HR / Employment Law News

employees cannot afford to be sick

Research indicates that many employees cannot afford to be sick

New data suggests that UK workers are being pushed to the brink of burnout, anxiety and depression due to financial worries as they fear they can’t afford to take time off when they are ill. Statutory sick pay (SSP) is currently £109.40 a week (around a third of the minimum wage). It is paid from the fourth consecutive day of illness for up to 28 weeks to eligible employees whose average weekly earnings are more than £123 a week, meaning

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12th September 2023

Sexual harassment concept with man and woman in office

New duty on employers to proactively prevent sexual harassment in the workplace

Earlier this year, the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Bill passed through the House of Commons. This private member’s bill initially proposed amendments to the Equality Act 2010 to make employers liable for third-party harassment and to introduce a duty requiring employers to take ‘all reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. However, following a debate in the House of Lords in July, the new employer liability for third-party harassment has been dropped from the draft

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4th September 2023

Overjoyed happy ginger woman in spectacles drinking coffee and holding laptop while walking outdoors

Is The Great Resignation now ‘over’?

Last year an unprecedented number of people quit their jobs, feeling the need to move organisations to progress their career, or achieve other personal goals following an extended period of working from home during the pandemic. As the job market improved at the fastest pace seen for many years, there were more opportunities for those wanting to move for better pay, benefits and job fulfilment. However, according to economists and labour market analysts, the phenomenon is now over, with the

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21st August 2023

work accident

Latest fatality figures published by HSE

According to recent data published by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE), 135 workers were killed in work-related incidents in Great Britain in the last year. The data covers the period from April 2022 to March 2023 and highlights an increase on last year’s figures, with the construction sector reporting most deaths. Other industries reporting high numbers of worker deaths include agriculture, forestry and fishing, manufacturing, and transportation and storage. Agriculture and forestry and fishing had the highest rate of

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17th August 2023

GPs could be told to issue fewer sick notes – what would this mean for HR?

Under government plans to boost the economy, GPs could soon be told to issue fewer sick notes. The number of people out of the labour market due to long-term sickness absence has been rising in recent years. Data from the Office for National Statistics revealed that between June and August 2022, around 2.5 million people reported long-term sickness as the main reason for economic inactivity (up from around 2 million in 2019). The Society of Occupational Medicine has reported that: “One-third

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19th June 2023

appropriate office dress code

Are shorts and sliders suitable for the office?

Casual office dress codes were already on the increase before the pandemic, with ‘dress-down Friday’ a popular perk to end the week. However, the pandemic saw a major shift in dress code as workers swapped their traditional business attire for pyjamas and sweatpants, with a ‘zoom shirt’ hanging over the back of their chair for more formal meetings! Employers are increasingly reporting that workplace attire has become more casual since employees returned to the office. Some have actively promoted this

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15th June 2023

volunteers week

Should employers promote volunteering?

This next week is Volunteers Week (1-7 June) which is an opportunity to recognise the contribution people make through volunteering. Research from Pilotlight indicates that 21% (approximately 6 million people) of the UK workforce are currently utilising their work skills for volunteering, which is benefitting 8,300 charities and social enterprises every year. Benefits to the volunteer Volunteering is a great way to make a difference and give something back, allowing people to connect with their community and make it a

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1st June 2023

Fertility treatment and the workplace

Fertility treatment in the workplace has been an increasingly talked about topic since the Fertility Treatment (Employment Rights) Bill was submitted to the house of commons in November 2022 and the Fertility Workplace Pledge launch last year. The pledge kicked off with signatures from large companies such as NatWest group, The Co-op group, Metro Bank group, The Guardian, Channel 4 and UK Hospitality. Whether your company, or the company you work within, is large or small, there is a fair

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30th May 2023

New bill guaranteeing tips for hospitality workers

Trade unions and other campaigners have called for legislation to ban unfair tipping practices following media reports in 2015 of employers in UK restaurant chains and the wider hospitality industry taking a proportion of employees’ tips. The Employment (Allocation of Tips) Bill is a private member’s bill sponsored by Lord Robathan to introduce a legal obligation on employers to ensure all tips, gratuities and service charges are paid to workers in full, without deductions. The bill makes similar provision for troncs, which are

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30th March 2023

Minimum wage rates are increasing – are you ready?

The National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) are the legal minimum wage rates that must be paid to employees in the UK and are based on age and apprenticeship level. NMW is the minimum hourly rate of pay for workers under 23 (or first year apprentices) NLW is the minimum hourly rate of pay for workers over 23 years of age On the 1 April 2023, the NLW is increasing to £10.42 per hour, a significant jump from the current

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23rd March 2023

Largest 4-day week pilot study – was it a success?

The results of the world’s largest 4-day working week trial, conducted by 4 Day Week Global, in partnership with the think tank Autonomy, the 4 Day Week Campaign, and researchers at the University of Cambridge and Boston College, have recently been published. The 6-month trial took place in the UK from June to December 2022, and involved 61 companies and around 2,900 workers. The report found that overall, the trial had been a ‘resounding success’ and that revenue increased by over

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28th February 2023

king charles III coronation the mall and buckingham palace

The King’s Coronation: Preparing for the extra bank holiday

Monday 8 May 2023 has been designated as an extra bank holiday to mark the coronation of King Charles III, which will take place on Saturday 6 May. However, as the nation comes together to celebrate this occasion, have you considered how the extra bank holiday may affect your business? Who is entitled to this extra bank holiday? Employers aren’t legally obliged to give their workers time off just because an extra bank holiday has been announced. There is actually

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9th February 2023

why you should hire an apprentice

Why Employers could be missing a trick if they don’t consider Apprenticeships

There is a growing demand for apprenticeships in the UK with an increase in 17-19 years olds preferring this to a traditional degree course or entry-level job, to acquire skills and valuable industry experience, whilst getting paid at the same time! This on-the-job training combined with formal learning delivered by a college, university, or training provider, leads to a formal assessment and a nationally recognised qualification. In this article we discuss who is eligible for an apprenticeship, how they are

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6th February 2023

embracing neurodiversity in the workplace

Embracing neurodiversity in the workplace

Although the term neurodiversity isn’t new, its awareness has certainly increased in recent years. Promoting a diverse and inclusive culture is now more important than ever. However, many Diversity, Equality & Inclusion strategies only focus on gender, ethnicity and cultural background. With the current skills shortage and ‘The Great Resignation leaving some organisations struggling to recruit, is it time that your organisation’s DE&I strategy embraced neurodiversity and the benefits it can bring? What is neurodiversity? Neurodiversity refers to the different ways

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30th January 2023

How school leavers are shaping future talent

The government is investing millions of pounds to give young people access to T Level qualifications to help them gain the skills they need to secure rewarding careers. What are T Levels? T Levels are 2-year courses which are equivalent to 3 A Levels and are becoming one of the main choices for students following GCSE’s. Based on the same standards as apprenticeships, T Levels have been developed in collaboration with employers and education providers to meet industry needs and

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16th January 2023

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