Cleardocs blog

UK Government still defiant against 48-hour Working Time Directive

Wednesday 15th April 2009

It was reported last week that Pat McFadden, the UK minister for employment relations, rejected an enforced 48-hour week for UK workers, commenting that it would be “a bad deal for Britain”.

The UK is currently amongst 15 countries within the EU where staff are able to work more than 48 hours per week, if they so wish.  However, the European Parliament voted to remove the opt-out in late 2008.

The UK has argued that staff should have the right to work more hours if they want to – especially in the current economic climate where workers may look to earn more money through overtime. 

The EU Conciliation Committee continues to debate the issue in Brussels, with various parties looking to remove the right for countries to opt-out.  Brendan Barber, TUC general secretary, is amongst those who have been pushing for the UK to adopt the Working Time Directive – citing the health hazards and reduced productivity caused by excessive working.

Watch this space

We’ll keep you updated on any developments – and any impact a decision would have on your HR documents. 

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

April 6th

Monday 6th April 2009

We’ve worked on it and blogged about it for over 3 months, but today, it’s finally April 6th 2009.  From today, the new employment legislation and ACAS Code of Practice kicks in.  To read in more detail how this can affect your employment documents, click here.

If you’ve received an email from us regarding your purchased Staff Handbook, (that can be updated free of charge) you are able to make the updates now.  You can refer to your email on the update process but give us a call if you have any questions – 0845 474 0372.

If you’re buying a brand new handbook, from today you will be able to automatically download the new version of the Handbook which includes all of the April 6th legislation updates.   

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

The default retirement age debate continues

Wednesday 1st April 2009

The debate as to whether specifying a retirement age for employees constitutes justifiable age discrimination rages on – with news that although the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has backed the mandatory UK retirement age, it has now passed the final decision back to the High Court.

The decision on whether employees should be forced to retire when they get to a certain age is known as the Heydey challenge after an application was put in by Heydey for a judicial review of a mandatory retirement age of 65.  Heydey argues that the UK’s retirement provisions do not properly implement EU law and that a default retirement age is not permissible.  It was expected that a decision would have been taken by the ECJ in late 2008 or early 2009, but with news that they have passed the case back to the High Court, we could now be waiting for months for a decision to be made.

The Government will be keen to be involved in this decision and it has been reported that they will be aiming to keep the law as it stands – and allow employers to specify an age (typically 65) that employees must retire.  This is on the grounds that the age limit is justified by a legitimate aim relating to employment policy, the UK’s labour market and vocational training.

However, the frustration that all parties involved are feeling could worsen if dismissed employees lodge employment tribunal claims pending the High Court’s decision.  Employers may also worry that they may now risk a future age discrimination claim in retiring an employee at the age of 65, even if they follow the correct retirement procedure.

With the current financial crisis and an ageing population in the UK, the Government has already pledged to review the default retirement age in 2011.  Worries that many people may not be able to afford to stop working at 65, along with the fact that the population are living longer may mean that the retirement age is increased or completely removed.

As always, Cleardocs will be keeping you updated on any developments – and will be keeping you posted on how this will affect  you as an employer, and the employment related documents we provide to support your organisation.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

Those April changes – and how we’ll be implementing them

Thursday 26th March 2009

If you’ve purchased a Cleardocs Staff Handbook

As referenced numerous times this year on this blog, there are a number of legislative changes due to come into force on April 6th 2009.  As part of your Staff Handbook subscription from Cleardocs, you will be able to update your organisations’ handbook from April 2nd. Here’s how;

Log-in to the site
Go to ‘My recent documents’
Click ‘more’ beside your purchased handbook
Under, ‘What’s next’, click on ‘Update for April 6th changes’

Before up-dating your staff handbook, we recommend you read the information provided by;

• our lawyers, Ashfords, outlining the April 6th changes; and
• us, Cleardocs, advising you on how to get the best out of your handbook subscription
  

 

This information is given at the top of question and answer page of your updated Staff Handbook within the Cleardocs system. You can access this information by following these instructions;

Log-in to the site
Go to ‘My recent documents’
Click ‘more’ beside your purchased handbook
Under, ‘What’s next’, click on ‘Update for April 6th changes’

If you have forgotten your log-in details, next to the sign-in area on the top left hand side, you’ll see ‘forgot password’. Click on it and follow the instructions.

These updates are made available to you through your Staff Handbook subscription. You do not need to pay in order to update & receive (by email) your new Staff Handbook.


If you haven’t purchased a Cleardocs Staff Handbook

As you may be aware, there are a number of legislative changes due to come into force on April 6th 2009. These changes do not directly affect the documents you have downloaded from Cleardocs, but the changes will affect every employer in England and Wales.

Here’s how:

• From 6th April 2009 the current mandatory "three step" process to be followed in the workplace for disciplinary and dismissal procedures and grievances will be repealed.
• Instead, a revised Code of Practice has been issued by ACAS and this Code will need to be followed by employers when dealing with disciplinary and grievance issues. Failure to follow the Code may result in unfair dismissal compensation being increased by up to 25%.
• The Code has been fully revised, and there are a number of key changes that have been made, in particular, the revised Code is much shorter and less prescriptive (although this is augmented by a detailed Guidance).
• It is important that your current disciplinary and grievance procedures take into account these changes.
• Changes have also been made to maternity, paternity and flexible working arrangements.

 

If you do not have Staff Handbook, or if you have not yet updated your current handbook, go to our Staff Handbook page to here to find out how you can ensure your organisation is always up to date with the latest employment legislation and best practices. A Staff Handbook from Cleardocs starts at only £99.

If you have any questions regarding the Staff Handbook or any other Cleardocs products, please call our helpline 0845 474 0372.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

What's in development?

Tuesday 24th March 2009

At Cleardocs, we’re constantly trying to improve what we offer – and also to build on what we have and offer you more.  So, we thought we’d give you a quick insight in to what we’re working on and what’s in development.

The New website

The new look Cleardocs website launched in February – and since then we’ve continued to add to it.  Since the initial round of changes, we’ve been reviewing the text on the site to make sure that the information we give you and completing documents is as quick and easy as possible.  We’ve also added a page where you can read feedback we’ve had from our customers and have continued to build on our blog.

Over the next couple of months, we’ll be making further additions to the site, which will include video tutorials for the various aspects of the Cleardocs experience, audio FAQs, quick link icons, a newsletter and more.

We hope that these will continue to build on the foundations that we have and will make the Cleardocs site an even better user experience.

Consultancy Agreement

We’re delighted to announce that following feedback from our customers, we’re currently developing a Consultancy Agreement to add to the Cleardocs product portfolio.

At the moment, we’re in the latter stages of working with Ashfords to complete a final master document that allows for all our of customers’ variables.  Our IT team will then work to get the document into the Cleardocs system and then we’ll begin our comprehensive testing.

We’re working towards a mid-April launch of the Consultancy agreement – but we’ll be keeping you posted so watch this space!


Those April changes – again!

If you’ve been a regular reader of the blog, you’ll know that the majority of our posts this year have been associated with the legislation changes coming in April.  Well, with that in mind, here’s another reminder that the changes are now only a couple of weeks away!

We’ve been working hard on updating our documents – and if you’ve bought a handbook from us in the past 12 months, you can expect an email from us soon which will outline the steps you need to take to make sure that you’re compliant. 

Don’t panic though – we’ll be doing most of the work for you and it’ll just be a matter of reviewing the responses to the questions that you answered initially and making sure that everything is up-to-date (this could also be useful if you’ve moved offices/changed telephone numbers etc).  Then you’ll be able to download the new version of the handbook for free.  We’ll also give you a breakdown of the changes we’ve made, and give you template emails to send to your staff letting them know how things have changed.  This is all part of our commitment to making HR documents clear, simple and easy to use.

There’s more

2009 is gearing up to be a big year for Cleardocs UK and we’ve got lots planned.  The above is only a snapshot of what’s in the pipeline and our customers can expect to see much more as the year goes on.  As always, we’ll be keeping you posted here and will also be starting our monthly newsletter soon.

Don’t hesitate to get in touch if you need to ask us anything – or want to understand whether Cleardocs can assist with your HR document needs.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

Product Spotlight - the Cleardocs Best Practice Handbook

Thursday 12th March 2009

Here at Cleardocs, we’re just finishing off the changes to the new Best Practice Staff Handbook, in light of April’s legislation changes.  We’ll be contacting all our customers to update them on the changes shortly – so watch this space – but in the meantime, below is a quick overview of the changes in development, plus a reminder of why a Cleardocs handbook  is good for you, your employees and your business.

Why have a Staff Handbook?

Cleardocs Staff Handbooks contains the rules, policies and procedures which an organisation is expected to have in place

The Cleardocs Best Practice Staff Handbook also contains other policies and procedures which will help you and your staff understand what standards are expected of them, what happens when various situations crop up, and how problems will be dealt with.

Having written rules and policies in place:

• means that all employees know what are required of them - whether this is a requirement to wear a uniform, or how to report that they are sick;
• reduces the risk of misunderstandings;
• gives the organisation more solid grounds on which to take disciplinary action if an employee breaches any of the organisation's rules and policies.
• helps to protect the organisation against various legal claims, such as discrimination; and
• informs all employees that certain types of conduct are not acceptable in the workplace.

What’s in the new Best Practice Staff Handbook?

Dispute Resolution Procedures
The statutory dispute resolution procedures, which set out the minimum procedures employers currently need to follow when dealing with grievances, disciplinaries and appeals, will be repealed with effect from 6 April 2009.
 
The new procedures which employers should follow will be set out in an ACAS Code of Practice. Those procedures do not vary greatly from the statutory procedures, but we have made some changes to the Dispute Resolution Procedures in the Staff Handbook to bring those procedures in line with the new Code of Practice.
 
Employment Tribunals will have the power to increase an award by up to 25% if the employer has unreasonably failed to comply with the Code of Practice.

Cleardocs recommends reading a recent leaflet put together by the Department of Business enterprise and regulatory reform - concerning the updates to the grievance and disciplinary procedures and how these affect your business.
 
Maternity and Adoption Leave

Recent changes have been made to the Maternity and Adoption legislation. Employees now have the same rights during Additional Maternity Leave and Additional Adoption Leave, as they do during Ordinary Maternity Leave and Ordinary Adoption Leave.
 
We have made amendments to reflect these changes.
 
Flexible Working
 
From 6 April 2009, the right to flexible working will be extended to parents with children aged 16 or under. It is currently available only for parents with children under the age of 6.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

Legislation update - Changes just around the corner

Monday 2nd March 2009

April is fast approaching and with it come the changes to employment law that we’ve highlighted over the last couple of months.

In times of uncertainty as an employer and/or business owner, one aspect you can have control over are your company’s employment policies and procedures.  We highlighted the importance of a good contract of employment last week, if not for peace of mind when it comes to avoiding employment tribunals, then for ensuring that your most valuable staff feel empowered and valued in their role.

Keeping compliant with employment law is important – so here’s a reminder of what will be coming into force next month.  Click on the links to see the previous blog posts which expand on these specific topics.

An overview of the big changes to expect:

• The current statutory dismissal, disciplinary and grievance procedures and related procedural unfair dismissal rules will be repealed in April 2009, under the Employment Act 2008, and will be replaced by a new ACAS Code of Practice.
• Statutory holiday entitlement will increase from 4.8 weeks to 5.6 weeks per year, including bank holidays, from 1 April 2009.
• The Employment Tribunal (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2004 are to be amended from 6 April 2009, in respect of extending time limits and dismissing claims settled by ACAS.
• There will be an increase in statutory payments for sick pay and maternity, paternity and adoption pay.
  
• The right to flexible working is to be extended to parents of children up to 16 years' old, from April 2009.
• Employers will have to file P45 and P46 forms online from April 2009, if they have at least 50 employees. HMRC is encouraging employers to check that their records are up-to-date before April to avoid any problems when the new system is implemented. Employers will need to register with HMRC if they have not already done so.

 

Cleardocs would suggest that you seek legal advice on any of the above if you are unsure.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

Did you know - Employment Contracts

Monday 23rd February 2009

As a business owner, how important are up-to-date employment contracts for your employees? 

Employment tribunals have risen by 55% since 2005 – with the top two claims being for unfair dismissal and unauthorised deductions from payments.  Tribunal payments can also be as high as £63,000.  As a business owner, ensuring good HR documentation is in place now could prevent trouble later on.

To help matters, the following is some guidance associated with Employment contracts.  Check the Cleardocs blog regularly to find more useful information on employment documents.

Why have a Contract of Employment?

All employers are required by UK law to provide their employees with a written statement of the basic terms and conditions of their employment. The employer must do that within eight weeks of the employment starting.

Over 40% of employers do not meet that legal requirement.

• Having a Cleardocs Contract in place for each of your employees means that:
• you meet the requirement;
• you cover all contractual issues in the employment relationships, in one place; and
• you make sure that you are not breaching other statutory rules.

When should the Contract be signed?

Our legal partners Ashfords strongly recommend that each of your employees signs a Contract before they start work.  This means that everyone is clear from the start what all of the terms and conditions of the employment relationship are.  If instead you issue an offer letter before they start and a Contract a few weeks after they start, then problems can arise if the employee believes that the Contract contains some issues that were not dealt with in the offer letter.

How do you issue the Contract?

The first step in issuing the contract is for the employer to make sure that the Contract produced by the employer meets the needs of the employer in respect of the employee.

The way the Contract will be issued depends on whether the employer is issuing the Contract:

• to a new employee who has not started work for you yet; or
• to an existing employee – perhaps because they do not have one already, or there is an old contract that needs to be replaced, or the employee is moving to a new job.

Issuing to a New Employee 
The easiest way of introducing the Contract to a new employee is for the employer:

• to give the employee two copies of the Contract (signed by the employer) before the employee starts work; and
• to say to the employee that a condition of their starting work for the employer is to sign and return one copy to the employer by (at the latest) their first day of work.

Issuing to an Existing Employee
For an existing employee, the process depends on the circumstances.  Employees are often suspicious about new contracts, as they may feel that an employer is only introducing the new contract to make their life tougher in some way.

In general terms, it’s best for the employer to:

• give the employee two copies of the Contract (signed by the employer);
• explain why the new Contract is being issued;
• explain to the employee any changes that the Contract will make to their working relationship; and
• if the employee has not had a contract before, to say that the employer has decided it would like to set out the working relationship clearly, and all that the contract does is to record the terms and conditions of employment in one place... provided that that is right!
  

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice

 

Legislation update - new ACAS Code of Practice

Tuesday 17th February 2009

As documented by Cleardocs, April this year sees many changes to employment law take force.  A notable change is the introduction of the Employment Act of 2008 – and specifically the new ACAS Code of Practice which this is closely aligned to.

Naturally, Cleardocs will be incorporating the changes into its employment documentation.  We’ll also be sending updates via email to customers who have purchased the Staff Handbook in the past 12 months.  

The following are some highlights that employers need to be aware of:

Employment Act 2008 (to come into force on 6th April)

Quick Overview:

As well as the abolishment of the statutory dismissal, disciplinary and grievance procedures, the Employment Act 2008 will:

• repeal section 98A of the Employment Rights Act 1996, so that tribunals will revert to reliance on the pre-2004 Polkey v AE Dayton Services Ltd [1987]  line of cases in relation to reducing any awards for failure to follow the correct disciplinary procedures (in instances where it is held that this would still have resulted in a dismissal);
• give tribunals discretion to increase or reduce awards by up to 25% if the employer or employee unreasonably fails to comply with the new ACAS Code of Practice (see below);  
• amend the tribunal's powers to reach a determination without a hearing;
• extend ACAS' powers of conciliation and remove the current fixed conciliation periods;
• change the methods of enforcing the national minimum wage and calculating arrears;
• change the standards enforcement regime for employment agencies; and
• amend trade union membership law to ensure compliance with EU legislation which will enable trade unions to exclude current or former members of particular political parties from membership.

New ACAS Code on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures
 
With the impending abolishment of the statutory dispute resolution procedures as described above, the revised ACAS Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures was published on 7th November 2008. 

The added detail in the revised Code may not be welcomed universally by employers, although it is accompanied by an emphasis on employees doing more to help themselves. 

The main changes include:

• the Code will not apply to dismissals due to redundancy or the non-renewal of fixed-term contracts on their expiry;
• both the employer and employee should consider using an independent third party, including external mediators, to resolve disputes;
•  the Code intends to provide the "standard of reasonable behaviour" in most instances;
• employees and their representatives (if appropriate) should be involved in the development of rules and procedures;
• more emphasis on employees having to behave reasonably and "consistently"; and
• new sections on dealing with overlapping grievance and disciplinary cases, and collective grievances.

In relation to disciplinary procedures:

• in misconduct cases, different people should carry out the investigation and the disciplinary hearing;  
• when the employee is informed of the problem, they should also be provided with copies of written evidence such as witness statements;
• the procedure for holding a meeting with an employee is more detailed. For example, there should also be an opportunity for witnesses to be called;
• there is guidance on what a "reasonable request" to be accompanied means, and on what a companion may (and may not) do during the hearing;
• the decision to dismiss can only be taken by a manager who has authority to do so;
• employers should make a decision on the evidence available where an employee is persistently unable or unwilling to attend a disciplinary meeting without good cause;

In relation to grievance procedures, the only notable change is the guidance on being accompanied at a hearing, which also appears in the disciplinary procedures as noted above.

One of the most significant changes is that the Code will not apply to redundancy dismissals or renewal of fixed-term contracts.  This is a clear response to the current economic climate and the likely increase in redundancies in future. In practice, dismissals by reason of redundancy have always been subject to its own rules on "fair" consultation as established by case law, and this will continue to be the case.
 
The draft Code can be downloaded from the ACAS website.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

Legislation update - Increases in statutory payments

Wednesday 11th February 2009

As part of the numerous updates to employment legislation in April, there are several statutory payment amounts that are due to be increased.  

The following have been published by HM Revenue and Customs – and following parliamentary approval, will take place from 1st April:

• Statutory sick pay – will rise to £79.15 per week
• Statutory maternity, paternity and adoption pay – will rise to £123.06
  

Cleardocs would recommend legal advice on this matter if you are unsure.

A quick reminder from Cleardocs

April and the many legislation updates it beings are fast approaching – be sure to keep checking the blog and to re-read previous posts for more information regarding the changes you need to introduce as an employer to make sure that you’re compliant.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

'No Fee' documents launched

Thursday 29th January 2009

The ‘no fee’ documents are the first of a number of planned zero-cost additions to the company’s product portfolio since it launched in June 2008 with employment contracts and staff handbooks. Lisa Galbraith, Cleardocs group CEO said “in response to the wider economic situation, Cleardocs has responded with a number of key HR documents at zero cost. Specifically designed to assist the small to medium sized business owner with the financial burden of human resource administration and documentation, whilst allowing employers to provide leading edge employment practises. In line with the Cleardocs mantra ‘clarity, simplicity and ease of use’ there are no hidden costs or fees. Once registered with us, the documents are readily available and are genuinely free of charge.”

Unique to the Cleardocs offering is its proprietary software, based on plain English principles to reduce the complexity of legal documentation, and a free legal helpline manned by a team of specialist employment experts from leading law firm, Ashfords.

In line with Cleardocs commitment to reducing the complexity and cost of legal employment and related documentation, Cleardocs is talking to its customers, other small business owners and associated organisations in order to provide the most appropriate additions to its ‘no fee’ product range.

For more information visit www.cleardocs.co.uk or call Frances Critchlow on 0845 474 0372.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

Legislation Update - Holiday entitlement and flexible working

Thursday 29th January 2009

From April this year, there will be some major changes regarding holiday entitlement and rights for flexible working.

As an employer, it is important to make sure that you are compliant – so we’ll be posting several reminders to make sure that you’re on track.

Holiday Entitlement

The law on minimum holiday entitlement is changing. The current minimum holiday entitlement is 4.8 weeks' holiday (including bank holidays) - this corresponds to 24 days' of paid holiday for an employee who works five days per week.   From 1st April 2009, all employees will be entitled to 5.6 weeks' holiday.

The easiest way of expressing this in a Contract is to work on the basis of 28 days for a five-day-per-week employee, including the bank holidays, and reducing that pro rata for part-time employees.   This helps deal with the common issue of part-timers who work or do not work on Mondays, which is when most Bank Holidays fall.

Flexible working

The Government has decided to extend the right to flexible working to parents with children up to the age of 16.

Since April 2003, parents who have children aged 6 and under have been able to apply for flexible working hours by following a specific procedure.  Although this procedure will not change, from April this year, anyone with children under 16 will also be able to apply.

There are grounds on which an employer can refuse an application – but it is important to note that these must be strictly business reasons and not personal.  For example, a significant burden on costs or the inability to re-organise work among existing staff could be cited as potential reasons for turning down an application.

Cleardocs would recommend legal advice on this matter if you are unsure.


The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

Did you know? - Redundancies

Monday 19th January 2009

In this current economic climate, it is inevitable that businesses will suffer in some way. One of the sad truths is that along with decrease in profits, there is the prospect of redundancies. This is never a good thing – but it can be made worse when businesses fail to be compliant with the law in the way that they handle the redundancy situation.

Did you know that there is a procedure that must be followed in order to avoid a potential unfair dismissal claim?

The redundancy process can be complex – but is much more straightforward when followed with care when it comes to assembling the paperwork and conducting the necessary meetings. For example, although it may seem tempting as a business owner to get it over and done with as quickly as possible, there are in fact minimum legal requirements that must be followed in terms of allowing days in between the issue of notification letters, redundancy meetings and employee scoring procedures.

Genuine redundancy situation?

The first step in any redundancy is to show a genuine redundancy situation. The legal definition of redundancy is an actual or anticipated diminished need for employees carrying out work of a particular kind.

Therefore you will need to be able to show a business need for the decision to reduce staff levels, and that this is the reason why you are considering dismissals. If a Tribunal finds that a redundancy situation does not exist, and that the reason for dismissal is something else (e.g. Performance or conduct) then the dismissal could be unfair…

To continue reading, register for your free Cleardocs account and following the links to Redundancy Procedure notes.


The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

Legislation update - Compensation and Redundancy payment increase

Tuesday 13th January 2009

From 1st February 2009, there will be an increase in compensation and redundancy payment limits for employees.

Compensation payments

If an employee successfully brings an unfair dismissal claim, they are entitled to receive both a basic award and a compensatory award.  The basic is calculated as follows:

Length of service x Age factor x Weekly salary.
The figure for Weekly salary is currently capped at £330.

There is no set calculation for the compensatory award but it is currently capped at £63,000.

From next month, under the Employment Rights (Increase of Limits) Order 2008, these limits will increase as follows:

• Weekly salary for the basic award calculation will be capped at £350.
• The compensatory award will be capped at £66,200.


Redundancy payments

Redundancy payments are currently capped at £9,900.  This will increase to £10,500 from next month.


The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on  as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

Compromise Agreement launch

Thursday 8th January 2009

 

Cleardocs announces the introduction of Compromise Agreements as an addition to its product range.

Following the successful launch of online redundancy document packages to help employers and employees negotiate redundancy, Cleardocs has now launched its online Compromise Agreement. The Cleardocs document packages help bring certainty and fairness to the unpleasant reality of redundancy.

Traditionally Compromise Agreements have been a difficult and expensive document for a business to prepare, now Cleardocs has worked closely with Ashfords solicitors to create a versatile document that the employer can tailor to suit any business and any employment termination .

The document also benefits from additional CleardocsConfirm options – the recently launched service that gives the employer the chance to access specific legal support without the heartache of large, unexpected, legal fees.

Company founder Christopher Balmford commented “Employers can help ease the pain and tension of the redundancy process by using the Cleardocs notice package to communicate with the relevant employees. Now employers can use the Compromise Agreement to help record the terms on which the person’s employment ends. In the best of times, redundancy processes can be vague and unpleasant. In the current economic climate, things are probably even worse. The Cleardocs document packages helps to achieve fairness and certainty for employers and employees.”

The Compromise Agreement is an important addition to the Cleardocs product range which now includes Staff Handbooks, Employment Contracts and Redundancy Notifications. The introduction of the Compromise Agreement is part of Cleardocs’ long-term commitment to reducing the complexity of legal employment documents in England and Wales.

For more information visit www.cleardocs.co.uk or call Frances Critchlow on 0845 474 0372.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on  as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

 

Employment Law and what to expect in 2009

Monday 5th January 2009

What with the current worldwide economic climate, 2009 is set to be an interesting year for employers. Many businesses are likely to suffer and sadly we’ve already had a few high street casualties as well as many smaller businesses.

However, one aspect you can have some control over are your business’ employment policies and procedures and by making sure that you’re compliant. Investment in this now could help you later on with any potential employment tribunals.

There are numerous updates to employment law set to take force in 2009 – and we’ll be keeping you informed with any changes you may need to make before it is too late.

Here’s an overview of some of the big changes to expect:

 

• The current statutory dismissal, disciplinary and grievance procedures and related procedural unfair dismissal rules will be repealed in April 2009, under the Employment Act 2008, and will be replaced by a new ACAS Code of Practice.

 

• Statutory holiday entitlement will increase from 4.8 weeks to 5.6 weeks per year, including bank holidays, from 1 April 2009.

• The Employment Tribunal (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2004 are to be amended from 6 April 2009, in respect of extending time limits and dismissing claims settled by ACAS.

• The right to flexible working is to be extended to parents of children up to 16 years' old, from April 2009.

• The Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 introduces a new screening system for people working with vulnerable individuals, which is due to start in October 2009.

• Employers will have to file P45 and P46 forms online from April 2009, if they have at least 50 employees. HMRC is encouraging employers to check that their records are up-to-date before April to avoid any problems when the new system is implemented. Employers will need to register with HMRC if they have not already done so.

• Other potential issues that are up for debate - clarification in respect of holiday entitlement whilst on long term sick leave; whether specifying a retirement age for employees, and separately for partners, constitutes justifiable age discrimination; and when a discrepancy in length of service could, and could not, justify unequal pay.

We’ll be keeping you posted in the above, so be sure to check the Cleardocs blog for regular updates.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on  as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

CleardocsConfirm

Friday 12th December 2008

Cleardocs.co.uk launches ‘CleardocsConfirm’: the pioneering pre-agreed legal fee structure in association with its on-line legal HR documents

• Provides specific legal support without the heartache of large, unexpected legal fees

• On-going commitment to reducing the complexity of legal employment documentation in England & Wales.

CleardocsConfirm is a unique service offered by the highly successful on-line legal document provider Cleardocs in partnership with Ashfords. The service has been exclusively designed to support the legal advice requirements of the small business owner (and their advisers) when employing executive and senior staff.

Christopher Balmford, company founder said “Thanks to Ashfords, our new CleardocsConfim service significantly expands the range of employers who can benefit from Cleardocs’s online employment document ordering service. Our intelligent online Q&A interface and our underlying expert system can already deal with most of the variables in most employment contracts. But for some sorts of arrangements — like bonuses and restrictive covenants — there is too much professional judgment involved for a layperson to be certain about how to answer the online questions. CleardocsConfirm fixes that.”

He went on to say “For a small extra fee (usually less than £50), CleardocsConfirm involves the lawyers first in speaking with our customer and then in applying their legal judgement and expertise to draft the relevant additional clauses. The technology narrows the need for the lawyer’s involvement, focuses them on where they most add value and reduces costs all round.”

In line with Cleardocs commitment to reducing the complexity of legal employment documentation, employers simply respond by clicking ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to easy to understand questions in the Cleardocs system. Each ‘Yes’ answer gives a comprehensive explanation how CleardocsConfirm works, the pre-agreed fees and what to do next. The process is completely transparent, without hidden costs and there is helpline - free of charge - to assist the employer should there be any questions.

For more information visit www.cleardocs.co.uk or call Frances Critchlow on 0845 474 0372.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on  as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

Redundancy Notification Launch

Tuesday 9th December 2008

Cleardocs.co.uk launches redundancy notification letters

• UK economy drives launch of redundancy notification letters

• On-going commitment to reducing the complexity of legal employment documentation in England & Wales

The redundancy notification documents are the first addition to the Company’s product portfolio since it launched in June 2008 with Employment Contracts and Staff Handbooks. Lisa Galbraith, Cleardocs group CEO said “We’ve seen genuine interest in Cleardocs’ approach to employment documentation in the England & Wales, and we are responding to customer demand with this latest addition to our product portfolio. Employers are telling us they need to deal with the very real threat of the current economic situation to their businesses, and that providing a straightforward, cost-effective and legally binding route to streamlining is a real help’.

Unique to the Cleardocs offering is its proprietary software, based on plain English principles to reduce the complexity of legal documentation, and a free legal helpline manned by a team of specialist employment experts from leading law firm, Ashfords.

In line with Cleardocs commitment to reducing the complexity of legal employment documentation, customers are kept up to date with changes in the law through automatic email alerts outlining changes and any subsequent responsibilities. As a result, customers can rest assured that the right business-critical legal employment documents are always in place to protect employer and employee. All data is then stored implicitly ensuring completed documents cannot be accessed by a third party.

For more information visit www.cleardocs.co.uk or call us on 0845 474 0372.

The content of this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on  as such, or used instead of seeking legal advice.

Welcome

Tuesday 9th December 2008

Welcome to the new blog from Cleardocs UK. We’re aiming to use this blog to bring you the latest news from Cleardocs and to keep you posted on the development of our new products. We’ll also be using this space to report on any relevant changes in legislation which may have an impact on our documents and to help make sure that you’re compliant.

Our other objective is to use this as a means of communicating with our customers or those who may be interested in what we do. We’d be delighted for you to comment on what appears here in the future and would really appreciate any feedback and suggestions you have for us.

As ever, our main goal is to make sure that Cleardocs continues to represent clarity, simplicity and ease of use.

The Cleardocs Team