […]
Company convicted for corporate manslaughter
Cotswold Geotechnical Holdings, the first company to be convicted for corporate manslaughter in the UK, has been fined £385,000 – a penalty that risks putting it out of business. The move follows the death of junior geologist 27-year old Alexander Wright from Cheltenham in September 2008. He was investigating soil conditions in a deep trench […]
Microsoft sets out to stop employee moving to rival
Microsoft is seeking an injunction to prevent the former head of its Dynamics CRM team from working at rival Salesforce.com after he allegedly removed hundreds of sensitive documents on his personal laptop before leaving. The company claims in a legal motion filed with the Washington Superior Court that former Dynamics CRM general manager Matt Miszewski […]
