Latest posts:
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Hi Clare
As your admin assistant is still in her probationary period, I assume that means that she is in her first 12 months of employment. You therefore can just terminate her employment with notice as regrettably the Company needs have changed but without needing to give it a label such as redundancy. She has no right to written reasons beyond a letter confirming the dates etc and the notice you are intending to pay. She is not going to be very happy and so it is probably better to dismiss on the day and pay her notice in lieu plus untaken holiday. That way she has time to find alternative employment while she still has money in the bank. As this is through no fault of hers, then you should tell her that you will supply a positive reference to any potential new employer and you may be inclined to enhance her notice pay in recognition of the situation. The only caveat to that - is beware a discrimination claim. If she might have any grounds to lodge one such as her line manager is male, or she is of an ethnic minority or she is younger, then ensure that you have kept clear records of the business reason for termination. You may also want to explore are there any other suitable roles for her in the business currently and show that you considered that even if there are none.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Hi Colin
What I meant was that as it is unlawful to discriminate on the grounds of sexual orientation, some companies want to be able to submit data on that issue in respect of their recruitment process in the same way that they do with ethnic origin and gender.
Hope that is clearer
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Hi James
I am aware that some organisations, on their equal opportunity monitoring forms, have chosen to ask people about their sexuality. This naturally has come from the current legislation. However, I personally would not suggest that companies do this, even if it is for the best of intentions and whatever the intended use, as I consider the potential risks far outweigh the potential benefits.
However that is just my opinion.
In defence of the company you applied to , I am sure that they are not meaning to upset candidates and certainly they do not stand alone.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Carol
Part time workers should not be treated any differently to other employees. You should be calculating on their 'normal' pay. So if they normally receive a shift allowance, then you should include that when looking at their salary.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
The government will reimburse 92% of the statutory allowance. So if the benefit is enhanced then the company has to bear that cost
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
James - you are right that reasons related to the pregnancy would make the end of her ftc automatically unfair and so the business would need to show that the ending of the contract was unrelated to her condition. In respect of finance, the company needs to remember that they can reclaim 92% of the maternity pay. I accept that there is a problem of temp cover but the lady in question may not take the entire 9 months.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Zach - if you have a problem with individual employees disappearing from their desks for long periods, then you need to deal with the issue on an individual basis. This is not something that can be covered by legislation. If they are spending too much time away from the phones, then you need to talk to them about it to see what is the problem. If they are just disappearing when it is busy,then just having mentioned the issue, will probably have the desired effect!
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Andrew
If you are requiring an employee to work 6 hrs for you , then you need to factor in at least a 20 min break during that time. The idea is that they have a break in the middle - health and safety - not that they should work almost 6 hrs before the break comes along.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Hi John
If you currently give employees 20 days plus paid bank holidays then you do not need to change anything. You cannot now reduce the annual leave in the contracts. In due course the statutory entitlement will catch up with you anyway but you need to make it clear that the entitlement includes bank holidays.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
I would advise that you speak to her privately when she returns after her certificate expires. You need to know where her stress stems from - is it work related? You could diplomatically ask if spending the evenings in the pub was the best way to relax - as this is where she works.
This is a welfare interview rather than a disciplinary and you do not know if just having time out was what she needed. However, you could gently point out that when she cannot work this puts strain on others, so in future it may be better not to come into the pub socially when she has been signed off.
The rule 'Never make assumptions' is as true here as anywhere else - so do not take action for the wrong reasons.Discuss first and then see what happens next time
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Probation periods are a good way of focusing on the employee's first few months for the company and the employee. Not strictly necessary it is true. Tabitha - You needed to pay your employee a weeks notice even if you did not wish her to work it. So you may owe her notice pay other than that her legal advice will be around any discrimination issues.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
The employee should be furnished with a medical certificate from the hospital which signs them off for their recovery period so that would be SSP.
Not sure if you mean planned and that it is perhaps unnecessary - cosmetic surgery? Or just planned in the sense that they know when it is going to happen.
If it is a real choice issue (cosmetic) then you may wish to have medical support that the operation is necessary for the employee's health (mental or physical) before agreeing to sick leave rather than annual leave.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Hi Brian
In your question you stated that the night shift workers were classed as full time even though they worked 35 hrs. Therefore you would be in breach of their employment contracts if you classed them as part time just for the purposes of calculating annual leave.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Hi Elizabeth
Once again, this mainly relies on your terms and conditions. Employees continue to accrue annual leave but the WTR does not allow the carry over of leave entitlement.
So if your company only allows the statutory holiday, then the person off sick will lose their outstanding entitlement when their absence goes on into the next leave year. When they return they are entitled to the allowance accrued during that current leave year.
If your terms and conditions allow for some carry over - e.g.5 days - then they should be able to retain that carry over.
Hope that helps
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Hi Debbie
This is still a slightly grey area. It still appears to be the case that you only need to pay part timers for bank holidays when they fall on their normal working day.
The rule is that they must not suffer detriment by being a part time worker.
Therefore if you currently give everyone 25 days plus bank holidays, then provided the part time employees receive pro rata entitlement for the 25 days, plus the bank holidays if they normally work them, then you should still be within the law.
However, keep an eye on the changes - a future tribunal might disagree!
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
It would be unwise to delete personnel records immediately after an employee has left the company. You may be asked for references for the ex- employee or the ex-employee may lodge an employment tribunal claim or grievance so you will need to refer to your files. The CIPD recommend that you retain files for 6 years but there is no actual legal requirement to do so.
Payroll records are different and they need to be kept for 3 years after the end of the tax year which they left in.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Hi Mark
You cannot restart a probationary period - you can only extend.
However if the company promoted the employee after 4 months then in effect you are confirming her probation - or you would not have promoted her.
She has continuous service from her original start date so unless she left the company in between, you cannot take her service rights away (even if you put it in the contract). So she will accrue sick pay and annual leave entitlement from Day 1.
You could place her on a trial period in her new role.The legal position remains the same that you can still dismiss in her first 12 months (from the original contract) and she cannot lodge an unfair dismissal claim.
She could however lodge a discrimination claim of course if she felt she had grounds.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Hi Kirsti
This seems to be 2 questions in one.
Employees do accrue annual leave so you can restrict the amount of annual leave taken by a new employee. In other words you can say that a new employee cannot book 2 weeks annual leave during their probation period as they have not at that point accrued 2 weeks entitlement. Once employees are confirmed it is less risky to relax this point.
You should have a clause in your employment contracts that says if someone has taken in excess of their leave entitlement when they leave your employment, then you reserve the right to deduct this amount from their final salary. If you do not have this clause then you cannot deduct it without being guilty of an unlawful deduction of wages.
I hope that this answers both points.
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Hi P Andrews - please see the answer that I posted previously to your question. Answer posted on 16 July.
Thanks
Rate this!
Jayn Bond - Workplace Law Network
Online advisor - 67 posts
Anna - yes you are right she can work a straight 5.5 hours shift.
Terri - employees cannot opt out of breaks.So no she cannot choose not to take it.
Hope that helps
0 (0)
