We’re fascinated each year to reflect on our most popular HR blogs. Every year we learn something new about what people want to read. Our Top 5 most popular HR blogs from 2019 In first place we have a blog on the pension rights of an employee with a terminal illness . This is one of the most difficult conversations for an employer to have with an employee. However, the topic obviously resonated with the 2029 readers . The second of our most popular HR blogs in 2019 advises employers on how to carry out a return to work interview . We’re encouraged that over 1700 people share our opinion that return to work interviews are an essential part of workplace attendance management. The thorny question of “Can I ban employees from eating breakfast at work?” takes third place in our most popular HR blogs of 2019. This was a particular pet hate of our Managing Director, Alison Driver, because she believes that once the start time has passed, employees should be working, not eating their breakfast! In the high tech world operating in today’s workplace we were expecting to see our blog on monitoring employees appear in the list. […]
Metis HR specialises in HR matters but we are sometimes asked how to prepare for a Health and Safety Workplace Inspection. We believe that the best preparation is advanced planning, don’t wait until you get notification that the HSE are on their way. We’ve put together some step by step tips to get in place now so that you are better prepared. Fail to prepare, prepare to fail Ideally, your preparations should start long before the threat of an announced or unannounced inspection. Have you documented all the relevant risk assessments, and implemented the control measures, or at very least started the process of implementing? Do you have a named person in the organisation who has taken responsibility for health and safety matters? Have you told people? Are all of your health and safety policies and procedures properly documented and reviewed? Do you have records of when your employees were last trained? Do they need refresher training? Have you previously had an inspection that left you with things to do? Have you done them? Is machinery or equipment all in good working order with any safety guards fully operational? How do you escalate health and safety matters that are not […]
We have had a few of our clients ask for more information on the Good Work Plan 2020 for Agency Workers. We have tried to establish the status of the legislation surrounding Agency Workers. However, it’s still showing as a draft piece of legislation, which is likely to be in place on 6 April 2020. However, the General Election may affect this. Consecutive Contracts to be Banned Assuming that the legislation goes through, from 6 April 2020 you will be required to provide your workers with a statement of their rights on day 1 of their engagement. This means, what you will not be allowed to do is to offer a worker consecutive 12-week contracts in the same role. That is to say, this practice is expected to be banned from 6 April 2020 as an exploitative method of employing people. Same Rate of Pay Your obligation to pay temporary workers the same rate as employed staff remains unchanged if they are on an assignment in the same role for longer than 12 weeks. Agency workers can, at the moment, opt out of receiving the same pay as employed staff after the 12 weeks, this will no longer be the […]
The government has published The Good Work Plan April 2020, which is designed to implement the proposals of employment reforms which are due to come into effect in April 2020. The primary purpose is to ensure that individuals have better access to, and a better understanding of, their employment relationships. Statement of Written Particulars There will be a new requirement for you, as employers, to provide a more comprehensive statement of written particulars or contract of employment. You will also have to provide these statements to workers and not just employees. In addition, the new statement must cover more terms and must be issued on the first day of employment, unlike currently, you have 8 weeks to issue your contracts. HMRC Clamping Down The Good Work Plan has also made a commitment to further align the tribunal assessment of employment status with HMRC’s. Currently there are three categories of employment status in the tribunal forum: employee, worker and self-employed, while as far as HMRC is currently concerned there are only two, as it does not recognise ‘worker’ status. This can at times cause confusion for both the company and the individual. Tribunal Claims There will be an introduction of sanctions […]
Causes of Conflict Some people do not ask for help during conflicts at work because they are not always aware there is a problem or do not know when to ask for mediation. Conflict can arise in organisations because of miscommunication, misunderstanding, cultural differences, choice of language, poor leadership, ineffective management styles, unclear roles and responsibilities. As well as workplace issues creating conflict, work colleague’s personality types and personal issues are added to the mix at work, which can also create or exacerbate a conflict. Things like: personal problems at home, marital issues, cultural or gender differences, family problems, abrasive or submissive personalities (for instance, some personalities become annoyed with quiet, withdrawn type characters and others are fearful of loud or aggressive characters), some people are insensitivity to others feelings and what may seem trivial to one person could be a huge issue for another. Personal disappointments, coupled with unmet needs and a whole host of negative emotions, like guilt, fear or jealousy over promotion can also add to conflict. There are many emotions that are not directly related to work, but which people bring to the workplace that can cause conflict. The CIPD survey Managing Conflict at Work found […]
In April 2019 new legislation on payslips and employers’ responsibilities were introduced by the government. The new law states that itemised payslips must be given to employees or workers. But a recent report shows that one in ten UK workers still doesn’t get a payslip, and thousands of businesses are at risk of prosecution. Today, you need to give itemised payslips to all workers, including staff on casual, agency and zero-hour contacts. It can be difficult to tell the difference between employees and workers, and many UK businesses hire a mix of both. In short, employees have a “contract of employment” with you and workers don’t. For now, the most important thing to remember is that all workers and employees need payslips and all payslips must be itemised. That means they must show: Gross and net pay. Deductions from pay. The number of hours worked where pay varies based on the amount of time worked (more on this shortly). How you pay your workers’ wages if you use multiple payment methods (such as if you pay part in cash and part in BACS). Depending on the types of contracts you have with your staff and what hours they work will […]
If you’re planning on introducing Return to Work Interviews, your next move is likely to be wondering how to carry out a return to work interview. 64% of employers believe that Return To Work (RTW) interviews reduce absence levels so it’s certainly worth considering doing them. RTW interviews can be an effective method of reducing absence, but only if the interviews themselves are carried out effectively. RTW interviews are much more than the old fashioned “sick parade” approach to dealing with people coming back to work. They are not an interrogation of employees reasons for absence. Why carry out a return to work interview? By carrying out RTW interviews, and making it clear in your sickness policy that you will do so, you can discourage unauthorised and non-genuine sickness absence. When should you carry out a return to work interview? Ideally the line manager would meet with the employee on their first day back from absence, however long, or short, that period of absence was. If the employee is field based, or geographically distant, a RTW interview by phone is acceptable. What should you cover in the Return to Work Interview? welcome employees back and check they are well enough to […]
Clients regularly ask us does mediation work? Conflict is almost inevitable in most work relationships. Some conflict arises over technical issues – such as what tasks to do and how to do them which can be helpful at times as it drives a company forward to make improvements to processes and policies. However, interpersonal tension can easily damage relationships and lead to wider discord and malfunctioning teams. Some Facts 3 in 4 UK workers report good relationships with their line managers and almost 9 in 10 say they have good relationships with colleagues in their teams. By contrast, 1 in 10 reports a poor relationship with their line manager and 1 in 20 reports poor relationships with team colleagues. Despite this, a number of employees may experience flashpoints of conflict or unfair treatment at work: 3 in 10 workers report at least one form of bullying or harassment in the last year and 1 in 5 UK workers points to a blame culture among their managers and 1 in 5 also point to a lack of an inclusive culture in their teams. The organisational costs of conflict can include: management time being diverted to deal with the conflict instead of […]
Seven Things to Look For Deciding whether to promote an employee to a management position and succession planning in general is a challenge for many of you. However, not every employee is a born leader. When looking at succession planning there are seven characteristics of a potential candidate that may not be what you’d like to see when thinking about offering a promotion. Do not fall into the trap of promoting someone just because they have been there the longest. Here are some traits to look out for that may make you want to think twice about that promotion offer. Never asking for help When a high-performing employee never asks for help, it might seem that they are extremely talented and self-driven. However, a self-sufficient employee doesn’t always make for a good candidate for a managerial position. A good manager can effectively delegate tasks and ask for input from their teams. If an employee never asks colleagues for help, this may be a sign that the person would not reach out to staff once promoted. Ignoring colleagues’ problems Employees who go above and beyond on their own projects, but never lend a helping hand to co-workers in need, may not […]
It’s an awful conversation to have, being asked about the pension rights of an employee with a terminal illness. A recent decision by the Pensions Ombudsman seems clear that in terminal ill health cases the Ombudsman is prepared to closely scrutinise actions taken by the employer. Whilst decisions by the Pensions Ombudsman only apply to the case in which the decision is made, it seems wise to take note of what is being said. The recent decision focuses on the extent to which employers should provide information on pension rights of an employee with a terminal illness The Law There is no legal obligation for employers to advise employees about their pension rights The law prohibits anyone other than a person authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority from advising on pension rights. However, a distinction should be drawn between “advising” and “providing information”. There is no specific guidance about information relating to the pension rights of an employee with a terminal illness. This can make it tricky to know if you’re doing the right thing, but there is some good practice to consider. Good Practice For employees with terminal illness, there are likely to be different options available under their […]
