Sladeys Blog

You will remember me blogging  last year on  the government announcing plans to introduce a fee for bringing a case to Tribunal.

They hoped that this would discourage some of the many claims that have been responsible for the vast workload of Tribunals as well as reduce some of the pressure on smaller employers.

That might not be the case though.

Whilst the government has introduced the idea of mediation as an alternative to try to resolve problems,  some employers may just let issues fester.

And just like any other problem that’s not a good idea as cheap prevention is enough better than an expensive cure or even worse.

I would never advise an  employer to  bank on  disgruntled employees not having  the necessary funds to risk paying for Tribunal fees.

You never know those greedy lawyers may find a way of funding these cases – they usually find a way round most things.

Instead I would advise that early and simply advice on grievances and other issues are taken.

Even better we can offer such advise form employment experts, who have worked in industry and understand the issues and problems facing an employer in the real world.

Failing  to deal with the grievances of employees as and when they first arise increases the likelihood of them worsening overtime.

This usually means poor   work satisfaction and motivation leading to reduced profits and increasing over heads.

My advice would be to seek to solve any disagreement as soon as possible before the issue worsens beyond easy repair.

If you need any help on this or any other HR issue, please don’t hesitate to email me or telephone me on 01623 448304 or any of our HR team.

Russell Jones

Over the year I will try to keep you abreast of the changes to small buy significant things  relating to good employment practice or what you need to know if things do go wrong, or some planning is needed. 

On the 8 March  2012, as a result of EU legislation, the Government is required by this date to increase unpaid parental leave from 3 months to 4 months  per child under the age of 5.

You should ensure that you are complying with this and that your contracts of employment are up to date on this and all other recent legislative changes

If you need any advice on this or anything else relating to HR or employment practice please contact me my email or on 01623 448304.

Russell Jones

Over the year I will try to keep you abreast of the changes to small buy significant things  relating to good employment practice or what you need to know if things do go wrong, or some planning is needed.

An annual increase to the compensation limits is coming into force from 1 February 2012, which will see a rise to the maximum  compensatory award for unfair dismissal (for Tribunal cases) from £68,400 to £72,300. The maximum amount for a week’s pay (which is used to  calculate the basic award in an unfair dismissal claim and to calculate statutory redundancy pay) is also rising from £400 to £430.

If you need any advice on this or anything else relating to HR, running your business or employment practice please contact me my email or on 01623 448304

Russell Jones

I recently had the opportunity to talking to Mansfield 2020 at their January monthly meeting.  

It’s a great organisation and if you own or operate a business in North Notts and are not part of it you are really missing out on a great networking and business  opportunity.

Anyway back to TUPE.

What is it? It’s not part of  a Shakespearean play or aYorkshireman’s hairpiece.

But it is something you need to know about if you are buying or selling a business.

It ‘s an acronym that stands for  -  Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment.

A real mouthful but it does say what it is  – a system of protection for  employees.

Whether buying or selling  a business which already employs people, TUPE can be the silent killer for the deal or even for profitably running the business afterwards or making the money you thought you wanted from the sale.

It protects any employee who has been at the business for more than 1 year from simply being dismissed.

And most importantly it controls who pays for the cost of bad employment practice.

So go in and buy the company with a view to getting rid of staff to make it profitable and you could be in a mess.

And with a big compensation and probable legal bill.

Or sell with no thought as to who is responsible for redundancy payments if any crop up and you may be crying in your celebration drink and you part with your well earned cash.

The buyer could end up with:

• Employees with contract  terms that effect the profit from the business

• Employees with large redundancy entitlements which the buyer or new owner  has to fund in the future to restructure the business

• Employees with grievances and issues which the new owner has to deal with.

The seller might just end up with a big bill  when the new owner cuts through the staff bill.

But things can be done  to include:

• Getting the seller to come clean about employee contracts terms and grievance/disciplinary issues

• Getting the buyer to inform the seller if they have plans to  reduce employment numbers.

• Give early thought to what/how you want the employees to fit in your view of the business for the future.

The really sad part is that if you end up  talking to me about it, I’m a litigator and that means it’s  gone wrong and someone is picking up a large bill, which is never nice.

So the motto as always is get early effective and inexpensive advice by asking the questions up front.

The way forward is to get  a business solicitor and HR adviser to be bringing up the relevant questions, and sorting through the employment contracts before the sale or purchase  is finalised, to make sure you know the effect  on the price either way.

It’s only a flavour in a few words, but if you need anything more then please email or telephone Christie Limb or Joanne Godson from our business and HR department.

Russell Joones

01623 448304

The Minister of State for the Department for Work and Pensions, has announced the proposed rates for statutory sick pay and statutory maternity, paternity and adoption pay for 2012.

The changes are expected to come into force on 9 April 2012 are:

Most business owners believe that as long as they operate under the protection of a Limited  Company.

In a recent employment discrimination case, 2 employees of a Limited Company sued both the Company and it’s Directors for compensation  following complaints of discrimination at  their work place.

The claim was very large and in the end was assessed at £37,000 and both Company and Directors were found liable for the  compensation.

The Limited Company became insolvent and the Directors  appealled against the finding by the Appeal Tribunal upheld the award and the finding against the Directors personally.

It’s a salutory lesson to be learned.

There is no cap on compensation that can be award in discrimination cases and no escape by trying to avoid the award, if the employer is a Limited Company, by dissolving the company.

As in all cases, it is better to get advice sooner rather than later,  which can often either avoid or significantly lessen the impact of an  employment problem.

Please feel free to email me or contact our HR team on 01623 451111

Russell Jones

Are  ‘compromise agreements’ set for a change? 

When an employee is dismissed the employer and employee often enter into  an agreement to stop the employee going to an Employment Tribunal.

Whilst this might seem unfair, what it does mean is the employee being able to get legal advice on the settlement at the employer’s expense, which has to be good for both parties at such a difficult time.

Thankfully these are not going to be phased out but it is being suggested that they are to be replaced by ‘settlement agreements’ which will be simpler and will have standard wording. The effect will be the same though.

At Fidler and Pepper can give advice both on  sides to the problem and if you need any more help on this please email me or contact me on 01623 451111.