HR & Employment Law Update

THIS MONTH'S SUMMARY

Working mothers are spending more than 40% of their salary on childcare, we look at an unfair dismissal case where the employee was expected to travel long distances and the high proportion of 16-24 year olds who are on zero hour contracts.

NEWS

Forcing return to office risks significant retention issues

We are seeing more and more businesses seeking to either encourage or force employees to return to the office more regularly.? This comes with a number of risks around changes to terms and conditions and impact on protected groups prompting possible indirect discrimination claims. But new research shows that perhaps an even bigger risk factor is staff retention.

A poll by People Management magazine indicated that 69% of employees would be job hunting if required to work in the office more regularly, whilst a survey by Robert Walters found a figure of 53% in answer to a similar question.

Issues were mainly cost, commuting time and work-life balance disruption. If you really want to increase office time, without impacting retention, addressing the concerns rather than taking a hard line may be a more sensible approach.

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Working mothers taking on extra work to pay for childcare

The rising cost of living continues to impact a significant number of people and, in particular, a recent survey by Indeed Flex has revealed that a quarter of mothers with children aged 5 and under have taken on extra work to pay for the rising costs of childcare.

Two thousand working mothers were surveyed, revealing that more than 40% of their salary goes to pay for professional childcare. With working mothers making up a significant portion of the UK workforce, businesses should consider supporting this demographic by incorporating childcare support in their benefits packages which can also make a difference to employee retention.

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LEGAL UPDATES

￡185k for whistleblower who reported company to HMRC and calling out bullying

A CEO who was forced to resign after calling out bullying and reporting her employer to HMRC recently won her case for constructive unfair dismissal with a payout of ￡185k.

The tribunal found that the claimant had ‘endured detrimental treatment’ after reporting the company to the HMRC fraud reporting service for failing to provide payroll information and for reporting the bullying practices by another CEO of a subsidiary company.

The ‘last straw’ prompting her resignation and claim was inviting her to a disciplinary hearing for gross misconduct without letting her know of the allegations or conducting any kind of investigation, in what was seen as a bid to get rid of her. This case clearly demonstrates the importance of investigating any employee allegations in a fair manner, and not being tempted to bypass normal disciplinary procedures for an employee you see as troublesome.

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Mother of two was unfairly dismissed after contract change on long distance travel requirement

A tribunal has ruled that a working mother of two who was put at a ‘particular disadvantage’ following a sudden contract change was a victim of indirect sex discrimination and unfairly dismissed.

The claimant was subject to a sudden contract change that resulted in forcing her to undertake long distance travel on a regular basis as part of her role. Even after raising this as an issue due to her childcare responsibilities, the company went ahead and dismissed her due to her inability to travel significant distances.?

The tribunal found that the company had not acted reasonably since it was not ‘proportionate’ to ask the claimant to travel significant distances, and had failed to demonstrate a fair reason for the dismissal and a clear reason for the significant travel.

Contractual changes should be approached with caution, only forced through if absolutely necessary and proportionate, and the implications for protected groups thoroughly considered and addressed.

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OTHER NEWS

The Work Foundation thinktank has found that 65% of contracts issued to 16-24 year olds were for zero hours, prompting ACAS to remind employers that workers on zero hour contracts are still legally entitled to employment rights.

Benefits provider Boostworks has found that 54% of employees are not consulted about benefits in their workplace – with a majority preferring tailored benefit options.

MY BIT

Welcome to April’s newsletter and I hope you had a wonderful Easter break meeting up with family, friends and getting outside although the weather where I am was varied to say the least!

There are lots of employment changes this month so a reminder to ensure you have double checked your employees hourly wage to ensure it is at least equal to the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates for their age.? If you have any queries about this, the introduction of Carer’s Leave and changes to Paternity Leave and Flexible Working Requests just get in touch.

Sue

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