Opinion – Page 4
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OpinionAvril England: What comes next for staff in the event of a takeover?
Following the confirmation that sale terms have been agreed, all the staff will automatically transfer to the buyer under the provisions of the Transfers of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (Tupe).Tupe implements European laws designed to protect employees whose contracts of employment are in effect transferred to a ...
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OpinionLouise Mason: Employment legislation still on horizon despite bill absence in Queen’s Speech
The Queen's Speech was delivered on 10 May and, as expected, there was no mention of the employment bill. The purpose of the Queen's Speech is to set the legislative agenda for the next parliamentary session so the absence of the bill suggests no employment legislation will be forthcoming for ...
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OpinionChris Thompson: The wait for employment reforms continues
The absence of any reference to reforming employment rights or the Employment Bill in the Queen’s Speech [on 10 May] has highlighted the amount of employment legislation that has been announced only to be later side lined.On more than one occasion when questions have been raised in Parliament about the ...
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OpinionLucy Lewis: Omission of employment bill from Queen’s Speech is no great surprise
Yesterday’s Queen’s Speech was reportedly the shortest for nearly 10 years. It was, as many commentators have pointed out, a little on the light side, with a number of key policies and priorities not making it in to the final version delivered by HRH the Prince of Wales.The long-anticipated employment ...
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OpinionKatherine Chapman: As costs rise, how can pay strategies help employees make ends meet?
We are living in unprecedented times, with inflation at a record high and spiralling energy and food bills. The worst income squeeze on record lies before us and no one will feel it more sharply than the nearly five million people in low-paid and insecure jobs, already struggling to meet ...
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OpinionSusie Al-Qassab: Employers can take steps to eliminate gender inequality in the workplace
When the UK government commissioned the workplace and gender equality research in order to review whether policies in the workplace were family friendly and in support of the progression of women, it was identified that the main barriers were tensions between working and caring for a family, negativity surrounding and ...
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OpinionLovewell's logic: How is the rising cost of living impacting employees?
Following last week’s damp squib of a Spring Statement, headlines this week have been dominated by how much the cost of living is due to rise yet again from today (1 April). With the price of gas, electricity and council tax all set to rise, along with an increase in ...
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OpinionLee McIntyre-Hamilton: How the Spring Statement 2022 will affect employers and employees
The Chancellor’s Spring Statement has been met with much criticism since it was delivered on 23 March, not least from employers.Those who were hoping for a delay to the national insurance contributions (NIC) increases will have been disappointed, as the rise of 1.25% from 6 April is going ahead. While ...
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OpinionLovewell's logic: Is workplace gender equality out of reach?
In a week that included International Women’s Day on 8 March, it is perhaps unsurprising that we have seen the launch of a number of initiatives by both government and employers designed to support female employers and tackle existing workplace inequalities.The government, for example, launched a pilot initiative aimed at ...
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OpinionHarriet Calver: Is the four-day week worthwhile for employers?
A four-day work week is not a new phenomenon. Many employees in the UK already have this pattern, typically agreed on a case-by-case basis between employee and employer following a flexible working request. It tends to be accompanied by a corresponding reduction in pay, except in the case of compressed ...
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OpinionBecky Lawton: Will new staff family rights come into force in 2022?
The government has committed to introducing several new family rights following a number of consultations over the last couple of years.The introduction of neonatal leave and pay will create a new statutory entitlement for employees whose babies spend an extended period of time in neonatal care. The intention is to ...
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OpinionLaurie Ollivent: Covid-19 is reshaping gender and diversity reporting
Working parents comprise a key demographic of the workforce. As mid-tenure employees, they are experienced and often have a level of institutional knowledge which can rarely be replaced with a lateral hire.However, reports suggest this demographic is more likely than others to be re-evaluating their roles coming out of the ...
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OpinionDaisy Hooper: Cutting pay for hybrid workers is a risky strategy
After more than a year of adapting to Covid-19, we know from experience that remote and flexible working is not only possible, in many cases it’s desirable. Employees like it and the impact on business hasn’t been anywhere near as negative as some predicted at the beginning of the pandemic. ...
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OpinionVickie Graham: There are clear benefits to introducing self-service pay systems
A self-service pay system enables payroll departments to redistribute some administrative tasks, for example updating employee data online and printing payslips if required, putting ownership on the employees themselves.There are clear benefits. For payroll professionals these benefits are associated with efficiencies and time savings. By empowering employees to take ownership ...
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OpinionDavid Jepps: How Covid-19 affects statutory sick pay
At the start of the pandemic, statutory sick pay (SSP) rules were changed to include Covid-19 (Coronavirus) scenarios because self-isolation or having tested positive with no symptoms were not covered by the SSP definition of incapacity. Those rules have since been tweaked many times and are expected to stay in ...
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OpinionJohn Adams: Pensions landscape will be changing in 2022
In what may bring a sigh of relief, 2022 is not a year with new legal requirements incumbent on employers regarding pensions. But there are many ongoing requirements to be mindful of, and changes within the pensions environment that could lead to future impacts.There is going to need to be ...
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OpinionDr Zofia Bajorek: Good work holds key to mitigating the 'Great Resignation'
Over the past few months, there has been a lot of discussion about the ‘great resignation’: the idea that employees are leaving their jobs at unprecedented rates.The post-Covid labour market suggests that there are a high number of vacancies but not enough staff to fill them, and so workplaces need ...
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OpinionEmma Clark: Will there be more menopause-related employment tribunal hearings?
Recent analysis of figures from the HM Courts and Tribunals Service showed that the menopause was cited in five employment tribunal cases in the last nine months of 2018. That rose to 10 cases in the first six months of 2021.While there has been a rise in claims which refer ...
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OpinionCharles Cotton: Flexible working should be a focus point in 2022
Reward professionals have been busy responding to an increasingly tight labour market in the latter half of 2021. While skill and labour shortages have been felt across the board, they have been most acute in hospitality, haulage, health and social care, with bonuses and pay increases being used to counter ...
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OpinionJeremy Harris: What are the long-term consequences of the pensions pay gap?
During a House of Lords debate on 22 November 2021, following a question posed by Labour life peer Lord Sikka about the UK government's efforts to tackle entrenched gender pay inequality, the pensions gap was highlighted as an issue of major concern.The pensions gap, it was noted, contributes to societal ...