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The Emergency Budget and what it means for small businesses

Added: 2010-06-23 12:26:52.0

The government announced its emergency budget yesterday and it proved to be mostly positive for small and medium sized businesses in the UK.

To summarise, the main changes impacting businesses include:

• VAT will rise from 17.5% to 20% from January 4th, 2011.  
• The threshold at which employers start to pay National Insurance will rise by the rate of inflation plus £21 per week.
• Corporation tax for small businesses will be cut to 20% (down from 21%)
• Corporation Tax for large businesses will be cut in 2011 to 27% (down from 28%).  It will then continue to fall by 1% per year until it reaches 24%.
• The government will consult on phasing out the default retirement age.
• For the next three years, new businesses set up outside London, the South East or the East of the UK will escape the first £5,000 of employers' National Insurance payments on each of their first ten employees.

It is likely that most businesses in the UK will feel pleased with the Budget, certainly compared with the previous Budget announced by the former government earlier this year.  For many business owners, it will be the VAT increase that will be the source of discontentment as they prepare to go forward into 2011.

When the VAT was lowered at the end of 2009, many businesses found the whole exercise a logistical nightmare.  Many who sell to consumers will also fear that the rise may have an adverse affect on their profits.

However, small businesses in particular will benefit from the lower tax rates; with the Treasury forecasting that it cut firms’ tax bills by a total of £3.8billion over the next 4 years.

How do you feel about the new budget?  DO you feel that it’s a step in the right direction?  Or are you worried about the impact of the VAT rise, both logistically and how it will affect your profits?



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

Comment

World Cup Special Offer: win a copy of The Employers Handbook

Added: 2010-06-18 13:53:35.0
In case you hadn’t noticed, the World Cup started last week.  For those of you wishing to escape the non-stop football related advertising campaigns, the interrupted TV schedules or the tedious hum of vuvuzelas, we’re afraid that even Cleardocs has been taken with World Cup fever!

In light of this, we’re offering you the chance to win a copy of 'The Employer's Handbook, 2010-2011; An Essential Guide to Employment Law, Personnel Policies and Procedures'.  We’ve got 5 copies of the book up for grabs and everyone who purchases a best practice staff handbook for the duration of the World Cup (June 11th – July 11th) is in with a chance to win.

“The Employer's Handbook is a key source of reliable, unambiguous advice for small- and medium-sized employers, clearly identifying both the legal essentials and best practice guidelines for effective HR management, including information on benefits, contracts, maternity/paternity rights, disciplinary issues and data protection.”
 
Customers who purchase a best practice staff handbook during the tournament will be automatically entered in a prize draw for the book and we will notify the winners via email.

Employer’s guide to the World Cup

Whether you’ve already seen the effects of the World Cup on your staff or are concerned about increased employee unauthorised absence during the tournament, help is at hand.  We’ve put together the Cleardocs Employer’s guide to the World Cup.  

There are a number of things that business owners can consider to help staff make the most of The World Cup without compromising the needs of the business, read our Employer’s Guide to the World Cup for the full lowdown.


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

Employers beware: Fake fit notes available online

Added: 2010-06-10 16:48:43.0
News that an employee can purchase a fake fit note online for as little as £10 will set alarm bells ringing for employers who may still be coming to grips with the new system.  The website selling the dodgy forms is known to have provided the old-style sick notes in the past and claims that the new forms are ‘authentic looking replicas’ of the real thing; http://www.doctorsnotestore.com/index.html.

As Cleardocs widely reported, doctor’s ‘fit notes’ replaced the traditional ‘sick notes’ in April.  News that an employee could get a genuine-looking fake one at such a low-cost will be distressing to business owners as during this early adoption stage, they could be used to successfully fool employers.

The website in question also offers 48 hour delivery and only requires employees to submit the most basic of information; name, address, what they are suffering from and when it started.  For £10, they can also have this stamped by ‘doctors’ from ‘medical centres’ in any UK city.

It has only been two months since the fit note system was introduced and many employers may still be adjusting to the new system, that is, if they have even had to deal with a situation requiring a fit note yet.  This makes employers even more susceptible for being duped by the fake letters.

If an employer is suspicious about a fit form that they have been handed, tips for better scrutiny include:

• having the fit note checked by an occupational health advisor or a doctor; or
• calling the medical centre that is said to have issued the fit note and checking that it was indeed signed by the doctor named.
  

Employers may also wish to consider warning their employees of potential disciplinary action following any use of improper fit notes.

This news comes days after new figures revealing that employee absence in that past year was the lowest since records began in 1987; with employees taking 180 million sick days in the past year, an average of 6.4 days for each employee.  Whilst the cost of this economy is estimated at £2.5 billion, employers will be encouraged to see sickness rates fall in an economic climate where businesses need their staff.

Still unsure about fit notes?  Listen to our free webinar recording where Charles Pallot, Head of Employment Law at Ashfords Solicitors LLP discusses fit notes and what they mean for businesses.

How does the above make you feel as an employer?  Will it make you more cautious when it comes to fit notes in the future?  Or do you trust your employees not to go down this potentially damaging route?  Let us know by commenting below.


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

Employers guide to the World cup

Added: 2010-06-04 10:07:53.0
The 2010 World Cup will be upon us very shortly: it is likely that many employees will be looking forward to it and starting to think about how - and where - they will be watching matches. Most companies in the UK have a diverse workforce and as such, business owners need to remember that it is not only matches involving the UK teams that staff may wish to follow.

Whilst as a business owner and employer, you are not obliged to accommodate your staff’s interest in sporting events (and the World Cup is no different) there is, however, some evidence to suggest that where employers are seen to be sympathetic towards their staff’s outside interests, employees are more likely to go the extra mile for the organisation. Some business owners may see the World Cup as a morale boasting opportunity after the difficult conditions of the past year or so.

There are a number of things that business owners can consider to help staff make the most of The World Cup without compromising the needs of the business.  Read the full article here.


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

Claimants get fast track to tribunal compensation

Added: 2010-05-24 11:43:25.0
This time last year, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) revealed that as many as 39% of successful claims at employment tribunals had not been paid and that only 53% of claims had been paid in full.  Since then, the former government created new measures making it harder for companies to avoid paying compensation to their ex-employees. This was created in the form of the employment tribunal fast track scheme which went live on April 6th.

Before the fast track system was set up, a successful claimant would need to go through the County Court to enforce an unpaid compensation award, owing to the fact that the employment tribunal did not have the power to enforce its own judgements.  It was in April 2009 that the MoJ began to monitor who was not paying the relevant compensation (and allow public access to this information) and following the revelations, they began to construct a way to make it easier for claimants to pursue what was owed to them.

The fast track scheme aims to simplify the process of pursuing a claim by giving successful claimants access to the services of the High Court enforcement officers.  Providing the compensation award is above £600, the claimant needs to pay just £50 to issue a writ to seize assets to the value of the judgement that they have been awarded.  This figure will be added to the employer’s debt.

Before the fast track system was introduced, a court-appointed bailiff would be engaged by the County Court and was able charge for their services, whether they successfully recovered the claimant’s compensation or not.  The new scheme means that once a High Court enforcement officer is engaged by the claimant, they will only receive payment upon a successful recovery.

The MoJ have said that the new system was required due to the large number of businesses who were not paying the claimants their tribunal awards. Bridgett Prentice, the former justice minister commented "The government is determined to ensure people are not denied access to justice by a small minority of unscrupulous individuals or companies who refuse to respect the award. The fast-track will ensure all recipients can pursue their awards with ease."

The new fast track system is expected to have a considerable impact on the success of claimants receiving their compensation payments.  It is expected that the imposing threat of a potentially humiliating visit from the High Court enforcement officers will mean that employers are quicker and more likely to pay out claims.  Likewise, the fact that the list of those employers who have not paid is public, it is expected that business owners will want to keep their reputation intact by keeping their company off the list.

An assessment of the fast track scheme will be carried out in 2 years and the MoJ has said that it expects to add ACAS settlements to the system at a later date.


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

The new coalition government and what this will mean for small businesses

Added: 2010-05-12 13:57:01.0

It is an historic day for Britain today as the first coalition government for 70 years sets to work. After 5 days of negotiations, The Conservative party, who were unable to get a majority in last week’s election, have come together with the Lib Dems to create a government that few would have expected a week ago.

The new cabinet has been confirmed with Nick Clegg acting as the new Deputy Prime Minister and several other key Lib Dem figures taking place in David Cameron’s new cabinet.  Predictably, George Osborne will be Chancellor and William Hague will act as Foreign Secretary.  There is space for Vince Cable on the cabinet as a proposed Business/Banking secretary, although his title has not been fully confirmed.

At this moment. we are not fully aware of the compromises that have been made by both sides on policy.  Crucially, for business owners, the following are also rumoured to be agreed:

•  An ‘emergency’ Budget will take place in 50 days; as part of a wider plan to “significantly accelerate” the attempts to reduce the budget deficit.
• The new government will scrap Labour’s proposed 1% rise in National Insurance.

 

The news that National Insurance will not be raised will please many business owners who had been concerned about what the 1% increase would mean.  Read our blog post about the petition to scrap the rise.

One issue that has not been covered thus far is the impact of the new coalition government on the proposed Default Retirement Age (DRA) reform.  Whilst there was cross-party agreement on the fact that the DRA needed to be reviewed before the election, it was not clear exactly what each of the parties wanted to do; scrap it completely or raise it.  Nevertheless, this will doubtless become clear once the new government has had time to settle.

Amongst other policies, there are rumours however that the following have been agreed:

• A plan for five-year, fixed term parliaments. This would remove power from the Prime Minister to call an election whenever he/she feels appropriate in a five year period.  It is expected that this is designed to make it harder for the Tories to attempt to pull out of the coalition deal that has been made.
• The Lib Dems have pledged to scrap their attempts to heavily tax properties that are worth more than £2m, a move designed to endear them to grass root Conservatives?
• Conversely, the Conservatives have put their plans for scrap inheritance tax up to £1m on hold. 
• A move will also be made to increase the income tax threshold for lower earners, this was a key part of the Lib Dem election campaign.
• A referendum on the EU has been agreed; to let the country decide whether more powers should be transferred to Brussels.  Along with this, the Liberal Democrats have agreed not to push to adopt the Euro in the next five years.
• The Lib Dems have agreed to support Conservative plans to introduce a cap on immigration.
• The Conservatives will try to recognise marriage in the tax system however they will not have the Lib Dems’ support on this in the House of Commons.
• There will be a referendum on moving to the Alternative Vote system as part of a move for electoral reform.

 

As ever, we will bring you more news on the new government’s policies associated with employment law and the general issues that will interest small business owners, as and when it becomes available.

How do you feel about the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition?  Do you think this is good or bad news for your business?  Glad to see the back of Labour and their National Insurance increase?  Let us know by commenting below.

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

Comment

Unfair dismissal compensation may go through the roof pending outcome of landmark case

Added: 2010-04-26 15:58:33.0
Employers are currently waiting with baited breath to see the outcome of the current Edwards Vs. Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation Trust case that began last week.  The Court of Appeal will hear the case in which Edwards, a hospital consultant, has claimed that the trust did not follow their own contractually-binding disciplinary procedure correctly before he was dismissed.  According to legal experts, a win for Edwards could lead to many more multi-million pound payouts in the future.

Edwards claims that if the trust’s disciplinary procedure had been followed correctly, he would have not been dismissed.  He is therefore claiming over £4 million compensation to reflect supposed lost earnings.  However, the trust claims that it did follow the procedure correctly and that regardless of the outcome, Edwards’ damages should be capped at the amount that he would have earned during his three-month notice period.

Unfair dismissal payouts are currently capped at £65,300; however Edwards is attempting to get round the capped figure by also claiming for damages due to breach of contract.

If Edwards is successful in his appeal, employers have been advised to take even further caution when it comes to dismissing employees and it is recommended that disciplinary procedures are reviewed and then followed to a tee.  It would set an unpleasant precedent for many employers, particularly those who have high earners on their team.

Employers need to ensure that their disciplinary policies and procedures are up-to-date with current legislation and are fair.  They also need to make sure that they are familiar with the necessary procedures and that they make sure they handle situations correctly from the start.

If you are concerned about whether or not your business’ disciplinary procedure is up to date, or if you do not have one, a completely up-to-date and compliant disciplinary policy makes up part of the Cleardocs Best Practice staff handbook.  We also now supply disciplinary letters to help make the process smoother for you – Cleardocs Disciplinary letters.

If you have any questions about any of the above, give us a call 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.
Comment

Workers unsure about their redundancy rights

Added: 2010-04-21 16:13:29.0
In a survey of over 4,000 members of the public, consumer rights group Which? has found that over a quarter (27%) of adults are worried about being made redundant and that a similar amount (24%) are concerned that their employers may freeze or reduce their pay.

However, it seems that the majority of those questioned are unaware of their rights in such a situation.

Of those questioned, a massive 98% were unable to answer the Which?’s true or false questions on redundancy correctly:

1. If you are made redundant you always have the right to a redundancy payment from your employer (correct answer = false).
2. The amount of redundancy payment you are entitled to depends on your age (correct answer = true).
3. When choosing who to make redundant, an employer can make the decision based on ‘last in first out’ (correct answer = true).
4. Your employer can change the terms of your employment where they feel necessary, as long as they provide 30 days notice (correct answer = false).
   

To summarise the results:

• 50% mistakenly believed that they would always have the right to a redundancy payment from their employer.  In fact, they would have to have worked for them continuously for at least two years.
• 70% of the respondents were unaware that the amount of redundancy payment they are entitled to depends on their age.
• Almost half had no idea that employers can choose who to make redundant based on a ‘last in, first out’ basis.
• 58% mistakenly believed that their boss could change their employment terms by giving them 30 days notice.
  

The statistics could be considered as being worrying when 6% of UK workers have been made redundant in the past 2 years and 10% have suffered a pay freeze.

Speaking of the findings, Which? Chief Executive Peter Vicary-Smith commented: “Our research shows that most people would have absolutely no idea what their rights were if faced with redundancy or a pay cut. Ignorance is anything but bliss in these situations - it really does pay to know where you stand.”

Do your employees know their rights when it comes to redundancy?  Do you know their rights for that matter?  Do the results come as a surprise for you or do you think that the results fairly represent the views of your staff?  Let us know by commenting below.


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

Comment

90% of Small businesses unhappy with Budget 2010

Added: 2010-03-30 15:41:55.0
The highly anticipated Budget was announced last week and small business owners were as keen as ever to find out how it would affect them and their business.  However, having digested the Chancellor’s proposed measures, it would seem that the vast majority are unhappy with its ramifications.

A survey conducted by the Forum of Private Business revealed that an overwhelming 95% of business owners believed that the Government’s measures will create an environment that will make it difficult for their business to develop.

Again, a large majority of 87% said that the Chancellor’s measures will not be enough to increase business and consumer confidence.

Other highlights of the findings revealed that:

• 70% of respondents felt that this Budget was a political device used in light of the upcoming general election; and that the ‘real’ Budget could be expected after the election.
• Only 10% of the Forum members deemed the Budget to be ‘good’ or ‘very good’ for small businesses, with 52% branding it as average and 38% saying that it was ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’.
• 45% believed that the Budget (which includes the controversial National Insurance hike) would have a negative impact on employment.

Chief Executive of the Forum, Phil Orford, said of the findings: "This research appears to support our initial assessment of the Budget – overall, it fell far short of what we were hoping for and there was a sense that it was very much a Budget for the election.

"Judging from the feedback our members have given us, smaller firms don't feel that the Chancellor laid the foundations for a better environment in which to do business. At the same time, they're not taking the Budget too seriously because of the imminent election.

The survey results echo the seemingly growing dissatisfaction with the Labour Government amongst business owners.  However, it was not all doom and gloom as some of the Chancellor’s initiative did have some positive feedback from the Forum members.

19% of respondents believed that the Chancellor’s proposals would have a positive effect on cash flow support and business investment.  Added to this was the 14% who thought that the Budget would improve access to finance.

Most importantly for Mr.Darling, only 9% of Forum members believed that Chancellor’s measures are designed to encourage short-term recovery.

How do you feel about the Budget?  Do you think that it is good or bad for your business?  Has it made you think differently about who you will vote for in the upcoming general election?  Let us know by commenting below.


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

Business groups say no to proposed National Insurance increases

Added: 2010-03-19 10:17:36.0

The proposed 1% increase in National Insurance Contributions has met some stiff opposition in the form of some of Britain’s major business groups.  The coalition, formed to prevent the increase, boasts the leaders from groups such as the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), Institute of Directors (IOD) and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CiPD) to name but a few.

The increase, due to come into force in April 2011 means that employers would be liable for 1% extra in National Insurance Contributions. An online petition has been set up to urge the Government to scrap the increase.  The petition reads:

“Businesses across the country know that it is imperative for the Government to begin the difficult job of repairing the public finances. But this NICs increase is a 'tax on jobs' - and will discourage companies of all sizes from taking on new staff at a critical point in our economic recovery.

We urge the Government to work with business groups to find alternative ways to close the UK's budget deficit - beginning with a credible plan to reduce inefficiency in public sector spending. Any Government has to realise that additional taxes on businesses, especially small- and medium-sized companies, must be a last resort, not an easy way forward.”

The coalition cite, amongst other things, a cost of £14bn to UK businesses and resulting loss of 57,000 jobs in small businesses as reasons why the increase should not go ahead.

“The respected and independent Institute for Fiscal Studies has commented that 'employer [NI] contributions bear no relation to benefits provided under the NI scheme. These contributions are in effect simply a payroll tax'. From our perspective, further rises in NI mean fewer jobs, more people signing on, and a slower recovery for UK plc”.

“The case is clear. No NICs increase - no tax on jobs.”

For a full run down on the reasoning behind the coalition’s petition, the petition can be viewed at http://www.no-nics-rise.co.uk/. 

Were you aware of the 1% rise for employers?  Will you be signing the petition?  We want to hear from you, please enter your comments below

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

Comment

Small businesses struggling with employment law

Added: 2010-03-01 11:48:59.0

According to new research from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), many SMEs in the UK are struggling with both keeping up to date with employment law and having confidence in implementing policies and procedures.

The BIS’ study, based on responses from 300 business owners showed that:

• only a third (32 per cent) of SMEs feel confident in their understanding of employment law and their role as an employer;
• 20% of businesses understand their obligations, but worry about getting it right; and, perhaps most worryingly;
• 34% of business owners feel that employment law obligations are ‘not relevant’ to their business. 

In terms of making sure their business is up to date, 42% of the respondents considered it ‘important’ to be on top of new legislation but a quarter admitted that they let things slide.  In fact, 28% said that although they were aware of their obligations, they found it hard to stay on top of changing employment law.

The stats do not make for happy reading when compared with Employment Tribunal claims.  For business owners to ensure that they stay out of the Tribunal, keeping up to date with employment legislation could be key.

Following the findings, Employment Relations Minister Lord Young commented; "We know that running a small business is both challenging and rewarding – and that this combination often fuels a successful enterprise. The essential job of managing employment law need not be one of these challenges.

"This study helps us identify the knowledge gap, and the reasons behind this, to enable us to continue to improve the advice and support we offer. I expect all small businesses to access this help for free on the Business Link website to make sure they know their responsibilities."

Male business owners Vs female business owners

Interestingly, the study also looked at the attitudes of male employers and female employers to see whether they differed at all.

The results showed that female employers tend to be better at keeping on top of changes in employment law – with over half 54% stating that they feel it is important that they observe and implement necessary changes.  This is compared with 38% of their male counterparts.

When it comes to implementation however, although more women business owners implement the changes than men, 26% and 21% respectively; women employers worry more about not managing the changes correctly.  Only 17% of male employers worry about the legislation changes compared to 26% of women employers.


Why worry about it when someone else can take care of it for you?

If you’re reading this, you probably know what Cleardocs can offer.  We update your employment documents, for free, every time new employment law is introduced. So you needn’t worry if you are one of our customers.

If you’re not, what are you waiting for?  Why worry about it when we can take care of it for you for as little at £49.50 for a staff handbook.

To supplement what Cleardocs will do for your business, its good to keep an eye on what’s going on.  This tool in particular from BIS will help you stay on top of Employment law changes that will affect your business: http://www.employmentlaworganiser.org/

If you have any questions about employment law changes or how Cleardocs can help you get some peace of mind, call us on 0845 474 0372 for a chat.



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

Comment (1)

Employment tribunal ruling; employees can carry holiday over to the following year if leave lost due to illness

Added: 2010-02-22 14:20:00.0
A couple of weeks ago, we posted news of an EAT ruling stating that employees must comply with their employer’s annual holiday policy - or run the risk of losing their holiday entitlement altogether.  While this appeared to be very good news for employers, they will be less pleased with the latest ruling by an employment tribunal.

There were two major court rulings last year relating to whether or not an employee should be able to carry over annual leave into the following year if they have been unable to take holiday due to sickness.  This week, the first UK employment tribunal since these court rulings has stated that an employee should be able to carry over annual leave to the next year if they have been too ill to take it.

The case in question saw an employee break their ankle, preventing them from working for three months.  The employee then asked if he could claim back four weeks’ holiday that he had previously booked but that he was unable to take due to being injured.  His employers refused the request and the employee took them to tribunal.

The judge of the case stated that the employee “is entitled to take the holidays which he was prevented by ill-health from taking in March of 2009 at some subsequent time in the following leave year."

The two cases last year were held at the European Court of Justice and ruled that in some circumstances, holiday entitlement should be allowed to be taken into the following year.  However, in certain scenarios, this would be in conflict with the UK’s Working Time Regulations (WTR) which specify that it is unlawful for an employee to take more than 8 days into the following year.  It is because of the WTR that employment experts had warned that the law was hazy on this matter – and a tribunal case such as the one above is the clarification that many had seeked for businesses in the UK.

However, employers must be aware that the tribunal ruling above is not binding on other tribunals.  What it does signify however is a possible gear change when it comes to similar rulings in the future now precedence has been set.

As an employer, how do you feel about the ruling above?  Does it seem like a rough deal for employers?  Or do you think that its fair enough for staff?  Let us know by commenting below.


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

Employers and staff disagree on the success of cost-cutting techniques

Added: 2010-02-15 16:57:58.0
Whilst the UK’s chance of further economic growth looks strong, many businesses have needed to make cost-cutting measures over the past year and it is likely that some will need to continue to do so.  Whilst staff and their employers have been known to disagree about many things, new research shows that the choice of cost-cutting measure can be added to the list.

IFF Research’s ‘Attitudes to Work’ study reveals that two-thirds of UK employees surveyed have experienced cost-cutting measures first-hand.  Although these measures are seen as a necessary evil by most employees and are preferable to the business shutting down, it seems that many would handle the matter differently should they be in control.

The research shows that in the eyes on the employee, the following are the most preferable measures: a recruitment freeze, a salary freeze and voluntary redundancies.  It seems that employers have taken note with these being the most common techniques implemented.

However, 21% of those surveyed have experienced changes to the staff expenses policy whereas only 6% stated that this would have been a preferred option.  Likewise, only 1% of those questioned stated salary cuts and redundancies as being suitable measures; yet 12% of businesses have implemented salary cuts and 20% have made compulsory redundancies.  

Employees have also shown solidarity; with an overwhelming majority (99%) agreeing that they would rather the cost-cutting be shared amongst all employees rather than individuals losing their jobs.  A strong message to employees who are yet to attempt to cut costs.

Jan Shury, joint managing director of IFF Research, commented: "It is good to see that the measures being implemented by employers are broadly in line with what employees find most acceptable, but businesses also need to consider the impact of secondary measures taken once the initial major decisions are made.”

"Workers and employers clearly agree that freezing salaries and recruitment is the right way to go, but there is a stark contrast in opinion over measures such as changing expenses or cutting salaries. Managers need to be aware of employees' opinions and where practical, talk to them about measures, if they are to protect morale and maintain a strong organisation for emerging from the recession.

Have you needed to cut costs?  If so, did you gauge employee opinion before you did so?  If you’re considering cost cuts, will this research have an impact on your decision?  Let us know by commenting below.



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

EAT Holiday ruling: more good news for employers

Added: 2010-02-09 09:09:12.0
With news this week that the UK is crawling its way out of recession, there is another story, this time employment related, that will please employers.  According to a new ruling from the Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT), employees must comply with their employer’s annual holiday policy - or run the risk of losing their holiday entitlement altogether.

The judgement could not come sooner for employers who have been seeking some overdue confirmation on what the law said when staff hadn’t complied with their rules on holiday entitlement.

The ruling came from the case of Lyons vs Mitie in which the claimant’s request for holiday did not comply with the notice requirement set out in his contract of employment.  Company policy, as stated in the contract, was that all holiday requests must be submitted at least four weeks prior to the holiday’s commencement.  It went on to state that any applications submitted at shorter notice may be considered but that the needs of the business would be considered above the needs of the employee.

In this case, the claimant requested that he take his remaining holiday shortly before the year-end, where, as per his contract, he would lose it since he could not carry it forward into the subsequent year.  However, due to staffing problems, the holiday request was refused and seeing as though he would lose his holiday due to this notice restriction, the employee resigned and took his ex-employer to tribunal.

Unfortunately for the employee, in this case the EAT took the employer’s side, thus setting a benchmark for further cases and bringing some clarity to the matter.

Before this ruling, the law regarding notice periods etc and whether they can be enforced by an employer had been unclear.  However, employers now have a better idea of their rights when it comes to enforcing such matters, as long as their policies do not make it too difficult for the employee to request leave and are fair in the first place.

Unsure about how this affects your holiday policy?  Worried about absence of a company holiday policy?  Call Cleardocs 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.
Comment

SMEs in favour of no default retirement age

Added: 2010-01-20 11:10:24.0
According to new research by the Federation of Small Business (FSB), two thirds of small businesses are in favour of removing the default retirement age.  Currently, 85% of the FSB’s members do not use the default retirement age for their business and 76% believe that an employee should not be forced to retire and that it should be a mutual decision between employer and employee.

We’ve been keeping you up to date on the retirement age issue on the Cleardocs blog and this appears to be yet another damning blow to the controversial law on when people should retire.  The FSB’s research follows an announcement last week by Deputy Labour Leader Harriet Harman of a “shake-up” in retirement law that could see an end to the default retirement age that is currently 65.

The FSB does however think that the government needs to introduce a law that allows businesses to retire any employees whose performance is being hampered by ill health; a view that is bound to be shared by many business owners.

John Wright, National Chairman at the Federation of Small Businesses, commented "Many small business owners have no intention of putting in place a blanket policy to retire their staff at 65 – they understand the valuable contribution and skills that older workers bring to the business. In a recent survey by the Federation of Small Businesses, 60 per cent of respondents employ staff over 50 years old and a quarter employ staff who are over 65, showing that small firms are flexible employers.

“Businesses need to be able to make decisions about their workforce without the threat of expensive tribunals from employees who are unable to work because of age-related issues. The ability to let someone go because of ill-health should be made sacrosanct for those employers."

A decision on the retirement age is expected in early 2010 but with the run up to the General election, the topic could be part of the various parties’ manifestos.  As ever, we’ll keep you updated with any developments.


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

What to expect in 2010

Added: 2010-01-13 11:54:44.0
Happy New Year from all of us here at Cleardocs.  

In 2010 we’re all hoping that we can leave behind the economic troubles of 2009 and that we can all look forward to a prosperous twelve months.  

As promised last month, we’ve prepared a ‘what to expect in 2010’ guide for you.  When running a business, preparation is key.  To help you stay on top of things, we’ve put together a guide for employers about the main employment legislation changes that are due to come into force this year.  These include reforms to Working Time Regulations and Agency Worker regulations that will no doubt have an effect on a lot of businesses.

To read the guide, click here


Employment Legislation Update – Pre-Budget report

The main news legislation-wise in the past month surrounded the Government’s pre-Budget report.  On 9th December 2009, the Chancellor announced a package of measures with important implications for employers.  These included the following:

• A new 50% top rate of tax will apply to employees with an income of over £150,000 per annum;
• Pensions relief will also be limited for anyone whose annual salary is over £130,000;
• The personal allowance on Income Tax will be frozen during 2010-11, and there will be no change to the higher rate threshold (so that income tax will continue to be paid at 20% on income up to £37,400, and then at 40% up to £150,000);
• Employers' National Insurance Contributions ('NICs') will increase by 0.5%, which is a rise from 12.8% to 13.5%;
• For Class 1 (employee), Classes 1A and 1B (payments by employers on benefits) and Class 4 (self-employed) workers, NICs will increase from 8.5% to 9.5% on earnings between the primary threshold and upper earnings limits;
• In addition, for Classes 1 and 4, the additional rate for NICs on earnings over the upper thresholds will go up to 2% from 1%;
• Workers with salaries of less than £20,000 will not face a rise in NICs; and
• Public sector pay settlements are to be capped at 1% for two years from 2011.

We’ll be keeping you updated with when, where and how these changes will come into force but if you have any questions or concerns in the meantime, don’t hesitate to call us on 0845 474 0372.


Winter Sale

Meanwhile, due to popular demand, we’ve extended our Winter sale.  As we’re sure most of you have seen, we introduced a pre-Christmas sale in December as a thank you to you for making 2009 great for us.  We have introduced some massive discounts to our documents; with up to 65% off employment contracts and staff handbooks, we urge you not to wait as these prices won’t be around forever.  

If you have any questions about how Cleardocs can help with your employment document requirements, don’t hesitate to 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.

Comment

"Promotion? No thanks, give me an iPod"

Added: 2009-12-23 11:30:14.0

Recent research from PricewaterhouseCoopers reveals that most employees would rather be given a free MP3 player, camera or a similar gadget than to be fast-tracked for promotion.  950 employees were asked what reward they would value the most in the absence of a pay rise and 80% commented that a piece of technology would go down well.  This is compared to 67% who said that they would value the knowledge that they are being fast-tracked for promotion.

Interestingly, only 6% of respondents said that they would not value any kind of small reward in the absence of a pay-rise.

Amongst the other popular rewards were £100 cash ‘bonuses’, gift vouchers and a couple of days extra annual leave.  However employees were not so keen on the idea of being given time off to carry out charity work or a promotion without a pay increase.

The research also showed that rewards outside of work were seen as being more valuable than rewards inside, e.g. training or experience within another department.

The research creates compelling reading for employers who may be trying to come up with alternatives to the usual pay rise/bonus in the New Year.

Jon Terry, partner and head of reward, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, commented:

“The way UK businesses allocate the millions of pounds they spend on rewarding their employees is largely discretionary and, while not everyone would opt for a MP3 player over getting closer to promotion, the employers that get the best value from their spend are those that align reward with individuals’ wants and needs and the behaviours they want to encourage. With bonus pools shrinking and many workers’ wages frozen, employers need to find lower-cost, tailored ways of showing their staff that good performance is always appreciated. One-off gifts in reward for particularly successful projects work very well if a pay rise is not an option, particularly if employers are flexible in terms of what they offer the recipients.

 “Many workers are showing admirable focus on the long-term in their willingness to accept more responsibilities without a pay rise – and while covering their work may be challenging, giving employees time to gain different experiences and access to internal training is mutually beneficial and clearly valued by employees.”
The following are the full set of results with the percentage figure in brackets representing how many employees said they would value the option as a reward in the absence of a pay rise:

£100 cash bonus for work on a particular project (90%)
£100 gift vouchers to a shop of your choice (89%)
A couple of days of extra annual leave (89%)
Technology gift of individual’s choice with a value of approximately £100; e.g. MP3 player, digital camera (80%)
Lunch with family or friends paid for by employer (68%)
Being 'fast-tracked' for promotion (67%)
Lunch or drinks with colleagues paid for by employer (62%)
Access to internal training courses (62%)
Tickets to leisure or sporting activities for use with family/ friends (61%)
Option to gain experience in a different department within the organisation (58%)
Option to gain experience in a similar department in a different organisation (52%)
A couple of extra days off to do charity/ volunteer work (49%)
A promotion without pay rise (37%)


Pre-Christmas sale continues

Don’t forget, our special offers are still on with massive reductions of up to 65% on our contracts and staff handbooks.  These prices come after a great year for us and as a thank you to our customers’ support since we began trading in the UK in June 2008.

Don’t wait around for too long though, the prices won’t last forever!

If you have any questions about how Cleardocs can help with your employment document requirements, don’t hesitate to 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.

Comment

Legislation update - December

Added: 2009-12-09 14:29:06.0

The following is an update on what’s happened employment-legislation-wise in the past month:

The Queen’s speech and potential reform

On 18th November, the government outlined its legislative programme for the forthcoming parliamentary session in the Queen's speech.  However, with only a few months left until the last date on which a general election can be called, it is uncertain which parts of the programme will actually get onto the statute book.

If passed, the following draft legislation will have an impact on employment law:

• Financial Services Bill: aims to tackle the politically sensitive issue of bankers' pay.  New measures include giving the Financial Services Authority (FSA) the power to stop excessive payments and to cancel any pay awards which reward reckless risk-taking. A cap on bonuses, however, is conspicuously absent.
• Equality Bill:  will continue its passage through parliament (see previous posts for more on this).  It is a wide-ranging bill including reform of discrimination and pay discrepancy law.
• Agency Workers Regulations 2010: will provide agency workers with the right to be treated equally compared to permanent staff in terms of pay, holidays and other basic conditions from 1st October 2011.
• Bribery Bill: aims to tidy up existing law, but also introduces a new offence relating to companies that negligently allow employees or agents to pay bribes. 

As ever, Cleardocs will keep you posted on all of the above.

Apprenticeship, Skills, Children and Learning Act receives Royal Assent

The Apprenticeship, Skills, Children and Learning Act received Royal Assent on 12th November.  This will create new rights and standardised procedures for apprenticeships from 2013.  More imminent, however, is a new right for employees to request time off work to undertake study or training.  This will apply to those employed in businesses with 250 or more employees from 6 April 2010, and to all employees from April 2011.


Pre-Christmas sale continues

Don’t forget, our special offers are still on with massive reductions of up to 65% on our contracts and staff handbooks.  These prices come after a great year for us and as a thank you to our customers’ support since we began trading in the UK in June 2008.

Don’t wait around for too long though, the prices won’t last forever!

If you have any questions about how Cleardocs can help with your employment document requirements, don’t hesitate to 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.

Comment

ACAS helps businesses avoid over 2000 tribunal claims

Added: 2009-12-03 16:40:54.0

In just seven months since the introduction of their Pre-Claim Conciliation (PCC) service, ACAS have reported that it has helped organisations avoid over 2,000 employment tribunal claims.

ACAS’ PPC service seeks to save businesses the stress, money and most importantly time that a claim would usually consume.  It does this by ensuring that it tackles any problems early in order to prevent further damage to a business later on.  ACAS reports that typically, employers spent just over three days using the PCC service, compared to almost 14 days on a tribunal claim which could result in an employment tribunal hearing.

Since the PPC service was introduced, ACAS has handled 3,500 PCC referrals from the ACAS helpline and of these, 70% were resolved without going to tribunal.  

ACAS Chairman, Ed Sweeney commented: "It's reassuring that ACAS' PCC service has already helped businesses save a great deal of money – particularly in this economic climate.

"Furthermore, the new Code of Practice should also help encourage better communication and relationships, ultimately making businesses and employees happier and more productive."

"Over time, as managers, HR professionals and employees become further accustomed to resolving workplace disputes internally, savings will be even more significant."

ACAS has also reported that it has expanded its helpline to ensure that impartial information on employment relations issues is more readily available to employers and employees.

After months of bad news for employers, it would appear that services such as this offered by ACAS are softening the blow of the current economic climate.  As an employer, have you used the PPC service?  If so, how was it?  Or, is this the first time you’ve heard about it?  Let us know by commenting below.


Pre-Christmas sale continues

Don’t forget, our special offers are still on with massive reductions of up to 65% on our contracts and staff handbooks.  These prices come after a great year for us and as a thank you to our customers’ support since we began trading in the UK in June 2008.

Don’t wait around for too long though, the prices won’t last forever!

If you have any questions about how Cleardocs can help with your employment document requirements, don’t hesitate to 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.

Comment

Pre-Christmas special offers

Added: 2009-11-26 16:35:24.0
You may have noticed that Cleardocs have introduced some very special offers this week with massive reductions of up to 65% on our contracts and staff handbooks.  These prices come after a great year for us and as a thank you to our customers’ support since we began trading in the UK in June 2008.

Over the past year and a half, we’ve been committed to reducing the complexity of legal employment documentation and we’re delighted to be able to offer our fully customised and up-to-date documents at heavily discounted prices; all of which are covered by the Cleardocs Guarantee.

Don’t wait around for too long though, the prices won’t last forever!

If you have any questions about how Cleardocs can help with your employment document requirements, don’t hesitate to call us on 0845 474 0372.
Comment

Gender pay gap narrows - but are businesses measuring theirs?

Added: 2009-11-18 14:44:15.0
The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics reveal that the gender pay gap has narrowed in the past year for employees who work full-time on an hourly rate.

The current mean hourly full-time gender pay gap has narrowed from 17.1% to 16.4% in the past 12 months according to the 2009 Annual Survey of Hourly Earnings.

However, it has also been reported that only one in five companies measure their gender pay gaps.  This research, from the CIPD and KPMG shows that only 18% of private companies are making an effort to ensure that male and female staff are being paid equally.

The research also showed that of businesses operating in the public sector, where monitoring of equal pay is statutory, only 43% complete the necessary audits.  Perhaps more damaging is the fact that the chief reason proposed for these audits is “ticking the bureaucratic box rather than as part of an underlying effort to advance gender equality”.

CIPD diversity adviser Dianah Worman commented, “The Government faces an uphill struggle in its efforts to change employer attitudes to closing the gender pay gap”.

The Government’s proposed Equality Bill will aim to go to greater efforts to make companies measure their gender pay gaps and act on the findings.  They may even go as far as to force companies with over 250 staff to report their gender pay gaps by 2013 if there are not enough of them doing it voluntarily.  The Equality Bill is due to be passed in early 2010.

Do you measure your company’s gender pay gap?  Is this issue on your mind, or had you not considered it before?  We’d love to know how you feel about it and about the proposed Equality Bill. Let us know by commenting below.


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

Unemployment still high but rising slower

Added: 2009-11-13 13:57:02.0
The figures released this week show that UK unemployment is now at 2.46 million - but that the rise of 30,000 in three months is the smallest rise since May 2008.  Unemployment is now at 7.8% according to the stats released by the Office for National Statistics.

The good news is that part-time employment is growing: reaching a record high of 7.66 million with a rise of 86,000 in the last quarter.

However, the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance is the highest the UK has seen in twelve years.

The figures show signs of improvement and are not as high as were expected earlier on in the year.  Yvette Cooper, Secretary of state for work and pensions commented “The fact unemployment is significantly lower than everyone forecast at the beginning of the year shows the support Government is giving the economy is making a real difference."  

With Christmas approaching, many more businesses, particularly those in the retail sector, will look to take on temporary staff.  This may help the 18-24 year old job seekers who have been particularly badly hit by unemployment.  The number of unemployed 16-24 year-olds increased by 15,000 to 943,000 this quarter, the highest figure since records began in 1992.

How do you feel about the statistics – do you have any vacancies in your business or are you sticking to a recruitment freeze?  Or are you taking on more part-time or temporary staff?  Let us know by posting a comment below.

If you are taking on more temporary staff, don’t forget that Cleardocs can help with employment contracts for them.  Call us on 0845 474 0372 to find out how we can help you.


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

Comment

46% employees seek additional employment for extra cash

Added: 2009-11-09 09:36:24.0
A recent survey conducted by Hirescores.co.uk reveals that just under half of workers in specialist industries had earned extra money outside of work.  It appears that ‘moonlighting’ as it is also known has become yet another problem for employers created by the current economic climate.

According to the survey which polled 1,500 employees, 73% of hairdressers, 67% of mechanics, 59% of decorators, 65% of plumbers and 37% of IT technicians had been earning extra cash on the side.  Most of these instances saw workers providing their services for customers that they had met whilst at their usual place of work.

A third of the employees surveyed revealed that they couldn’t afford to not earn extra money outside of their normal job.  The recession has been credited for many of the problems that business owners and their staff have faced since things took a turn for the worse – and ‘moonlighting employees’ can be added to an ever-increasing list.

Lisette Howlett, Managing Director of Hirescores.co.uk commented "I'm not surprised that more and more people are using their trades outside of work to make some extra money, with so many people struggling to make ends meet.  However, it is important to stress that it is against the law to do this for ‘cash in hand'.  It could have serious insurance, or health and safety implications and I would strongly suggest people didn't do so. It is also worth noting that many employment contracts expressly disallow second jobs or alternative employment. Additionally most employers will have rules against employees making private arrangements with customers they met during their course of employment.  People assume they won't get caught but it is happening more often than you think."

Are any of your employees moonlighting for extra cash?  Are you OK with the situation or would you like it to stop?  Let us know by commenting below.

The Cleardocs standard employment contract includes clauses which prevent the employee from taking on a second job or alternative employment – to find out how this can work for you, 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.
Comment

Christopher Balmford in the UK

Added: 2009-10-20 15:13:08.0

Cleardocs founder Christopher Balmford will be in the UK next week - so we thought we'd take the opportunity to invite you to ask Christopher any questions you may have relating to the role plain English plays in the law, in your business or in your legal documents.

Christopher is an internationally recognised plain-language expert. He is the President of Clarity - An international association promoting plain legal language, see www.clarity-international.net. His clients include 8 major national law firms, 20 public listed companies, 16 government bodies, the ASX, the United Nations and the European Central Bank.

A former lawyer, Christopher has worked for Cleardocs in Australia since 1999.

Click here to see a Youtube clip of Christopher discussing the plain English campaign

Christopher will be over in the UK for 2 weeks - and will aim to answer any questions you may have personally.  To ask a question, send us an email with your question and your details to support@cleardocs.co.uk.  Alternatively, simply post your question as a comment below and Christopher will post the answer on the blog as quickly as possible.

Comment

All eyes on MPs

Added: 2009-10-19 15:06:41.0

There were a couple of highlights for employers in the news over the past week; following months-worth of debate surrounding the MPs expenses scandal and the retirement age debate.

Employers warned to tighten expenses policies

We’ve all read plenty of stories concerning MPs expenses over the last few months – with the latest being that both the Government and the Tories will ask their MPs to pay back money after a retrospective expenses audit.  Many MPs have had to step down since the scandal broke and it seems there will be a few more casualties in the near future.

However, the Institute of Payroll Professionals has warned employers that the whole debacle will have a knock-on effect when it comes to private businesses – and in particular their HR and finance departments.  The body has recommended that businesses should know their expenses policy inside out – to avoid potential contentious issues in the future.

The lack of an established expenses policy and the clear communication of this to staff is a risky business as the laws of dealing with overpayments of expenses are complex.  Businesses are therefore advised to make sure that the terms and conditions of their expenses policy is water tight.


Conservative retirement plans

The expenses row isn’t the only debate occurring in Parliament that employers will be taking note of.  Shadow chancellor George Osborne’s announcement that the Conservatives would raise the retirement age to 66 if they were to be elected was one of the major announcements of the Tory party conference a couple of weeks ago.  Since then, there’s been a lot of talk both inside and outside of Parliament – with the latest comment being from secretary of state for work and pensions, Yvette Cooper, labelling the plans as ‘unfair’.

Cooper, who is in favour of the removal of the default retirement age commented “I can understand that employees in their thirties might have to plan now to retire later [than expected] but I don't think it is fair to tell people in their fifties to rip their retirement plans up."

This is in reaction to Osborne’s announcement which would mean that from 2016 onwards, employees would be expected to retire at 66 rather than 65, regardless of what their current contract says.

Instead of this extension of the current system, Cooper is in favour of a complete review of the whole retirement law - "The default retirement age was brought in for good reason but now it needs to be reviewed. I have met employees who want to work on into their seventies, and some who would prefer to work part time. Today we are launching a call for evidence on the topic of retirement age."

As ever, Cleardocs will bring you more on this debate as it happens.



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

Comment

Employees understanding of cost cuts

Added: 2009-10-12 17:19:08.0
Recent research from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) suggests that employees are understanding when it comes to employers needing to cut costs; with just under half (49%) stating that they understand their employers’ decisions over reward and working hours because times are tough.

Previously on this blog, we’ve discussed the fact that many employers have looked to making pay cuts or to reducing working hours in order to avoid redundancies.  These findings would suggest that employees appreciate that in order to keep their jobs, these cuts are a necessity.

While 34% of those questioned admitted that they found the changes demotivating, only 8% said that the changes made them angry.  On the other hand, only 3% said that their employers’ decisive action in the current economic climate was motivating.

Jon Terry, partner and head of reward at PwC commented; "While workers are generally resigned to what the recession may mean for their pay and promotion prospects, communication between employers and employees can make all the difference between how this news is received and the level of trust in the relationship. And while a pay cut is never good news, some companies are showing their top performers how much they value them in other ways, such as explaining their succession plans or offering smaller ad-hoc awards for specific projects.”

Terry went on to say "Those who continued to offer their employees new opportunities and invested in their people pipeline are now at a competitive advantage."  

Have you needed to make pay cuts or reduce your employees’ working hours?  If so, how have your staff reacted?  Have they taken it badly?  Or have they realised that it is the less of two evils?  Let us know by commenting below.
Comment

Fewer employment tribunals but unfair dismissal claims continue to rise

Added: 2009-10-05 15:01:04.0
The latest statistics released by the Tribunals Service reveal that although the number of employment tribunals fell by 20% in the period of 2008-09, unfair dismissal claims are up by 29% – with the number of claims totalling 52,711.

Interestingly, the number of single claims (where one employee makes a claim against an employer, rather than multiple employees at the same time) has also risen; with 63,000 claims in 2008-09.  This may suggest the knock-on effect of the current economic climate – with single employees who have been made redundant seeking compensation from their previous employers.  

The rise in unfair dismissal claims and claims for redundancy pay (up 48%) would also suggest that the statistics have been affected by the recession.  Poor understanding of the redundancy process by employers has led to aggrieved past employees making claims against previous employers who have failed to follow the necessary procedures.

In terms of the amounts of compensation awarded, the figures make for interesting reading.  The highest figure awarded for an unfair dismissal was a hefty £84,500 (although a cap of £63,000 was introduced on the maximum payment for unfair dismissal, this figure includes a basic award as well). The average payment for unfair dismissal was £7,959.

However, the highest awards for claims such as race, sex and disability discrimination have seen much higher payouts:

• Race Discrimination: £1,353,432
• Sex Discrimination: £113,106
• Disability Discrimination: £388,612
• Age Discrimination: £90,031

In claims such as the above, the tribunal has the authority to award unlimited compensation; and much of the compensation to the claimant will be for the upset and distress or ‘injury to feelings' they have suffered as a result of their employer's discriminatory behaviour.

Although the decrease in tribunal claims will please employers, the rise in unfair dismissals and the high compensation figures could be a cause for concern .  Employers will want to make sure that they follow the necessary processes carefully and that their policies and procedures are in line and up to date.

As an employer, how do you feel about the latest statistics?  Do the high compensation amounts worry you or make you question the policies you have in place?  Or do you feel that you’re covered?  Let us know by commenting below.


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

October 2009 legislation changes

Added: 2009-10-01 17:40:44.0
Today sees several new pieces of employment legislation take effect.  The changes are the second round of legislation updates this year, with the last set being in April.  You can read more about the changes below – and naturally, Cleardocs will be on hand to guide you through the changes and any impact they may make to your business. 

All Cleardocs documents completed from today onwards are up-to-date with the legislation changes.  If you have any questions about how the changes affect documents that you have already purchased, call Cleardocs on 0845 474 0372 – or email us at support@cleardocs.co.uk.

Using tips to make up minimum wage

In November 2008 the government published a consultation paper on its proposal to prohibit service charges, tips and gratuities put through the payroll from counting towards the employer's payment of National Minimum Wage. Consultation on the paper closed on 16 February 2009.

Following the publication of the Government's response to the consultation the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS, formerly BERR) has announced that this practice will be made unlawful from today.

New National Minimum Wage rates announced

New rates of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) have been announced by the BIS (formerly BERR) which will apply from today. Business groups had pushed for the NMW to remain at current levels in light of the current economic climate, but the Low Pay Commission (LPC) who recommended the increase to the government, argues that the rise has been maintained at a minimum level in comparison to previous years.

The new rates which will apply from today are as follows;

• For workers aged 22 and over : £5.80 (currently £5.73)
• For workers aged 18 to 21 : £4.83 (currently £4.77)
• For workers aged 16 and 17 : £3.57 (currently £3.53)

The government also announced that the adult rate will be extended to include 21 year olds from October 2010. Also being developed is an LPC proposal that information on employers who have shown wilful disregard for minimum wage laws should be made available.

Statutory redundancy pay increase

The Government has announced that the weekly limit used for calculating the statutory redundancy pay is to increase from £350 to £380. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (formerly BERR) has now confirmed that this increase will take effect today. This rate will not rise again until February 2011, bypassing the usual annual up-rating in February 2010.

Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006

A new Independent Safeguarding Authority scheme will be launched on 12 October 2009. The scheme is designed to protect children and vulnerable adults, by setting up an online register which employers can check for free. Employers will be fined for not checking the register and may commit a criminal offence if they employ a barred individual for a regulated job.

Supreme Court Rules 2009 come into force

The Supreme Court Rules prescribe the practice and procedure that will apply in the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. The Supreme Court will replace the Appellate Committee of the House of Lords and comes into operation today. The Rules can be viewed on the OPSI website.

Data Protection (Notification and Notification Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2009 come into force
The Regulations amend the fee that must be paid by a data controller to register with the Information Commissioner. A data controller must be included on the register of data controllers maintained by the Information Commissioner in order to process personal data and pays a registration fee. The flat fee is being replaced by a two-tiered structure.

Centralised vetting system for people working with children and vulnerable adults comes into force

The Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act will introduce a centralised vetting system for people banned from working with children and vulnerable adults. Employers will be able to make checks online, with information updated straight away when any individual is added to the list.
Employers will be informed where possible if an individual becomes barred. There will be fines of up to £5,000 for employers that knowingly employ individuals on the list or fail to make the relevant checks.

Police Act 1997 (Criminal Records) (No. 2) Regulations 2009 come into force

The Regulations amend the purposes for which an application for an enhanced criminal records certificate can be made, to enable certificates to be sought for individuals undertaking regulated activities relating to children or vulnerable adults under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. The Regulations also prescribe the circumstances in which those making an application may receive information on whether or not an individual is prohibited from working with children or vulnerable adults.
 
If you have any questions about the above - or have any concerns about how these changes may affect your business or employment documents, don't hesitate to call Cleardocs 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.

Comment

Default Retirement Age to remain unchanged - for the time being...

Added: 2009-09-28 15:17:38.0
Friday saw the long awaited ruling from the High Court regarding the Default Retirement Age (DRA) of 65; with Mr Justice Blake ruling that it is still legal for an employer to force an employee to retire at 65 but that there is a case for the age to be raised.

Currently, employers are permitted to retire their employees at 65 on the grounds of age – regardless of whether the employee wants to leave or not.  The decision means that nothing has changed at present.  However, this ruling opens the door for the age to be raised when the Government comes to review the law in 2010 and it will be left to parliament to decide as to whether the DRA, which was introduced in 2006, is still “appropriate and necessary”.

Adam Marshall, director of policy at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), commented: "This was the right decision. The vast majority of businesses value their older employees and the considerable experience that they can bring to a firm. We do not believe there is evidence of widespread use or abuse of the system; only 1 in 4 businesses we surveyed use the default retirement age."
 
"Employees already have the right to request to postpone their retirement, and we believe the existing rules allow for the fairest outcome on both sides. Businesses need a period of stability to allow all the recent changes to employment legislation to bed down. They don't want more tinkering with employment rules."

However, The CIPD – which has backed the removal of the DRA – commented that the High Court had "missed a trick" to resolve the issue once and for all.  Dianah Worman, Diversity adviser, said: "The government itself has admitted that the days of the DRA are numbered. It seems counter-intuitive to drag this decision out even further while thousands of older people will be forced out of work in an already difficult jobs market."

There are currently 1.4 million people working past state pension age (65 for men, 60 for women), according to the most recent Labour Market figures from the Office of National Statistics. This shows a rise from 1.2 million people the last year.

Cleardocs will keep you updated with any developments on this issue, but for the time being, policies will not have to change.  The question will be whether the Government responds to pressure from the CIPD as well as charities such as Help the Aged and Age Concern to remove the DRA.  Although the review has been earmarked for 2010, it is expected that The Equality and Human Rights Commission is to ask the government to abolish the DRA using the Equality Bill, which is soon to be debated in the House of Lords, rather than wait until a review of the policy next year.

How do you feel about the ruling as an employer?  Do you want to be able to make your employees retire at 65?  Or do you feel that their experience is invaluable and that you want to keep them for as long as possible?  Let us know by leaving a comment.


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

Illness during annual leave: will it be the employers who are left sick?

Added: 2009-09-25 10:00:43.0
The European Court of Justice has ruled that employees who are sick during their annual leave should be allowed to reschedule their holiday – even if it carries over into the following year.

The announcement, which is bound to aggrieve some employers, has come into criticism, with naysayers believing that the ruling opens the door for employee abuse of the system; due to the ambiguity for employers when setting policy.

The current trend of thought would be that if an employee falls ill when on holiday/taking annual leave, it is purely bad luck.  However, under the new ruling (which have yet to be defined for the UK), this employee would be able to claim the leave back – and possibly carry it into their annual leave for the following year.

Until the European or UK courts clarify the situation, most employers will continue to use the same policies as they currently have – as some employers are already flexible with sickness whilst on holiday.
 
One of the questions will be whether the government will amend the Working Time Directive to allow up to 28 days annual leave to be carried over to the following year – as opposed to the current limit of 8 days.  The government has declined to comment thus far.

When asked whether the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills was considering changing the law or awaiting case law, a spokesman said: "We are examining the terms of the judgment and will consider issuing further guidance in due course."

As ever, Cleardocs will keep you updated with any developments.

As an employer, how do you feel about the ruling?  Do you think that your employees will try to cheat the system to get more holiday?  Or do you think that workers need to be given the trust to act responsibly?  Let us know by commenting below.


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

Can you trust your staff?

Added: 2009-09-04 13:39:34.0

Can you trust your staff?

According to research by the CIFAS, dishonesty and fraudulent acts from workers is on the rise: dishonest actions by employees to obtain benefits by theft and deception have increased by 69% since 2008, according to the CIFAS Staff Fraud Database.

The report from the UK's Fraud Prevention Service shows that the effects of the recession can go deeper than expected for companies as staff are appearing to experiment with fraudulent activities that may have not been considered before – such as the falsification of expenses or time sheets and targets.  From July to December 2008 there were 59 court cases of this type of fraud in the UK, compared with 100 since January 2009.

CIFAS chief executive Peter Hurst, commented; "While it remains true that most employees are completely trustworthy, these figures do show that the impact of the current recession has been severe. Desperate times do indeed lead to desperate measures, and businesses need to put in place all possible controls to ensure that they, their employees and customers are not subjected to fraud risks that can be avoided."

Laura Davis, MD HR Solutions 4 U agrees with Peter and goes on to say that 'Whether dealing with unauthorised absence, poor time keeping or suspected fraud, the employer must follow written and communicated policies and procedures. An up to date staff handbook is a 'must-have' for all employers and could save everyone involved a lot of time, money and unpleasantness'.

How do you feel about these reports?  Do you feel like you can trust your staff – have you seen a rise in what you would consider dishonest behaviour?  Or is this all scaremongering?  Let us know your thoughts by commenting below.

SME survey - There’s still time to have your say.

Last week, we showed you some early results from our SME survey (see previous blog post).

We’re closing the competition at midnight on 11th September – so you need to be quick in order to have your say and to enter the competition to win a copy of 'The Employers Handbook' published by Kogan Page and the Institute of Directors.

It will take you less than 5 minutes to complete the survey so please click the link below while it is fresh in your mind.

To complete the survey, click here

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

Comment

SME survey - the results so far

Added: 2009-08-20 09:38:42.0
Over the last few weeks, we’ve asked Cleardocs customers for their views on the recession, the impact it has had on your business and the role of the media. Here’s what we’ve been told so far;

• Over half (57%) told us that they had not made staff redundant, however 43% said that they had needed to make stuff cuts due to the credit crunch.        
• 90% believe the UK economy is in recession.        
• We asked whether the media is responsible for hyping-up the economic situation. Nearly half said they thought so (47%) and just over half (53%) thought the media is partly to blame.
• Another 53% thought that - in general - the media does encourage employees to pursue claims against employers: Over a quarter (28%) think the media does not encourages employee claims, and 19% are unsure.    
• More than two thirds (76%) thought that the increase in the number of employees making claims in the courts is in direct proportion with the number of job losses, and the media exaggerates the statistics to make headlines.
• Almost three quarters  (72%) told us that they would like to know more how to manage the risks that employees may pose to their business.

There’s still time to have your say.

Take part in our survey and you will automatically be entered into a prize draw to win 'The Employers Handbook' published by Kogan Page and the Institute of Directors. The book is considered the definitive guide to business owners and deals with just about any and all aspects of employing people. We are giving away the hardback version for durability and long shelf life - worth £40.

It will take you less than 5 minutes to complete the survey so please click the link below while it is fresh in your mind.

To complete the survey, click here


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

In the news

Added: 2009-08-10 16:41:16.0
In the news

There have been some news stories of interest for SMEs in the past week:

Over half of UK businesses considering redundancy according to British Chamber of Commerce

The British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) has released its Monthly Business Survey and it doesn’t make for encouraging reading:

• Of 450 UK companies (mostly SMEs) surveyed, 51% have revealed that they are ‘considering’ or ‘certain’ to make employees redundant over the next six months.
• None of the businesses surveyed plan to increase stock holdings. 83% will maintain stock at their current levels, while 17% will decrease stock in the next 3 months.
• 1 in 5 businesses see growth returning to the UK economy by the end of 2009, while 1 in 2 are more uncertain and do not see growth returning until the first half of 2010.
  

The report continues the trend of demoralising statistics for SMEs in the current economic climate.


SMEs worries about redundancy repercussions

Business insurer Premierline Direct recently carried out a survey concerning redundancies and how they have affected or would affect SMEs.  Of the company bosses asked, the research showed the following:

• 64% think staff would be out for revenge following redundancies;
• 55% think that employees will look to increase their compensation payouts following redundancy;
• 73% are worried that they do not have the funds available for compensations, should they be sued by the employee for unfair dismissal etc; and
• 37% are concerned that they would be sued for not following the correct redundancy procedures.
  

What’s more, of the bosses surveyed who have had to make redundancies, a staggering 37% did not receive any legal or HR advice before starting the redundancy process.  

SME redundancies survey

Do you run a SME?  If so, how do you feel about the statistics above?  We’ve put together our own survey to see how Cleardocs customers feel about the current economic climate.  Are things really as bad as we’re being told?

Take part in our survey and you will automatically be entered into a prize draw to win 'The Employers Handbook' published by Kogan Page and the Institute of Directors. The book is considered the definitive guide to business owners and deals with just about any and all aspects of employing people. We are giving away the hardback version for durability and long shelf life - worth £40

It will take you less than 5 minutes to complete the survey so please click the link below while it is fresh in your mind.

To complete the survey, click here


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

Employment Legislation Update

Added: 2009-08-03 16:06:05.0

Equality bill developments

Last month, we gave you an update on the Equality bill and since then, it has completed the committee stage:

The Equality Bill 2008-09, which is intended to consolidate all discrimination and equality legislation into a single statute, completed its committee stage in the House of Commons on 7 July 2009. Relatively few amendments were made to the Bill, the most notable being the introduction of a new clause dealing with multiple discrimination, and changes to the definition of pregnancy and maternity discrimination.

Background

The Equality Bill was first introduced in the House of Commons on 24th April 2009, it received a second reading in May, and has now progressed through the Committee Stage. The Bill aims to consolidate and simplify the existing law on discrimination and equality.

Amendments to the Bill

The most significant amendment was the insertion of a clause dealing with "multiple discrimination". This will enable direct discrimination claims to be brought in relation to a combination of any two of the following protected characteristics: age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. The amendment which would permit claims for direct discrimination and harassment on multiple grounds was considered "unduly complex".

The provisions prohibiting an employer treating a woman less favourably for a reason related to pregnancy or maternity have been redrafted to use the word 'unfavourable' treatment (rather than less favourable). This is considered to be a "more transparent and accurate reflection of current EU law".

Other amendments which were put forward and debated include increased protection for paternity and a widened the definition of gender reassignment. New clauses which would make it unlawful to make 'prohibited pre-employment inquiries' were also proposed. The latter was in response to submissions from the disability lobby that disabled people suffer discrimination at the recruitment stage. The Solicitor General acknowledged that this was something the Government would consider further and indicated that a clause would be introduced at the Report stage.

The amendments that were made do not come as any surprise. It is interesting however, that the Government will be looking again at discrimination provisions, despite the work already undertaken on this when the Bill was first drafted.

The Bill progresses to the Report Stage, although this is likely to take place after the summer Parliamentary Recess. Following this it should proceed to the House of Lords in the autumn.

New BIS Guidance on TUPE

The Department for Business Innovation & Skills (BIS) has published "Employment Rights on the transfer of an undertaking (June 2009)," a new guide, about TUPE. This replaces the March 2007 version and reflects the changes to the disciplinary and grievance employee liability information which have arisen following the repeal of the statutory dispute resolution procedures. Please click here to view the Guide.

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

Comment

22% rise in unfair dismissal claims

Added: 2009-07-27 15:12:31.0
ACAS has reported that it has received 55,000 unfair dismissal claims in the past year – a significant increase of almost 12,000 (22%) from the same period last year.  

This 22% rise has been accredited to the current economic climate.

Calls to the ACAS helpline, which specialises in advising businesses how to deal with redundancies have also steadily risen over the past year.  The helpline receives 10,000-15,000 calls per week and has seen calls associated with redundancy double.

Employers have been advised to ensure that their policies and procedures are compliant and up-to-date in order to make sure that any disgruntled ex-staff members do not have a case should they take legal action following redundancies.

Ed Sweeney, Acas Chair commented: "The figures in this report underline the strain that businesses and individuals have had to face in the last year.

Our helpline – which acts as a barometer for the state of the UK workplace – has seen a huge rise in demand for advice on redundancies. In the face of these challenges, our focus has been on getting the right advice to businesses and employees so that they can ultimately save time, money and stress."

Sweeney continued: "We are confident that the new guidelines we implemented on dealing with dispute resolution and workplace conflict will have a positive impact over the next year. This will encourage employers and employees to resolve workplace problems early on, to prevent costly and stressful employment tribunals."

If you need to check that your employment policies and procedures are in check, give us a call 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.

Comment

Cost-cutting now, long-term damage later?

Added: 2009-07-14 09:21:18.0
In times like these, running a small business can be hard. Trying to balance the budget with potentially lower profits can be a minefield and there is always a tendency to try and cut costs, cut-corners and save a bit of cash here and there.  However, there are certain areas where this could end up doing greater damage in the long run - businesses need to take care of their staff now to avoid them jumping ship later.

According to a survey carried out by management consultants Watson Wyatt, 43% of businesses in the UK are looking to reduce staff numbers and 70% will not make any wage increases.  This is combined with over two thirds of businesses planning to reward high performers, rather than staff with essential business skills.

Carole Hathaway, European head of strategic reward consulting at Watson Wyatt, said: "Despite a majority of companies claiming to have a greater focus on their key talent, few are supporting this by actually targeting their reward spend on them. Top performers are not necessarily the same as those with business-critical skills.”

"Few companies appear to have the reward and performance programmes that enable them to make this important distinction. But failure to reward adequately those with business critical skills - as well as high performers - can have implications on retaining these key workers when the economy recovers."

Of the businesses surveyed:

• 75% have increased communication surrounding changes;
• 74% are communicating business results better;
• 45% have higher visibility of senior management;
• 41% have increased communication surrounding pay and bonuses; and
• 35% plan to have a greater focus on mentoring programmes.
  

 

How has the current economic climate affected your business?  Have you needed to make staff cuts – or have you made changes in working hours etc to try to ensure you keep people in employment?  Do you reward high performers or those whose skills contribute to the steady running of the company?  We’d love to hear from you below.


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

Comment

Flexible Working proves popular

Added: 2009-06-23 17:21:15.0
According to recent research carried out by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), flexible working, extra holiday allowance, shutdown periods and cuts in paid overtime have become more popular, largely due to the current economic climate.

In particular, the changes to legislation regarding who could apply for flexible working have made a clear impact with 45% of employers increasing flexible working and a further 24% considering making increases.

The UK-widesurvey, whose 704 respondents employ a total of 3m, showed that the recession and rising unemployment have taken a severe toll, with over half of employers (55%) indicating that they were going to freeze pay during the next pay round, while 39% expect to make a modest increase.

Staff training has also suffered – with 44% of businesses cutting spending on training.

John Cridland, CBI deputy director-general, commented: "This has been a particularly bruising recession but one of the most positive and striking aspects has been the commitment of many businesses and their staff to work together to try to trim costs and save jobs.

"While pay and recruitment freezes should disappear as the economy recovers, the spirit of flexibility and the willingness of many staff to engage positively with employers on these issues will hopefully be a more permanent benefit of the UK economy."

How do you feel about these statistics?  Are they in line with what is happening in your business?  Would you rather adjust your staff’s hours or make them redundant?  Let us know by commenting below.


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

Comment

Employment Legislation Update

Added: 2009-06-09 14:11:18.0

There’s been some developments in employment legislation in the past month:

Equality Bill: Second Reading in House of Commons

Last month, we told you about The Equality Bill 2008-2009 and in the past few weeks, the Bill has received its Second Reading in the House of Commons.  This means it will now progress to a clause-by-clause consideration in a Public Bill Committee.  Although the vote on Second Reading resulted in a comfortable majority of more than 2:1 for the Government, it does suggest that there is considerable opposition to some aspects of the Bill as drafted, and there is likely to be some fierce debate in Committee.

One of the provisions that attracted a lot of debate was the proposal to make employers with over 250 employees publish average gender pay gap figures.  One of the Conservatives' proposed amendments would require employers to carry out a "gender pay audit" (which would presumably go further than the Government's current proposal of merely publishing average pay rates for men and women). While this would apply to employers of all sizes, it would be restricted to those who had lost an equal pay case in tribunal.

Using tips to make up minimum wage

In November 2008 the government published a consultation paper on its proposal to prohibit service charges, tips and gratuities put through the payroll from counting towards the employer's payment of National Minimum Wage. Consultation on the paper closed on 16 February 2009.

Following the publication of the Government's response to the consultation the Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform (BERR) has announced that this practice will be made unlawful from 1 October 2009.  There have also been suggestions that a new industry code of best practice will be produced at this time.

New National Minimum Wage rates announced

New rates of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) have been announced by the BERR which will apply from October 2009.  Business groups had pushed for the NMW to remain at current levels in light of the current economic climate, but the Low Pay Commission (LPC) who recommended the increase to the government, argues that the rise has been maintained at a minimum level in comparison to previous years.

The new rates which willapply from October 2009 are as follows;

• For workers aged 22 and over: £5.80 (currently £5.73)
• For workers aged 18 to 21: £4.83 (currently £4.77)
• For workers aged 16 and 17: £3.57 (currently £3.53)
  

The government also announced that the adult rate will be extended to include 21 year olds from October 2010.  Also being developed is an LPC proposal that information on employers who have shown wilful disregard for minimum wage laws should be made available. The government is expected to respond later in the summer to an earlier proposal that there should be a minimum wage for apprentices.

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

Comment

Cleardocs launches Consultancy Agreements - reflecting customer demand in the global financial crisis

Added: 2009-05-27 11:59:00.0

When speaking to our customers over the last 6 months, they have given us valuable input as to which documents they would like us to develop.  Combined with that and the expertise at Ashfords solicitors, we’ve been able to create our latest offering – the Cleardocs Consultancy Agreement.

As the economic crisis continues, it is increasingly common for businesses to engage consultants for specific tasks, rather than add extra employees.  As a result of this, we’ve worked with Ashfords to introduce our online, tailored Consultancy Agreement.  With this, a business can create a versatile document, customised for their organisation and for their plans to work with an independent consultant.

When relevant, we’ll also provide a Deed of Adherence – which gives the added protection needed when the consulting entity is a company.  The Deed of Adherence requires the individual who is actually doing the work to give direct undertakings and promises to the organisation using the consultant’s services.

As with some of our other products, the Consultancy Agreement also benefits from additional CleardocsConfirm options – our service that gives you the chance to access specific legal support from Ashfords without the heartache of large, unexpected legal fees.

Christopher Balmford, Cleardocs founder, commented  “Sad to say, but because of the challenges that employers face in the current economic climate, our new Consultancy Agreement suits the times.  As does our existing Redundancy Letters package and our Compromise Agreement. Happily, our Employment Contracts and Staff Handbooks are relevant in good times too.  But with the new Cleardocs Consultancy Agreement, we really are responding to customer demand — much of it driven by the global financial crisis.”

The Consultancy Agreement is an important addition to our product range and is part of our long-term commitment to reducing the complexity — and improving the clarity and simplicity — of legal employment documents in England and Wales.


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

 

Comment

RSM Bentley Jennison teams up with Cleardocs to launch 4staffhandbooks

Added: 2009-05-19 16:21:24.0

Employment Tribunal cases have increased by almost 50% in the last three years - and small to medium businesses face potential difficulties if they don’t pay enough attention to employee and workplace regulations.

Business service advisers RSM Bentley Jennison have reacted to this and have worked with Cleardocs to create 4staffhandbooks which provides:

• a plain English staff handbook detailing all the employment policies and procedures an employer is required to implement, combined with
• a simple testing tool to ensure staff understand the guidelines — and to prove that fact to the tribunal if needed.
  

 

Cleardocs founder and Chairman, Christopher Balmford commented “unlike large businesses that can afford to employ dedicated HR managers, most small business owners have to try to manage staff relations themselves, in addition to the day to day running and financial control of the business. The 4staffhandbooks tool uses HR best practice policies to equip small employers with high-level staff guidelines that are aligned with ACASs recommendations.”

RSM Bentley Jennison is one of the UK’s fastest growing professional services firms, with leadership in the provision of risk management and business advisory services to owner managed businesses, corporates and the public sector.  4staffhandbooks has been developed as part of its range of computer based awareness training programs and is a system to ensure staff are aware of, and understand, their employer’s policies. The software tool delivers the online staff handbook and employees can be asked to undertake a short test on a regular basis. This tool helps an organisation monitor its employees’ understanding of procedures and policies and can help prove to a tribunal that the employer was active in communicating its policies to employees to ensure all employees were fully aware and knew how to comply with the policies, guidelines and procedures.

“Tribunal costs can be material and cause real problems for a business, especially during the current tumultuous times.  4staffhandbooks gives businesses confirmation that all policies, procedures and legislative changes have been fully communicated.  The full reporting and tracking facilities available through the software, give a business real assurance that they are effectively managing their vicarious liabilities” added Adrian Woodcock, Director, RSM Bentley Jennison.

Naturally, as with the Cleardocs Staff Handbook, the documents provided by 4staffhandbooks are updated with every change in legislation - along with recommendations for staff to review the amended guidelines and complete the new test.  These updates and changes are provided by Ashfords, the law firm that Cleardocs uses for all of its documents.

“The most exciting aspect of this product is the fact that small and medium size businesses now have access to the most sophisticated HR management tools previously only affordable for major organisations. Instead of worrying about unfair dismissal claims and legal action, business owners can focus on creating a more proactive, positive work environment to capitalise on their most valuable resource – their staff,” Mr. Woodcock concluded.

Take a look at 4staffhandbooks here


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

UK to retain opt-out from 48-hour week Working Time Directive

Added: 2009-05-12 09:33:08.0
A couple of weeks ago, we reported that the right to allow EU member states to opt-out of the Working Time Directive was under review in Brussels.  However, since then:

• negotiations at the European Parliament have broken down; and
• the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) has confirmed that the UK will retain its opt-out
  

This means that the plan introduced by the European Parliament to phase in a maximum 48-hour working week for employees over the next three years has been abandoned.  At the negotiations, it was agreed that since the UK and others had fought strongly against the regulations, there was no value in continuing the discussion.

Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) commented “This sends a strong message to the world that the UK is a good place to do business.”

What does this mean for you?

Had the UK been forced to adopt the 48-hour Working Time Directive, this would have required employers to incorporate a change into their HR documents.  As it stands though, no changes are required – as long as your staff’s contracts are up-to-date.

If you have a Cleardocs Standard Employment Contract, you’re covered anyway.  The 48-hour employee opt-out form that you downloaded will still stand – and this acts as the agreement between you and your employee that they may be required to work for longer than 48 hours a week.

If you don’t have up-to-date contracts for your employees, or want to know more about the opt-out, give us a call on 0845 474 0372.  We’d be happy to fill you in.

How do you feel about this?

Are you an employer or an employee?  How do you feel about the opt-out?  Had you wanted to limit your/your employees’ hours?  Share your thoughts with us by commenting below.


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

Employment Legislation Update

Added: 2009-05-08 11:50:52.0
There’s been a few developments in employment legislation in the past month:

Equality Bill

The long-awaited Equality Bill has now been published.  The Bill is intended to combine all of the existing legislation on discrimination into one single statute.  

Although the Bill will no doubt be subject to considerable debate and amendment before coming into force, some of the main points to note are that it:

• allows positive discrimination during recruitment in favour of disadvantaged groups when faced with candidates who are otherwise equally qualified
• reverses the case Malcolm v London Borough of Lewisham, and abolishes the list of areas in which a disability must impact (eg mobility, manual dexterity, memory or ability to learn, concentrate or understand etc.)
• contains a clause allowing the Secretary of State to order employers with more than 250 employees to publish information about disparities in pay between male and female employees (although it may be that this power will not be used for a further four years)
• outlaws any clauses in employment contracts which impose a secrecy obligation stopping employees discussing their pay package
• introduces a new duty for some key public bodies to pay due regard to socio-economic disadvantage in making strategic decisions
• extends public sector duties to ensure equality to age discrimination
• gives effect to recent European caselaw by outlawing discrimination by association
  

Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines (Amendment) Regulations 2009

From 1 April 2009, employers or individuals who do not pay employment tribunal awards will be "named and shamed". The defaulters will be added to the Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines if enforcement proceedings are brought against them in a county court.

Members of the public and credit reference agencies will be able to check the register, which the Government hopes will provide an incentive for timely payment, and give weight to tribunal rulings.

National Minimum Wage updated rates — and increased enforcement and penalties

The Employment Act 2008 has introduced new penalties for the underpayment of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) by employers, in the same month as the NMW reaches its 10th anniversary.
New rates

The NMW:

• for workers over 22 years old is £5.73  (a 59% rise since its introduction in 1999, when it was £3.60)
• for 18 – 21 year olds, is £4.77
• for 16 and 17 year olds, is £3.53.
  

These NMW rates will increase again in October 2009.

Penalties for underpaying employers
On 6th April 2009, the enforcement procedures for NMW were overhauled. From that date, employers face a penalty if HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) discover they have failed to pay the NMW — workers will be entitled to have arrears of wages repaid at current rates.

The Act also:

• gives HMRC compliance officers new inspection powers and
• strengthens the criminal regime for national minimum wage offences.
  

If an HMRC investigation reveals underpayment, then the HMRC may require the employer:

• to repay arrears to the workers; and
• to pay a penalty to the Secretary of State.
  

The penalty is 50% of the total underpayment — with a minimum of £100 and a maximum of £5,000. However, if a penalised employer complies fully with the notice of underpayment within 14 days of service will receive a discount of 50% on the penalty.

Know the rates
The new penalties make it more important than ever for employers:

• to be familiar with the current wage rates for their employees
• to keep proper records of the wages they pay to their workers and the permitted deductions.
  

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

Comment

New look blog

Added: 2009-04-28 15:34:09.0

We’re delighted to announce the launch of the new look blog!

Since launching the blog last November, we’ve tried to keep you updated with what we’re up to – whilst also keeping you posted with all the employment legislation changes and of course those April 6th updates that we continued to go on about!

Although it was good to be able to bring you this, we were missing the functionality that make other blogs so useful – especially the ability for you to comment on our posts and to follow us via RSS feed.  So we’ve worked on this and are happy to now announce that these are fully functional.

We hope you like the new style.  Feel free to comment below!

As always, we hope that this goes further in helping Cleardocs to continue to represent clarity, simplicity and ease of use.

The Cleardocs Team

P.S. Did you know that we’re also on Twitter? – http://twitter.com/cleardocs

 

Comment

Confidence in Pensions rising again, or is it?

Added: 2009-04-27 16:54:44.0

It has been reported this week that confidence in pension schemes is rising again, according to research by the National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF).  However, are these stats an accurate representation of how people are really feeling?

The report outlines that employer confidence in pensions has risen by from +1% in December 2008 to +7% in April 2009, according to the industry body’s Pensions Confidence Index.  Added to this is the news that over a third of employees have stated that out of all the benefits on offer, a pension is the most attractive, with 34% preferring a pension over extra holiday or a bonus.

In contrast, bonuses and, interestingly, flexible working have declined in popularity – in the same month that the Government has changed the law, and by doing so, opened the doors for thousands more parents to apply for flexible working - as previously reported on this blog [insert link here].

Furthermore, 47% of employees who said they had no access to a pension at work said they would feel more loyalty towards their employer if they did offer a pension.  This is combined with 39% of employees rating pensions as the best way to save for retirement, compared with 20% preferring investment in property.

However, the CEO of NAPF warned that “Confidence in pensions is better than it was a year ago. But the current economic environment means that whilst employee confidence in pensions remains positive, it is also very fragile.”

In the current economic climate and with such job uncertainty, it could be argued that these statistics are not a fair representation of how employees feel.  Perhaps what is more certain is that staff would rather stay employed, show willingness to work and show loyalty and commitment to their employer – rather than opt for short term gratification in the form of bonuses and extra holiday.  An employee whose job may be in the balance may feel that the last thing their employer wants to see is a bonus request, the desire for extra time off or an application for flexible working.  With this in mind, perhaps what these statistics actually show is that workers’ highest priority is job security.

How do you feel about pensions – as an employer or an employee?  Do you agree with these statistics?  Post a comment below to let us know how you feel.

For the full NAPF Report, click here.

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

Comment

UK Government still defiant against 48-hour Working Time Directive

Added: 2009-04-27 16:52:33.0
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.

Comment

April 6th

Added: 2009-04-27 16:50:20.0
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.

Comment

The default retirement age debate continues

Added: 2009-04-27 16:50:03.0

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.

Comment

Those April changes and how Cleardocs will be implementing them

Added: 2009-04-27 16:49:44.0
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.

Comment

Product Spotlight - the Cleardocs Best Practice Handbook

Added: 2009-04-27 16:48:54.0
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.

Comment

Legislation update - Changes just around the corner

Added: 2009-04-27 16:48:32.0
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.

Comment

Did you know - Employment Contracts

Added: 2009-04-27 16:48:12.0

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

Comment

Legislation update - new ACAS Code of Practice

Added: 2009-04-27 16:47:47.0

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.

Comment

Legislation update - Increases in statutory payments

Added: 2009-04-27 16:47:11.0
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.
Comment

Legislation Update - Holiday entitlement and flexible working

Added: 2009-04-27 16:46:24.0
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.
Comment

Did you know? - Redundancies

Added: 2009-04-27 16:46:02.0
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.
Comment

Legislation update - Compensation and Redundancy payment increase

Added: 2009-04-27 16:41:21.0
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.
Comment

Compromise Agreement launch

Added: 2009-04-27 16:40:47.0

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.

Comment

Employment Law and what to expect in 2009

Added: 2009-04-27 16:38:19.0

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.

Comment

CleardocsConfirm

Added: 2009-04-27 16:37:48.0

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.

Comment

Redundancy Notification Launch

Added: 2009-04-27 15:30:37.0

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.

Comment

Welcome

Added: 2009-04-27 15:11:09.0

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

Comment Visit the Cleardocs blog main page