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Are you HR Compliant? A Quick Guide for SME Owners

This article provides an overview of HR compliance in the UK for small and medium-sized businesses. It covers key legal requirements and practical steps to ensure your business meets all essential employment regulations, helping you to avoid costly mistakes and protect your company. What is HR compliance? HR compliance means complying with statutory and contractual requirements with respect to engaging employee, workers or other staff. The objective of HR compliance is to minimise regulatory and legal risks. Failure to do

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23rd June 2025
security manager called slave

Security Manager Called ‘Slave’ by Colleague Awarded £361k

A security manager of African descent who was referred to by a white colleague as his ‘slave’ has been awarded £361,000, at an employment tribunal. In April 2022, the claimant resigned from Vigilant Security after raising grievances alleging he was subject to continuous bullying and racism. The tribunal heard that Vigilant Security had a ‘striking imbalance’ between racial profiles as guards were mainly from ethnic minority groups and managers were largely white. The Operations Director for Vigilant Security told the

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5th June 2025
nhs worker compared to darth vader

NHS Worker Strikes Back After Being Compared to Darth Vader

A London NHS blood donation worker has been awarded almost £30,000 in compensation after being compared to Star Wars villain Darth Vader. Lorna Rooke began working for the NHS Blood and Transplant service (NHSBT) as a training and practice supervisor in 2003 and claimed the incident was one of the reasons for her resignation in 2021. Members of Ms Rooke’s team completed a Star Wars themed Myers-Briggs personality test in August 2021, with the results characterising each worker as a

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28th May 2025
Unfair dismissal

Lidl Employee Unfairly Dismissed for not having a Degree!

A Lidl employee was found to be unfairly dismissed when he was ‘marked down’ for not having a degree or qualification during a redundancy process. Wayne Norman worked as a senior construction consultant for the supermarket chain in Doncaster for almost 23 years before being made redundant in March 2023, aged 63 years old. Mr Norman was first informed of the proposed redundancies during a meeting in January 2023 when he discovered he was among three construction consultants up for

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19th May 2025
employment tribunal case backlog

Employment Tribunal Backlog Soars by 23%

Statistics published by HM Courts and Tribunals Service indicate that the backlog of open Employment Tribunal cases reached 49,800 in December 2024, a 23% increase on 39,000 cases from the previous year. This backlog means there are approximately 450,000 individuals, across single and multiple claims, who are waiting for their cases to be resolved. Data from the Ministry of Justice reveals that the average wait time for a single claim of unfair dismissal or discrimination at the Employment Tribunal is

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14th May 2025
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New Right to Work Checks Explained! Are You Compliant?

Under the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006, there is a legal requirement for UK employers to check that a job applicant has the legal right to work (RTW) before employment begins, regardless of nationality. Completing due diligence before an employee starts their employment will mitigate the risk of a civil penalty and provide a statutory excuse which can prevent significant penalties if it is later found that an employee is working illegally. Earlier this year, the Home Office introduced

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28th April 2025
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Closing the gender pay gap with free childcare!

The government is making its biggest ever investment into early years by doubling the amount invested to over £8 billion next year, helping working parents back into work and boosting household finances. From September 2025, eligible working parents will be able to access 30 hours of free childcare for children from 9 months old up to school age, exceeding the current 15-hour entitlement for 2-year-olds. Working families utilising the full 30 hours a week free childcare could save an average

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24th April 2025
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The Right to Neonatal Care Leave and Pay: Guidance for Employers

The Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act 2023 received Royal Assent on 24 May 2023 and came into force on 6 April 2025. This new statutory entitlement will give thousands of eligible parents with children in neonatal care the right to additional leave and pay. This article provides guidance for employers to understand these changes. What is neonatal care? Neonatal care refers to the care a newborn baby receives if they are born prematurely, have a low birth weight or

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15th April 2025

Unlocking Potential – The Benefits of Employee Coaching

Coaching is a process where a trained professional supports individuals in identifying their personal and professional goals by making positive changes in various aspects of their life such as career, relationships, and health and wellbeing. It allows individuals to take ownership of their growth by setting clear goals and identifying strengths and areas for improvement. Unlike therapy or counselling, which often focuses on past issues and mental health challenges, coaching is typically future-oriented and goal-driven. It is about taking action,

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2nd April 2025
sad female nurse at hospital corridor

No brew for you!

NHS nurse wins tribunal claim for unfair constructive dismissal after alleging she was bullied by a colleague who said, ‘I don’t like you’ and deliberately left her out of the morning tea rounds. The claimant, Susan Hamilton, a diabetes specialist nurse at the trust, cited she was subject to ‘cruel bullying behaviours’ by dietician Abdool Nayeck, following a disagreement in 2018 when she raised concerns about his job performance. It was alleged that Mr Nayeck deliberately ignored the claimant, excluded her

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17th March 2025
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Navigating the changes in sexual harassment legislation

The HR team at ITV may currently be pondering the complexities of employment law as it applies to the thorny issue of sexual harassment following the recent allegations surrounding Gino D’Acampo. Unfortunately, these issues have only got more complex for HR professionals following amendments to the Equality Act introduced on 26 October last year. The Worker Protection Act 2023 places a legal obligation on employers to take ‘reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. If they don’t, they

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10th March 2025
Doctor checking old woman patient arterial blood pressure. Healt

Is sickness absence crippling your business?

During the last quarter of 2023, there was a peak of just over 2.84 million people in the UK not working due to long-term sickness absence, a considerable rise from just over two million in 2019. Sickness absence rates are continuing to grow year on year with stress, depression or anxiety and musculoskeletal disorders accounting for the majority of days lost due to work-related ill health. If not managed correctly, sickness absence can result in financial costs to the employer

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3rd March 2025
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Settle or defend an Employment Tribunal claim?

No employer wants to be on the end of an Employment Tribunal claim but with the abolition of fees back in 2017 which has led to spiralling claim levels, the harsh reality is that your business is now significantly more likely to have to deal with one. Having to make the choice between settling a potential claim or fighting it out can be a difficult call in which there is only one path left if the employer and employee cannot agree.

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17th February 2025
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‘Mad for having more kids’ comment is not discrimination, tribunal rules

An employment tribunal has heard how a senior NHS manager joked with a pregnant colleague that she was ‘mad for having more kids’. Samina Ashraf brought a case against NHS England on the grounds of sex, racial and religious harassment following a comment made by manager David Marston during her maternity leave speech. The comment was one of several complaints raised by Ms Ashraf about the treatment she received by Mr Marston. It was alleged that he excluded her from training

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5th February 2025
Illustration of a woman being erased by a large hand with an eraser, while a man in business attire stands beside her.

Redundancies: Harsh but must be fair!

In addition to the increase in the National Minimum Wage (NMW) as part of the government’s plan to ‘Make Work Pay’, the Autumn 2024 budget introduced several measures that will have a negative impact on business costs, including increased employer National Insurance contributions. These changes may pose significant challenges for many employers who might find themselves planning redundancies to mitigate rising costs associated with employing staff. Any redundancy can give rise to a successful unfair dismissal claim if not managed correctly.

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28th January 2025