HR & employment update
This month a recent survey shows workers value work relationships more than pay rises, a look at a discrimination case regarding a pregnant employee and a number of people suffering from Long Covid feel they've been unfairly treated....
UK National Minimum Wage and statutory payment increases
Remember to ensure your payroll provider increases any of your team whose pay is at minimum wage. It's a huge hike this year, so employees not previously affected may need a pay increase.
The full increases from 1 April 2023 are:
Other statutory payments have also increased:
Statutory maternity, paternity, adoption, shared parental and parental bereavement pay have increased from the 2022 rate of ￡156.66 per week to ￡172.48.
Statutory sick pay will rise to ￡109.40 per week, up from ￡99.35 per week.
The maximum compensatory award for unfair dismissal increases from ￡93,878 to?￡105,707.
Will budget initiatives help your recruitment challenges?
A number of measures were announced in the recent Spring budget aimed at increasing the pool of candidates available for employers, many of whom have been struggling with recruiting. Help was announced for those with health issues in the form of “universal support” for disabled candidates who are out of work, and ￡406m to tackle health issues keeping people out of work through occupational health support.
Older workers have been targeted with ‘returnerships’ – a new type of apprenticeship aimed at over 50s to encourage them back into the workplace, and also with a reduction in pensions tax, aimed at reducing the temptation to retire early.
Meanwhile free childcare for working parents will be increasing, with 30 hours of free care for children over nine months with working parents by September 2025.
Work relationships more important than pay
A survey conducted by Hubspot for its Hybrid Work Report has shown that half of UK workers would value “great relationships” at work more than a 10% payrise. Meanwhile 47% would choose a four-day working week instead of the payrise.
Any news indicating that other things are more important than pay can only be good news for cash-strapped small businesses. Creating great relationships isn’t easy though, and of course giving employees a choice as to which they’d prefer is simplistic. Certainly having great relationships in your business will help your retention and hopefully reduce any negative impact from struggling to keep pay rises up with inflation.
领英推荐
The survey may well nudge a few small businesses closer to trying the four day week though, something which has been implemented with great success in many organisations.
Legal
Refusal to take covid tests led to unfair dismissal
The extent to which employers could insist on workers taking covid tests was the subject of much debate at the height of the pandemic, and, as predicted, cases exploring the issue have started to trickle through. In this case, the hospital worker claimed the employer infringed his human rights by insisting on a test, as well claiming his dismissal was unfair.
The tribunal found that an insistence on tests was acceptable and not a breach of human rights, due to the nature of the work. However the dismissal was unfair, as the worker had not clearly been informed of the policy and reasons for it, and was dismissed too promptly.
Dismissal of pregnant employee without reason given was discrimination
In this case an assistant restaurant manager found herself being offered fewer and fewer shifts after disclosing her pregnancy. When she then requested a meeting with the HR representative to discuss her maternity leave plans, she was told on the phone that she had been “p45d”.
The claimant had less than two years’ service at the time of her dismissal, and the employer may have thought they could therefore dismiss her easily. However, dismissal because of pregnancy is automatically unfair. As the employer was unable to show any other reason for dismissal, the tribunal inferred that the reason was pregnancy, and the individual therefore won her claim. Dismissal of a pregnant employee isn’t necessarily always unlawful, but it is essential that if you feel you need to dismiss someone who is pregnant, you can absolutely clearly demonstrate a fair reason for it, regardless of her length of service.
Other stuff
A survey by Glassdoor has shown that more than half of employees with less than five years of work experience feel lonely all or most of the time. A focus on ensuring workplace social activities continue despite remote working may be needed.
Research by the TUC has found that 66% of employee with long Covid have experienced unfair treatment at work. Some have had their condition questioned or doubted, others have been dismissed.
My bit
Did you read about the initiatives that were outlined in the Budget to help with recruitment - will you be looking further into any of them??Have you thought about introducing a four day week??Do you need to relook at the benefits you offer to your employees??Having a strategy for recruitment and employee value proposition will help you focus your time and energy in the right areas and ensure they are right for your business – just because something looks like a good idea doesn’t mean it is right for your business.?Sometimes it’s the right idea but the not the right time.?If you need help with this just let me know.
?Hopefully you will be able to take some time off over Easter – spending time with your family and friends and eating lots of Easter eggs.?I certainly will! ??
Just get in touch if you'd like to chat through a situation in your business affecting your team.