We’re not your average HR consultancy. Led by Sam Swinstead, a plain-talking HR professional with over 20 years of experience, we focus on sensible, practical advice that gets results.
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Let’s be real … HR policies and procedures don’t exactly scream “superpower”. They sound like dusty binders, HR jargon and red tape. But here’s the truth: when they’re done right, they’re not just helpful, they are game-changing. Clear, fair and...
April is always a month of change for employment law and employment updates. We know that over the next 18 months there will be a lot to keep up with but what is happening right now? Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act 2023 From 6 April 2025 there will be a new...
The news recently has publicly highlighted a case of sexual harassment in the workplace with the horrifying revelations of Mohamed Al Fayed’s sexual harassment and abuse of employees. As the investigation continues, many women have waived their right to anonymity to...
… I’m embarrassed. … I don’t want to seem weak. … I just need to ‘man up’. … My team will lose faith in me. According to recent statistics, 46% of men would be embarrassed or ashamed to tell their employer if they needed time off because of their mental health....
Why read all 158 pages of the Employment Rights Bill 2024 when we've done it for you? Very superficially it has to be confessed & for now skipping over much of the very lengthy sections about trade unions, public sector rights and the new labour market enforcement...
Workplace bullying or harassment is extremely serious and needs to be treated so by employers, who have a duty of care to provide a safe and stress-free workplace. No one wants their staff to be treated badly at work. So how do you stop this happening? Let’s start...
Employment Law Updates usually take place each April, this year however bucks the trend with changes starting from January and carrying on throughout the year. Here's our rundown of employment law updates for the year. What's been, what we know is coming and what to...
Redundancy can be one of the most stressful workplace situations for everyone involved. For employees, it presents a world of uncertainty about their future and next career move. For the employer, it often feels like a failure, means following a strict legal...
https://vivohr.co.uk/With thanks to Daniel Barnett for the update copied below that was in my mail box - there's a lot of talk about these new flexible working request rights so it is useful to clarify exactly what they will entail. From vivoHR & Training UK Ltd...
We now know what the 2023/24 statutory pay rates will be in April 2023, and some of them are increasing significantly. If you are an employer who pays national minimum wage your salary budget is going to go up more than usual and is something you should start to think...
On 5 December the outcome of the government consultation for flexible working changes that allow a request to become a day one right was published.The government will support the bill as it passes through parliament and intend new flexible working changes to:· allow...
You might be thinking you’ve got a touch of déjà vu but this is important new(ish) news! We’ve spoken a number of times over the past year about the temporary adjustments to right to work checks coming to an end which have been put back (and back and back), however...
The Supreme Court has ruled that a part-year worker should not receive pro-rata holiday based on the number of weeks they work in a year and instead should receive the full statutory 5.6 weeks annual leave in any given year based on their working patterns the same as...
An employee investigation is the first step you take when addressing concerns that have been raised. They may be raised by a colleague in a grievance situation, or the business where there could be a potential disciplinary. Employee investigations must be carried out...
For quite a while now we’ve been telling you about the ongoing extension to changes in how you carry out to right to work checks in light of covid and remote working. Now we have new news about right to work checks and how going forward they should be carried out. As...
Data Privacy Day is an international event that occurs every year on 28th January. The purpose of this day is to raise awareness and promote data privacy and data protection best practices and of course we all want to make sure that our personal information is looked...
The SSPRS is a little bit of good news as some Gov help for small businesses is reintroduced as of today – more info here Public_fact_sheet_SSPRS_Dec_2021.pdf (publishing.service.gov.uk) and here Covid: Firms able to claim money back to cover sick pay - BBC News and...
On 17 December the rules regarding sickness self-certification were temporarily changed in a bid to ease the pressure on GPs whilst the vaccine booster programme is in warp speed mode. Details can be found here Taking sick leave - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) For all...
Summer is coming to end and mince pies are already making an appearance on the shelves. It’s time to think about what needs to be done before the end of the year, which for many businesses is also the end of the employee holiday year. Holiday is important to our...
Are you considering introducing a workplace vaccination policy? Have you even spoken to your employees about their coronavirus vaccines yet? Maybe you’ve seen them post about having it on social media but chances are you haven’t had a conversation about it. A survey...
Right to work checks will have to be in person again as of 17 May 2021. Of the many things that have changed the way we work in the last year some are starting to return to the pre Covid way of doing things and right to work checks are one such task. In the remote...
In the first case of its type the answer was yes. The Employment Tribunal has ruled it was fair to dismiss an employee who refused to wear a face covering at work. Over the course of the last 12 months, workplaces have introduced many new safety measures to ensure...
You may have already heard about the Government Kickstart Scheme which has been created by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP). It is a scheme which provides funding to employers to create job placements. When it was first set up you needed a minimum of 30 job...
New Immigration Rules In our new post-Brexit world UK employers need to think differently immigration and about how they recruit and employ EU citizens (not including Irish citizens) as free movement between the UK and EU has ended The points-based immigration system...
So here we are again then huh?! Lockdown 3.0 we see it is being called, so here is your Lockdown 3.0 Employers Update (as of today anyway). We notice that the legislation being voted upon runs to 31 March with Boris reported as stating that this is "not because we...
The government has announced the CJRS extension, it is now going to run until March 31 2021. The CJRS extension aims to support individuals and businesses who are impacted by disruption caused by coronavirus (COVID-19) this winter. The CJRS extension will run...
New Coronavirus Regulations regarding self-isolation came into effect at midnight (they were created Saturday & laid before Parliament yesterday...) They set out the mandatory requirements from today for self-isolation and to notify the Secretary of State of any...
