News
This page contains the latest news and views from the world of HR Talent Management and Organisational Design.
If you would like to contribute articles or news items to our website please contact us at info@taltalent.com
Inflating redundancy score of employee on maternity leave can constitute sex discrimination
June 2010
As a general rule, employers find it difficult to deal with employees on maternity leave when a redundancy situation arises. Employers have to balance equality for all their employees whilst abiding by the maternity leaver’s enhanced protection in relation to unfair dismissal and/or sex discrimination. Law firms are by no means the exception to this rule as the case of De Belin v Eversheds Legal Services Ltd highlights.
Incentivising & Managing Talent Seminar 05/07/2010
Engagement and Performance presentation - Feedback Loops, the key to high performance by Ingrid Blades
Invitation to Incentivising & Managing Talent Seminar
Engagement and Performance - Feedback Loops, the key to high performance. Speaker: Ingrid Blades - TALTalent
Benefit packages - Tax efficient incentivisation of employees. Speaker: Clive Relf - Reeves+Neylan LLP
How to enshirne the icentives in the contract (and exit package). Speaker: John Hayes - Irwin Mitchell LLP
Date: Monday 5th July 2010, 6.00
Venue: Irwin Mitchell LLP, 40 Holborn Viaduct, London, EC1N 2PZ
ON INVITATION ONLY
Bribery Act 2010: legal implications for employers
11/05/2010
The updated legislation includes new offences, so employers should prepare now for its implementation later this year.
The Act provides for four bribery offences:
- Bribing – the offering, promising or giving of an advantage.
- Being bribed – requesting, agreeing to receive or accepting an advantage.
- Bribing a foreign public official.
- The "corporate offence", where a commercial organisation fails to prevent persons performing services on its behalf from committing bribery.
Brain at work
15th April 2010
Employee Engagement / Daily Telegraph Supplement
"Emotions are a potent force, and when harness in the right way they can bring huge value to your business."
This article was written by Graham Johnson and Ingrid Blades from TALTalent.
New tax year, new employment rules
April 6 2010 sees a raft of new employment regulations come into force creating a new landscape for employers, employees and HR professionals.
It is not just HMRC that rang the changes on 6 April 2010 with its new tax year but the statute book with new employment regulations covering:
- additional paternity leave and pay (the so-called ‘male’ternity provisions);
- the ability of employment tribunals to refer whistle-blowing claims to regulators;
- the right to request time off to train; and
- the replacement of sick notes with fit notes.
Additional paternity leave
From 6 April 2010 new regulations will bring into force additional paternity leave and pay for fathers of babies due on or after 3 April 2011 (or who adopt after this date).
High-earning women will no longer need to face the difficult choice between earning much needed money by returning to work or swapping the boardroom for the baby sling. The new regulations permit new mums to transfer up to six months of their maternity leave to their babies' father or their partner (civil included). A few limitations apply: the leave can't be transferred until the baby is at least 20 weeks old and must be taken by Dad before the baby turns one.
Statistics show there are many more women in high paying professions making increasing numbers of women the main breadwinners of the household. For couples in this situation, this new option may well be very attractive.
Employers must now review their policies to make way for this new right. Maternity, paternity and adoption leave policies will all need updating.
The ability of employment tribunals to refer whistle-blowing claims to regulators
Employment Tribunals will be able to pass details of whistle-blowing allegations made as part of a claim on to relevant industry regulators. This change will apply to any claim form containing a whistle-blowing claim received on or after 6 April 2010.
The new regulations will put pressure on employers who ignore whistle-blowing claims or take disciplinary action against employees as a result of their whistle-blowing claim. In some instances the new regulations could raise the financial stakes for employers considerably. For example the maximum fine for breaches of the Data Protection Act (such as the loss of customer data) will be £500,000 from 6 April, whereas the maximum award for unfair dismissal is just £65,300.
The right to request time off to train
From 6 April 2010 a new right for employees to request time off work to undertake study or training will come into force. The right is available to employees with more than 26 weeks' service, but not to agency workers.
The training must be for both improving the employees' effectiveness at work and the performance of their employer's business. The training does not, however, have to result in a formal qualification. This will allow employees to take the initiative in furthering their careers. However, employers can refuse to allow the training if it will not assist the employer's business.
An employee is not entitled to any payment other than to ensure they achieve the national minimum wage. In practice we anticipate that where employers approve of the training they may well commit to paying the employee too.
The replacement of sick notes with fit notes
The Statement of Fitness to Work (fit note) will replace the current sick notes from 6 April 2010. The new notes are designed to help employees get back to work by shifting the focus onto fitness rather than sickness. GPs will be asked to indicate whether the employee is ‘not fit for work’ or ‘may be fit for work’. If the GP considers that the employee ‘may be fit for work’, he/she will be asked to suggest arrangements that could enable employees to continue working or to return to work. The options available are:
- a phased return to work;
- altered hours;
- amended duties; and
- workplace adaptations.
GPs also have the option to make comments on the functional effects of the employee's condition.
National minimum wage increase (October 2010)
07/04/2010
The main rate of the national minimum wage rises from £5.80 per hour to £5.93 per hour and the development rate from £4.83 per hour to £4.92 per hour. The rate for workers aged 16 to 17 years increases from £3.57 to £3.64 per hour. The main rate will apply to 21-year-old workers. An apprentice rate of £2.50 per hour will apply to apprentices who are under 19 or those who are aged 19 and over but in the first year of their apprenticeship.
In Just 60 Minutes
US AND THE U.S
Please join us to hear Justin Webb draw paralles between the US and UK elections.
Hosted by Richard Lyddon.
Date of event: Tuesday 27th April 2010, 4.00 pm to 6.00 pm
Venue: One Moorgate Place, London EC2R 6EA
In Just 60 Minutes
Climate change, the recession, capitalism, leadership, sustainability, and Corporate Social Responsibility.
Please join us to hear Jonathon Porritt argue a powerful case for future prosperity, equity and planet integrity.
Hosted by Richard Lyddon
Date of event: Thursday 29 October 2009, 4.00pm – 7.00pm
Data Protection
13th August 2009
It has been widely reported that UK corporate data theft cases have doubled in 2 years, between 2006 and 2008. It is very important to have clear policies in place which clarify the use/misuse of company data. The Information Security Awareness Forum and the British Computer Society have just published a Personal Data Guardianship Code in support of organisations wanting to operate best practice. The code is available at www.bcs.org/datacode .
Unemployment Rates
13th August 2009
Unemployment has jumped to 2.43 million in the three months to June, an increase of 220,000, and up 750,000 on the year as reported by the Office for National statistics. This also means that the number of people claiming unemployment benefits has increased by 24,900, to 1.58 million, 4.9% of the workforce. A government inquiry has been launched to investigate the discrepancy between the number of people unemployed and the number claiming benefits.
Only 5% of employess recognise the role of HR expertise in business survival
13th August 2009
It seems that HR still has some distance to go in getting accepted as a serious partner in business change and adaptation to markets.
According to the European Leadership Programme (ELP), pole, 27% of staff see HR as the least important skill for a CEO to help lead their organisation out of aneconomic downturn but 42% think their CEO needs more HR help from senior management.
The survey shows 32% employees think financial aptitude is the most important skill needed for business survival and 73% are confident their CEO has this in hand.
A third of respondents are confident their CEO has the right skill-set to lead their organisation out of recession unscathed but 45% are not confident
A third of respondents are confident their CEO has the right skill-set to lead their organisation out of recession unscathed but 45% are not confident the right changes to the business have been made.
