March HR and employment law update ??

I love snow! So it's pretty exciting to hear that we might get some this month! Just in case, I've put a link to the article I wrote previously about how to handle a 'snow day' although since Covid I'm not sure that there is such a thing!!

92% success for four day week!

I'm delighted to share the amazing results of the recent pilot undertaken by 4 Day Week Global in which 61 organisations recently participated in a six month trial of a four day week, reducing their standard ‘full time’ working week to four days (or an equivalent shorter week over 5 days), with no cut in pay for employees.

An astonishingly high 92% of participating employers are going to continue with the arrangement, after the trial showed improved wellbeing, less stress, significantly improved retention levels, and, when reviewed against a comparable prior six month period, revenue increase of 35%.

All this sounds great, and many of the employers participating were small businesses. It’s not necessarily straightforward and there are many things to take into account, notably what happens to workers who are already part time, and how you meet client needs, but the clear benefits mean it is worth looking into it if you can. Drop me a line if you'd like a copy of my 'questions to ask yourself' before considering implementing a trial in your business.

Lack of redundancy training for managers

Handling a redundancy situation is one of the most challenging things a line manager will ever have to do. It can be complicated, in terms of getting a process right particularly where there are pools and criteria involved, and consultation meetings, and stressful too.

However, according to a study by WorkNest, nearly three quarters of employers don’t offer managers any training on handling redundancy situations. Mishandled redundancies and line managers who feel unsupported during the process could represent a significant legal, employee engagement and reputational risk so it’s worth considering some training if you anticipate redundancies this year.

Look out for our video on "Handling Difficult Conversations to help you prepare and structure challenging meetings such as these. Or drop me a line to receive our manager's guide.

Dismissal after lack of sick note was unfair

An engineer with 37 years’ service and held in “high regard” by colleagues and management informed his employer he was “off sick now with depression” after a series of shorter absences. He did not produce a fit note as requested, and after several warnings, and attempts at meetings, he was eventually dismissed for gross misconduct on the basis of being absent without leave and without a reasonable explanation.

Several colleagues had raised concerns about his mental health, including his line manager, and there was video evidence of his behaving in a concerning manner. The judge didn’t feel the employer had sufficiently shown his behaviour to be gross misconduct so the dismissal was unfair.

It is very difficult when someone won’t engage with a process, but caution should be used with gross misconduct, particularly when health issues seem to be a factor.

Sex discrimination requiring female to use male toilets

In this case a female clerk employed in a building also utilised by a playgroup was required to use the men's toilets as the women's was only available some of the time. The men’s had urinals and one cubicle, and arrangements for privacy were inadequate, including first having no sanitary disposal provision at all, and then later having a bin the employee had to approach a male to request it be emptied.

The tribunal felt this situation, particularly as the woman may have come across men using the urinal, was treating her less favourably on the grounds of sex. Inadequate toilet provision will be a risk, and this should particularly be considered by employers who employ a workforce dominated by one sex, or those who provide solely ‘gender neutral’ facilities. These must be fully enclosed units, and should not be conventional male and female toilets with cubicles and open sink/urinal areas simply relabelled as being ‘gender neutral’ instead.

Other stuff

A survey of over 600 SME leaders by Barclays has shown that more than half predict their revenue to increase over the coming year, with 33% of them saying they’ll be recruiting.

86% of employees told the Executive Development Network that they would be more likely to leave their job if their employer did not support their wellbeing. A similar percentage stated they valued a progressive company culture.

The Government has launched a competition for ￡1m of funding designed to improve access to occupational health services for SMEs. Large employers are five times more likely to offer OH than small businesses.