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It’s that time of year where 4 little words strike fear into the heart of the HR department, “the work Christmas party”. The CEO wants free drinks all round, followed by shots and all the good times. The HR director aka “the fun police” wants a sensible limit on drinks and no shots. Its not that HR don’t like a drink, I can only speak for myself of course but personally I love a good night out! The trouble is any HR professional you meet will have a Christmas party story of doom to share. For instance, there was the time an employee got so drunk, they striped off and ran naked round the dancefloor, or the time after the party where the Company was banned from ever booking the coach company again due to the river of vomit which cascaded down the aisle, their words. There was the punch up between senior managers, the time someone threw bread rolls at the MD and whilst these are the amusing stories there have also been the serious complaints. The problem is, work parties, Christmas ones or otherwise, are a law employment minefield waiting to happen. To illustrate this point there have been a number of employment tribunals. Sexual harassment which took place at a pub and was deemed to be in the “course of work”. In the course of work being defined as events which occur after work with a group of employees or are organised work events. The cases of dismissal happening due to the behaviour of intoxicated employees which have subsequently been deemed unfair at tribunal due to the unlimited free alcohol which was provided by the employer. Then however, there was an incident of a fight at the end of a work Christmas party resulting in dismissal which was upheld. This demonstrates that it is acceptable for misconduct at work events to be dealt with, provided it can be proved it had an effect on the work environment. There was the devastating case of an MD causing an employee brain damage when he punched him and despite the fact it was a separate after the party, party, because the MD was paying and given his seniority the tribunal found him to be liable. Then of course there’s employees being AWOL after the Christmas party. The not so harmless gossip, for which there is case law resulting in an employee winning a case for constructive dismissal, after she was the subject of gossip following a Christmas party. And drunken promises of a pay increases which also led to a claim for constructive dismissal, when it did not materialise, Whilst this was not upheld, claims are costly to defend. So how to have a good time and not find yourself nursing more than a hangover the next day. Well, it goes without saying that you must ensure you have your policies up to date, especially the disciplinary one which outlines what constitutes gross misconduct including AWOL. Christmas parties should not be mandatory not everyone wants to attend but they should be inclusive, make sure you cater for those who don’t drink or eat certain foods. Be clear on what is unacceptable behaviour and what the consequences will be. Make sure managers are responsible for their staff, someone still needs to be monitoring events and ensuring things don’t get out of hand. Consider limiting drinks it may at least slow down the drinking and consider what should be freely on offer, i.e doubles, shots etc . Employers have the best of intentions when it comes to Christmas parties, they want to treat employees to a free night out and celebrate the end of the year. The trouble is as an employer you are still responsible for the behaviour of your staff at what is ultimately an extension of the working day, throw unlimited alcohol in the mix and things can get out of hand. Having boundaries and clearly outlining the expected behaviour from staff is not being a party pooper but making sure that everyone has fun and that HR have nothing to do the following day! Put these things in place and hopefully you can enjoy a stress free party.

According to a story in People Management (November 2024), which highlights a report published by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), around 33.7 million working days have been lost as a result of work-related ill health or injury in the past year. 1.7 million workers reported experiencing work-related ill health and 776,000 cited stress, depression or anxiety as the cause, with 543,000 experiencing musculoskeletal disorders. The cost of these injuries and ill health? £21.6bn. There will always be an element of employee absence and times when even your best performing employees are not at their peak, striving for zero absence or issues is not the goal. There are also wide-ranging factors which can have a knock on effect on employee health, according to a report by the Commission for Healthier Working Lives. Unsurprisingly, those employees facing job uncertainty experience poorer health, especially mental health issues. In addition, long hours, weekend working and shifts affect mental and physical health also leading to unhealthier lifestyles. Being over or underemployed, the hours employees want to work vs the hours they do, demanding and stressful work, discrimination, bullying, poor work relationships and autonomy have all been found to increase ill health. With a list that comprehensive it can be difficult for employers to know where to start and yet there is a duty of care to protect the health and wellbeing of employees, the financial cost notwithstanding. So what approach should you be taking? Will in the first instance it is a good idea to understand what your absence figures look like and what the reasons for absence are. Managers should be having conversations when their team members are off sick, in the form of check ins, agree when you will speak to your employee to find out how they are. Conducting return to work interviews is a must for two reasons, one to ensure the employee is well enough to return to work and secondly to understand the absence and the reason for it. This may seem time consuming and unnecessary, but it is much better to catch any issues early as well as providing a supportive environment and if needed making reasonable adjustments. Encourage open communication by creating an environment where employees feel it is safe to talk about challenges, struggles and issues. Again, dealing with any problems early will allow you to get ahead of them and provide solutions. Make sure employees know who they can talk to if they are experiencing mental health issues. Training is key for managers to be able to recognise and deal with wellbeing issues and mental health first aid training is widely available. Understand whether you have an issue with presenteeism, do you have employees who show up for work even when they should be off sick and what is driving that. On the face of it this may not seem like an issue, However, it is likely that they will not be as productive and will make themselves more ill, meaning when they do take time off they will be off for longer. Do you have an “always on culture”, where employees are expected to answer emails or calls, however late or at weekends. Make sure you have boundaries in place so that employees can switch off from work and rest. Whilst the “right to switch off” is not law in the UK, the Government is consulting with employers about a code of practice, there is little information about what this will look like at this time. However, having good practices in place now will mean you are one step ahead. Ultimately, whilst health and wellbeing initiatives are useful what is important is the culture of an organisation. Senior management need to prioritise the health of their employees through training managers, understanding absence and the reasons, fostering good communication and modelling good work practices. Your bottom line, productivity and employee absence and turnover figures will thank you for it. Need help contact me at bev@bdhr.co.uk.

In my previous blog I explored flexible working and the importance of having not only a good policy in place to deal with requests but also an understanding of how to approach requests, given that this is now a day one right. But what about hybrid working? There is a lot of debate currently raging about employees being forced to return to the office and the disconnect between what senior management want and what employees want. Of course, in 2020 when COVID hit the ability of businesses to move employees to home working meant that many businesses could keep operating. This was of course a stressful time for everyone, with people having to find room to work and many also having to deal with home schooling their children. With COVID restrictions lasting longer than many anticipated we all got used to working from home. No more commuting, no more having to get dressed to go to the office, more time to go to the gym or lie in bed or walk the dog (insert depending on your own preference). Many businesses have recognised that employees like the flexibility of working from home and that this approach has many benefits, including increased productivity, reduced burnout, no commuting stress and less cost. It has also been shown to improve employee satisfaction and retention and has supported those who employees who are balancing work with children and / or caring responsibilities. For employers hybrid working has given access to a wider talent pool as prospective employees may be happy to commute further for a couple of days but not the whole week and fully remote employees can be based anywhere. Many business have been able to reduce the cost of office space, as they do not need to accommodate all employees in the office at the same time and employee engagement is also improved when employees have more control over how they work. Of course it isn’t without its challenges. There can be a sense of isolation, particularly, if others are in the office full time or at different times leading to a lack of team cohesion. There has been a lot of discussion around inequity between remote and on-site workers, especially around opportunities, promotions or projects. Lastly, it is harder to sustain workplace culture, if you’re working from home you could be working for anyone, colleagues don’t build the same relationships if they do not interact as much. Many employers have mandated a full time return to the office as they believe that productivity is more difficult to manage, communication is not as effective, managing staff is tricker and collaboration is improved in person. This approach has alienated many employees and we have all seen the negative stories in the press of the approaches to ‘making’ employees go back to the office. So, what are some good practices to make hybrid working effective? Having a clear policy in place outlining expectations around the split between home and office and also agreeing what days employees are expected in the office. If teams are in the office together this will promote a sense of teamworking and cohesion. Clear communication policies, what are the expectations around availability for meetings, what meetings are considered in person ones and what etiquette is required for virtual meetings? What tools are company mandated for example MS Teams for meetings and Slack for collaboration. What is the approach to Whatsapp and if this is used for business, what guidelines do you have in place? How can hybrid working work for the business and the employee? It isn’t necessarily a one size fits all approach. Managers will need to have those conversations with the individuals in their teams to make sure there is an approach which works for them and the business. Hybrid working will keep evolving, with the ever-increasing use of AI many tasks can and will be streamlined and there is still much discussion around a 4 day week. Ultimately, employees are likely to continue to want the flexibility of hybrid working and employers will need to be prepared to have those discussions or risk losing talent, disengaged staff and potentially claims arising from flexible working requests if they have not been dealt with properly. The debate will no doubt continue. Need help with your policies or an effective hybrid working strategy? Contact me at bev@bdhr.co.uk for help.

The right to request flexible working was introduced in the UK in 2002, initially this right was introduced for parents and carers.  However, in 2014 this right was extended to any employee with 26 weeks continuous service, when after this time an employee could make one request in a 12 month period.  The Government has further updated flexible working requests as of April 2024, making it a day one right and with 2 requests allowed in a 12 month period.  Further, there is no onus on employees to outline the affect their request will have on the employer or explain how to mitigate the effects. Employers are now required to respond to any requests within 2 months, reduced from 3 month and unless the employer plans to accept the request they must hold a meeting with the employee to consult with them regarding the request and to discuss any alternatives. Any refusal must be on the following specific grounds: extra costs that will damage the business the work cannot be reorganised among other staff people cannot be recruited to do the work flexible working will affect quality flexible working will affect performance the business will not be able to meet customer demand there’s a lack of work to do during the proposed working times the business is planning changes to the workforce So what does flexible working mean?  Well employees can request a change to their terms and conditions in regards to where, when, how long and at what times they work.  There are various arrangements which can be considered including the following: Part time hours, which is fairly common and is simply less hours than the full time equivalent. Term time working, employees whose working pattern mirrors that of the school year. Job share, where 2 employees share one job so that the full time hours are covered but they only work part time. Compressed hours, where the full time hours are worked over less days.  For example the working week is typically 40 hours over 5 days and compressed hours would be 40 hours in 4 days perhaps reducing the amount of time taken for lunch to accommodate. Flexitime, employees have the option with set parameters to decide when they start and finish work. Working remotely, employees work some or all of their hours from a place of their choosing. Hybrid working some of the week is worked from home and some from the office. The above examples are the most common types of flexible working requests but this list is not exhaustive.  Often employers will amend contracts when a flexible working request has been agreed.  For example a change from full to part time hours would be a formal contractual change.  Working from home once a week, might have been an informal, local agreement with a manager.  So what about when you are recruiting, it is sensible to give prospective applicants the opportunity to discuss flexible working at the interview rather than finding the ideal candidate, offering them a full time role only for them to request part time when they start. Better to have the conversation in the first place and consider your options at that time. There are lots of benefits to flexible working and it is more in demand than ever.  It supports employee engagement, gives access to a wider talent pool, can help with absence in job share situations, as you always have cover. Hybrid and working from home can help reduce overhead costs.  Of course it is not without its challenges and so effective strategies are required to ensure success and there have been employment tribunals based on the declination of a flexible working request, so it is important to have an up to date policy and understand the process.  Need help with your flexible working policy and best practice to implement, contact me at bev@bdhr.co.uk .

These are the steps you can take now. The UK Government announced that employees will be entitled to day one protection when they start a new job.  What does this mean, well essentially that they have protection from unfair dismissal from day 1 of their employment and would be able to take their employer to a tribunal for unfair dismissal.  Currently, employers can dismiss employees, without reason when they have less than 2 years service.  Note that the 2 year tenure rule does not apply if an employee has a case for discrimination. The clock has started to tick on these rights which will come into effect in October 2026.  If you employed someone today (November 2024) then the 2 years qualifying rule applies, if you employ someone in April it will 18 months, next October 12 months and so on. The Government is consulting currently on a “lighter touch” probation period, during this time, thought to be for the first 9 months when the dismissal process would not be as onerous. However, it still remains to be seen exactly what this process will look like. So, there is no immediate need to panic however, it makes sense to start to understand how this will work and what processes you can put in place now.  In the first instance review your contracts of employment, if you don’t currently include a probation period put one in place now for any new hires moving forward. What are probation periods, these are a period of time at the start of an employees employment where you can asses their performance.  You have hired them following a robust recruitment process, you have followed up with references and ensured they have a good onboarding and training plan.  Now you can see them in action and ensure that they are capable of the job your hired them for.  Although, probation periods are typically put in place for 6 months, if there are performance and / or behaviour questions marks about your new recruit, it is good practice to extend the probation period for a further 3 months.  You need to ensure that your disciplinary and capability policies are up to date and clearly outline the steps that will be taken in the event of any issues.  Typically, a formal meeting to discuss concerns, an agreed action plan which will outline the specific steps both employer and employee will take to address the concerns and a very clear timeframe.  If an employee had done something which constitutes gross misconduct, you will still need to investigate and hold a formal meeting before dismissing. By taking action now and following the correct steps, when the law takes effect you will be ready.  Need a policy review and coaching on how to implement the above contact me at bev@BDHR.co.uk .

Any business owner knows that managing people is often the most time consuming and difficult aspect of any job.  In my experience the majority of people issues are caused because managers do not want to have difficult conversations, so they avoid it and of course the issue just gets worse.  Failure to speak to an employee about their behaviour does not help anyone, managers become more frustrated and the underlying issue does not get addressed.  Often times employees are promoted to a role with line manager responsibilities without any training, being good at your job doesn’t automatically make you a good people manager. Therefore, when confronted with an issue often managers don’t have the skills or confidence to deal with it.  We also live in a world where often people are concerned about what they can and can’t say to employees.  We all read the high-profile employment cases in the press where eye watering amounts of money are paid out following an employment tribunal, due to a comment someone has made.  Of course, we do need to be mindful of how we approach issues, sending someone a ‘What’s app’ message on a group chat criticising their work performance is clearly not the right way to address problems.  Having a constructive one to one meeting to discuss issues in a factual and calm way, will allow a two-way conversation during in which both parties have an opportunity to talk to through the problems and devise a plan to resolve them.  However, this can seem daunting and managers can be unsure of how to approach the meetings, or how to deal with unexpected comments in a conversation.  They can feel out of their depth, particularly if employees start to mention personal issues or struggles with health, especially mental health.  The fear of making things worse or saying the wrong thing can be paralysing. Coaching can provide numerous benefits which will impact not only managers, their teams but the organisation as a whole.  Coaching develops communication skills, helping managers understand how to approach difficult conversations, why it is important, how it benefits the employee and how to effectively deal with different scenarios which may come up.  Through coaching managers become more self-aware and learn how to respond in a thoughtful, calm and measured way.  It improves listening skills as well as the ability to give feedback in a constructive way and address employee concerns. Managers who are confident to tackle issues will be better at conflict resolution.  Grievances can occur when employees don’t feel they have been listened to or when conflict arises in a team and it isn’t effectively dealt with.  These issues can be time consuming to deal with and have an adverse effect on the whole team. Coaching also gives managers the tools to work with their team, setting goals for them and helping them achieve it.  Employees who have managers they can talk to and who make them feel supported at work will often stay in their jobs for longer, reducing company retention rates.  Good managers impact the company culture, they nip problems in the bud, foster a good working team, are supportive and give their teams clear goals and objectives to work towards.  Coaching gives managers a safe space to think about and practice new approaches and create a culture where their team can thrive. Interested in how coaching can help your business?  I have a certificate in coaching and 20+ years of coaching managers in having difficult conversations and resolving issues.  Whether you are interested in 1:1 sessions or group training sessions, contact me at bev@bdhr.co.uk  for more information.  Found this article interesting subscribe to get my blogs straight into your inbox.

Amendment to the Worker protection (Amendment of the Equality Act 2010) Act 2023   The legal definition of sexual harassment is set out in the Equality Act 2010, most businesses are likely aware of the act and that they have a duty of care to their employees in the workplace.  Sex-based harassment is related to unwanted behaviour based on sex, for example making derogatory jokes about women, creating a bullying or hostile environment based on sex, humiliating comments which violate an individuals dignity. Sexual harassment has a definition which outlines unwanted sexual behaviour, such as touching someone without their consent and for example not promoting someone or giving them a pay rise because they reject unwanted sexual advances.  An employer is required by law to protect employees from harassment and the definition of an employee also includes job applicants, agency workers and self employed contractors.  An employer must be able to demonstrate that they have taken all reasonable steps to prevent harassment from happening. However, it is not enough just to have a policy, employers must be able to show that the policy is embedded in the business through training all staff, they must also proactively deal with any complaints or suggestions that an employee is being harassed. Employers have not been liable if a third party i.e client is the one harassing an employee although if they have been made aware of such behaviour they are expected to protect the employee or face potential discrimination charges.  On October 26th 2024 employers will be required to take “reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment and the law applies to people of any gender.  So, what does this mean? The new duty is anticipatory meaning employers must take steps to act to stop any harassment before it happens and the change now also includes third parties. An employee will be able to bring a claim for harassment including a breach of the preventive duty.  If it is proven that an employer has not taken reasonable steps to prevent harassment then this could result in an uplift of up to 25% to any compensation award.  Compensation awards for this type of harassment are not capped and therefore this additional % could be substantial. It is unclear at this stage what will constitute “reasonable steps” however, employers must be able to demonstrate that they have taken steps to stop any sexual harassment before it happens and in the event it does happen must take immediate action to ensure it does not happen again.   So what can you do? Undertake a risk assessment to foster a preventive culture and mitigate risks, for example reviewing and limiting contact outside work hours, such as whats app groups or social media. Training managers, they are your first line of defence and need to understand what is expected of them, as well as having the confidence to tackle and deal with any issues and being able to recognise harassment. Create a safe culture where values such as respect and dignity are modelled by leaders and are clear and consistent behaviours. Ensure there is a performance management system in place to deal with issues so that the whole workforce understands what is expected.  Deal with allegations swiftly and fairly, ensure you have a robust procedure for dealing with allegations as well as ensuring employees know where to raise complaints in a confidential manner.  Ensure that any learnings are implemented so that there are no repeat incidents. Need to update your currently policy, or undertake a risk assessment or roll out training?  For all this and more contact me at bev@bdhr.co.uk .

Today (October 10th 2024) the Government announced its proposed Employment Rights Bill, promising significant changes, what are these changes and what does it mean for your business? Well in terms of what it means, for now nothing has changed and timescales vary as to when we can expect to see the proposals become legislation, however it is likely that the majority of reforms will not take effect until 2026.  In the meantime below is an outline of the government proposals. Removing the 2 year qualifying period, this would mean that employees have day 1 rights against being unfairly dismissed. Although the Government have stated that they are in favour of statutory probation periods, thought to be for 9 months, during in which time employees could be dismissed following a modified procedure. Workers would be entitled to Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) from day 1 of illness rather than the current day 4. along with removal of the lower earnings limit for SSP, this is currently set at £123 per week, meaning anyone earning less than this cannot claim.  Whilst the limit will be removed it will be replaced with a lesser limit. Paternity leave, unpaid parental leave and unpaid bereavement leave will be a day 1 rights. Flexible working requests, any requests will need to be considered from day 1 and employers will be expected to accommodate them unless they can prove it is unreasonable. The Government has stated that the process will be improved with clear legislation. Ending the use of zero hours contracts and the use of fire and rehire practices. Strengthening the laws protecting against dismissal for pregnant women and mothers on maternity leave. Larger employers will be required to create action plans around addressing the gender pay gap and supporting employees through the menopause. Further legislation is planned to expand the Equality Bill making it mandatory for large employers to report ethnicity and disability pay gaps. Other reforms which were not included but are likely to form part of the Governments ‘Next Steps’ plan as guidance rather than legislation are, the ‘right to switch off’.  The Government also plans to consult on single worker status and review parental leave and carers leave systems. The removal of the unfair dismissal qualifying period is causing waves and at the moment it is unclear what the statutory 9 month probation period would look like and how it will be managed. It is anticiapated that day 1 right will come into effect in autumn 2026, meaning that new employees rights to unfair dismissal claims will reduce over that period, i.e employees starting now would wait 2 years, starting in 6 months would have 18 months and so on. In the meantime it makes sense for businesses to ensure they tighten up on their probatio periods and follow best practice now in readiness for the change in law. Watch this space for further updates and for any support on any of these issues or to implement probation periods and manage best practice contact me at bev@bdhr.co.uk .

After spending 20+ years in the world of corporate HR I would say I've seen it all but I doubt that would be true. HR is one of those departments which on the one hand is considered to be the fun police and the other expected to sort out the most random of problems, when it all goes wrong. Managers ignore what you say half the time and then want you to wave your magic HR wand to sort out the employee issue. However, this blog is not meant to be a woe is me post about working in HR, far from it, I love my job and believe that HR can add value to a business and should be more than an admin department for hiring and firing. HR should have their finger on the pulse of the latest employee trends, what do employees want from the world of work and how can that help the business? A good recruitment campaign combined with a strong employee proposition will act as a marketing tool for a business. Attracting and retaining good employees will strengthen any business, it costs money to recruit and manage underperforming staff. Understanding your people MI tells the story of your business, what is your staff turnover like, why do employees leave, why do they stay, what are absence levels like and what is the reason for absence? Are you competitive in the marketplace or would people rather work for your competitor? On top of all of that company culture is high on the agenda, we live in an increasingly diverse world, employees expect more from work than just money. Flexible working, the right to switch off, compressed hours, working from home, making adjustments for all health issues, understanding neurodivisty and navigating employment laws, are just some of the issues manager face. Do your managers know how to handle all these issues, are they confident when having conversations with their teams, do they understand the implications of getting it wrong? HR is the department who can provide support and clarity, advising on the right way to deal with the myriad of issues which can occur. HR at its best should be the moral compass working within the gray area, after all people problems are rarely straightforward. Need help with any of the above, contact me to discuss.