Employment law has changed this year and other new legislation is on its way in 2012. We review the important developments and urges employers to keep their policies up to date.

PATERNITY LEAVE

Additional paternity leave was introduced from 6 April 2011. Additional paternity leave can be taken 20 weeks after the child is born. It must finish before the child's first birthday. Until now, fathers have only been entitled to two weeks paid paternity leave, but the new additional leave allows eligible employed fathers or partners to take an extra 26 weeks leave to care for the baby, if the mother returns to work before the end of her maternity leave.

RETIREMENT AGE

The default retirement age has now been phased out, meaning that employers are no longer allowed to dismiss staff because they have reached the age of 65. With this change from the Government we encourage employers to hold ongoing communications with their staff to establish their plans, since employees now have the power to decide their own retirement date.

AGENCY WORKERS 

On 1 October 2011 the Agency Workers Regulations came into force. These require that the basic working and employment conditions of agency workers are no less favourable than if the workers had been recruited directly by the nursery. The equal treatment entitlements relate to pay and other basic working conditions and comes into effect after an agency worker completes a 12-week qualifying period.

LOOKING AHEAD

Next year will be an important one for employment legislation and nurseries should keep their policies up-to-date and review them regularly.

UNFAIR DISMISSAL 

From 6 April 2012 employees will require two years' service before they can bring an Employment Tribunal claim for unfair dismissal. If employees are unable to bring an unfair dismissal claim they may try to find a discrimination angle so that they can bring a claim.

PENSIONS 

Between October 2012 and October 2016, all UK employers will have to pay into a pension scheme for their staff. All companies must automatically enrol all employees into a pension scheme which both parties pay into. This will only apply to employees earning more than £7,500 and who have been with the company for three months or more.

PARENTAL LEAVE 

In March, parental leave following the birth or adoption of a child increases from three to four months. At least one of the four months will not be transferable between parents.

For further advice on these employment law updates, or discuss any HR issue call us on 01980 878698 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The HR4Nurseries Team!

Jacqui Mann, Managing Director of hr4nurseries reports on ensuring your staff achieve a good attendance record in Nursery World magazine.

Does your nursery have an absence problem? How much is absence costing your business? It is important to monitor just what is going on. 

It can cause so much disruption to the nursery when one member of staff phones in sick. It is therefore important to ensure that it is well managed and absence levels kept under control. If you have employees who are regularly off sick it can really affect the morale of those who are left to cover their workload, and staff can see managers failing to deal with it as a weakness in their leadership.

Steps to take

Your absence policy should set out what the nursery expects from employees, explaining what they must do if they are sick, who they must contact and by what time. I would also recommend including this procedure in the employment contract discussed at induction.

One way to start controlling absence is by conducting a return-to-work interview on the employee's first day back at work, even if they have only been off for one day.Managers need to be investigative and counselling in their approach during the interview, to help uncover any underlying health or work problems an employee might have. The purpose of the interview is to:

• Enable the employee to explain the reason for their absence.

• Ensure the employee is well enough to be back at work and see if they need any further support. In the case of a long-term sick absence, or recovery from a serious or traumatic illness, some people may benefit from coming back on different hours to help them readjust to work.

• Assess whether the reason given is genuine.

• Complete a return-to-work interview form.

• Emphasise the importance of attendance and why it is continually monitored.

• Raise any concerns about their attendance record and decide if further action is needed.

The HR4nurseries team!

The new rates will be:

• £6.08 per hour - workers 21 and over

• £4.98 per hour - workers 18-20

• £3.68 per hour - workers 16-17 above school leaving age but under 18

• £2.60 per hour - for apprentices under 19, or 19 or over and in the first year of an apprentice

The hr4nurseries team!

Jacqui Mann, Managing Director of hr4nurseries reports on agency workers being on equal terms in Nursery World magazine.

On 1 October the Agency Workers Regulations come into force. They require that the basic working and employment conditions of agency workers are no less favourable than if the workers had been recruited directly by the hirer (nursery). The equal treatment entitlements relate to pay and other basic working conditions and come into effect after an agency worker completes a 12-week qualifying period in the same job with the same hirer, which will start from 1 October 2011 and is not retrospective for those agency workers already on assignment.

As an employer, if you hire temporary agency workers through a temporary work agency, you will need to provide the agency with up-to-date information on your terms and conditions so that it can ensure that the agency worker receives the correct equal treatment, after 12 weeks in the same job.

Equal treatment

Once the agency worker completes a 12-week qualifying period with you, in the same role, they will be entitled to have the same basic terms and conditions of employment as if they had been employed directly by the nursery. These are:

• pay
• duration of working time
• night work
• rest periods
• rest breaks
• annual leave

As the nursery owner you are responsible for ensuring that all agency workers can access your facilities and have access to your job vacancies from the first day they work at your setting.

Pregnant agency workers who have completed the 12- week qualifying period will be entitled to paid time off for antenatal appointments.

Calculating the qualifying period

The qualifying period is triggered by working in the same job with the same hirer for 12 calendar weeks. A calendar week is any period of seven days, starting with the first day of an assignment. Calendar weeks will be accrued regardless of how many hours the worker does on a weekly basis. So if an agency worker is on assignment for only a couple of hours a week, it still counts as a week and they will be entitled to equal treatment after 12 calendar weeks.

An agency worker can bring a claim for compensation to a tribunal if they are not receiving their entitlement under the regulations. The compensation would be equal to the losses they had suffered because they did not receive it. If the worker successfully brings a claim for failing to provide the benefits from day one, the liability will be solely with the hirer (nursery).

If you are going to hire agency workers, seek advice to ensure you follow the regulations.

If you need advice on this subject or any other employment law matter, please call our team on 01980 878698 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk.

The hr4nurseries team!

Policies & procedures regarding holidays need to be communicated, and staff need to be reminded how these work in practice.

HR4nurseries advise employers to be as flexible as possible and have a plan in place to avoid any disputes and disruption to your nursery. You may want to consider the following;

Policies
Check your employment contracts and policies. Most contracts of employment will state that the employer is entitled to decide when to permit a holiday request, and when to refuse them. Make sure staff know about your annual leave policy, their entitlement and the procedure to book. If everyone understands this it can help ensure your nursery does not suffer disruption from unhappy staff.

Facilities
Why not put a television in a communal area to allow employees to watch some events, providing you have a valid TV licence and comply with health and safety regulations. This can be a great way to boost staff morale and also keep children involved with the activities and events going on.

Time off
You may have a number of staff who have tickets to the same events, so put a plan into place of how you’ll deal with annual leave requests. What’s in your policies and procedures? Most employers work on a first-come, first-served basis. Consider putting a rota into place offering employees to share time off to watch certain events, allowing more employees to be off at once than you would normally. This is only for a short period and could avoid employees phoning in sick.

Act NOW
Don’t wait until next year for problems to arise. Speak to your staff now, summarise your key points regarding annual leave during the London 2012 Olympics. Explain the need to make sure you’ve got adequate staff cover during this period, and the way in which your nursery deals with holiday requests.

By communicating your plans to staff as early as possible, you’ll be able to strike a balance between letting employees participate in the excitement of the Olympics and maintaining business as usual.

If you need help or advice on this subject, call us now on 01980 878698 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

An employment contract is an agreement between an employee and their employer which details their rights and duties, also referred to as their 'terms of employment'. Your initial contract can be agreed verbally and starts when your employee accepts the offer of a job, however a written statement must be issued to them within this time frame.

Having this in place can cut down on any disputes occurring later on as both parties understand what is expected of them.

 To speak to one of our team about employment contracts call us on 01980 622167 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

On July 1st 2011 the new Bribery Act came into force.

Do you know what this means for you and your nursery?

Any employers should be preparing themselves to make sure they comply with this current legislation as any businesses found to be involved in bribery, backhanders or kickback can lead to a prison sentence for those involved if convicted.

The Bribery Act 2010 makes it a criminal offence for a business or an individual to offer a bribe or reward, accept a bribe or reward, or failure to prevent bribery. Also highlighted in the new law is ‘bribing of a foreign public official’, this will not matter if the incident has taken place in the UK or abroad.

As a minimum, employers should be reviewing their disciplinary, grievance and whistleblowing policies, along with any relevant sections of their company handbooks.

Personnel Today reports that to minimise the risk of falling foul to the Act, nurseries should put into place the following;

    • prevention policies to cover whistleblowing procedures;
    • prevention policies to cover financial and commercial controls, for example, on invoices, remuneration, etc;
    • prevention policies to cover rules on gifts, hospitality and promotional spend;
    • procedures on recruitment and discipline that include anti-bribery measures; and
    • details on how anti-bribery measures will be enforced.

By putting sound whistleblowing procedures in place, this will strengthen your anti-bribery credentials as an organisation.

It is crucial you keep your senior managers up to date with this new Act, and their responsibility to train key staff such as sales employees on what the Bribery Act means, the risks for your nursery and the potential for their individual liability.

You will need to be aware of additional risks to your nursery when contracting with any third parties such as consultants, contractors and the like, and make sure they are acting in the same way as you. Certain things that are seen as the ‘norm’ in some countries such as providing lavish entertainment or gifts to keep people happy, may now be seen as bribery in the UK.

If you would like more advice on The Bribery Act 2010 which came into force on 1st July 2011, or would like us to review or update your policies to help protect you against this Act, contact us on 01980 878698 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

To mark 60 years of the Queens reign the government have announced plans to hold an official Jubilee weekend on 2nd-5th June 2012.

The celebrations will centre around an extended bank holiday weekend in 2012 on 2nd, 3rd, 4th & 5th of June. This means that the late May bank holiday will be moved to Monday 4th June 2012, with an additional bank holiday for the Jubilee being added on Tuesday 5th June 2012. As with the Royal wedding earlier this year, the extra holiday will create a 3 day working week.

We expect most businesses to offer their employees an additional days paid leave for this public holiday, however for some bigger businesses they will be weighing up what the cost of this will mean to them.

Employees do not automatically have the right to have paid time off on a bank holiday or public holiday, it depends what has been written into their contracts or is given at the discretion of the employer. 

If you would like further help and advice on this subject or would like us to check your employment contracts, contact us on 01980 878698 or info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

When it comes to your employees using social media such as facebook and twitter, do you have clear guidelines to let them know what is and what isn't acceptable? We're not just talking about using these applications in the workplace, a lot of damage can be done when employees are engaging in social media in their spare time simply because clear guidelines have not been set.

We’ve had several cases where facebook or the like has got employees or companies into a little spot of bother! Now we’re not saying let’s ban it altogether, but if you simply knew how to manage the risks of social networking then you may save yourself some problems in the future.

More and more people are now having their opinion influenced by what they read on social media, and a lot of nurseries we deal with are encouraging their staff to get involved with a ‘fan page’ on facebook, or a twitter account for the nursery. We engage in this ourselves, it’s a great way to communicate with people and promote your brand and image… if it’s done in the right way.

We’ve had a case where an employee has gone home after a bad day and used facebook to vent their anger at an employer. In most cases this would not have been picked up on, unfortunately the employee in question was connected or ‘friends’ with several parents from the nursery, which therefore put the nurseries reputation at risk.

With the majority of people having a social media account we recommend putting these simple guidelines into place and making sure your staff are aware of them:

• Implement a social media policy specifically designed for your organisation. This should be clear and contain what is and what isn’t allowed when it comes to any form of social media. Include the consequences if any guidelines should be breached.
• Protect your confidentiality – if you don’t want your staff to connect with parents of children at the nursery, state this in your policy. Create a ‘fan page’ on facebook if parents wish to connect through social media.
• If you are using social media for marketing purposes, make sure you set guidelines for this. Staff may be tempted to enter into debates or give their personal opinion which can damage your nursery reputation.
• Always make sure your guidelines reflect your harassment policy, and make sure your employees understand what behaviour is not acceptable in the workplace, such as making comments about other members of staff in your workplace which could be seen to be harassment.

If you need any help with this topic or would like advice on social media in the workplace call us on 01980 878698 or email info@hr4nurseries.co.uk. Our initial consultation is free of charge.

The hr4nurseries team!

If an employee is on holiday and then becomes ill they may be able to take this as sick leave rather than holiday. The holiday will then be reinbursed to them.

A court ruling also allows employees to carry over annual leave ruined by illness until the next year. We recommend you make sure your Absence Policy is up to date to reflect this.

Your policy should say how and when your employee should let you know when they are sick on holiday, and what proof they might need.

If you need advice on this subject or any other employment law matter, please call our team on 01980 878698 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk.

The hr4nurseries team!

The right to additional paternity leave rule has now taken effect. Fathers or partners with babies due on or after 3 April 2011 will be able to take up to 6 months additional paternity leave once the mother has returned to work, and may be paid if taken during the mother's maternity pay period.

Until now, fathers or partners have only been entitled to two weeks paid paternity leave, but the new additional paternity leave allows eligible employed fathers or partners to take an extra 26 weeks leave to care for their new baby, if the mother returns to work before the end of her maternity leave.

Additional paternity leave may be taken anytime from 20 weeks after the baby is born, but must have finished before the child is one year old.

In cases of adoption, this can be taken anytime between 20 weeks and 52 weeks after the child starts living with the adopted parents.

Alongside this, the statutory rates of maternity, paternity and adoption pay have also increased from £124.88 to £128.73 per week.

If you would like further help and advice on this subject or any other HR issue, contact us on 01980 878698 or info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

Measures being unveiled include:

• A new body is to be created following the merger of the CRB and Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA).
• Only those working closely and regular with children or vulnerable adults will require a CRB check.
• Workers will be able to carry over a CRB check from one job to another.
• Those working with children or vulnerable adults will no longer be required to register with the VBS or be monitored by the ISA.
• Job applicants will be allowed to request to see their CRB check before their prospective employers, so any mistakes can be corrected.
• There will be penalties for employers who knowingly request CRB checks on employees or applicants who do not need them.

If you would like further help and advice on this subject or any other HR issue contact us on 01980 878698 or info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

The main goals of the consultation are to reduce the number of tribunal claims and to speed up any claims that do arise. The Government describe it as the latest step in its comprehensive review of employment laws, and outlines a number of ways in which the workplace dispute system could be changed.

The key objectives of the proposals are to:

•Give businesses a greater confidence to hire new staff by increasing the qualifying period for employees to bring a claim for unfair dismissal from one to two years.
•Encourage parties to resolve disputes between themselves as early as possible.
•Speed up the tribunal process.
•Tackle weak and vexatious claims.
The Government has also announced that the Ministry of Justice will launch a separate consultation into the issue of introducing fees for bringing tribunal cases and appeals. A possible outcome of this charge will be that it will deter some employees from pursuing a claim.

If you would like further help and advice on this subject or any other HR issue please contact us on 01980 878698 or info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

At this event, a female employee who was already in a personal relationship with another employee of the firm caused a stir. She was seen kissing the IT Manager, and at the end of the evening they were seen leaving together and alledgedly shared a hotel room.

Shortly after the new year, the female employee informed her employers of her pregnancy. On finding this out, a suggestion was made by the HR Manager about the paternity of the baby. According to the female employee, the HR Manager had also been gossiping and spreading rumours about her pregnancy, which resulted in the IT Manager asking for clarification as to the paternity of the baby.

The female employee issued employment tribunal proceedings claiming sex and pregnancy discrimination, harassment and constructive dismissal. The EAT found that this did constitute sexual and pregnancy related discrimination and the behaviour from the HR Manager was unacceptable.

This case reminds employers about their legal responsibility for the behaviour of their employees, especially during and after any social events. It also highlights the importance of ensuring grievances are dealt with promptly and swiftly.

If you would like further help and advice on this subject or any other HR issue please contact us on 01980 878698 or info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

In April 2010 the right to request time off for training was introduced for employees of larger companies who have 250 employees or more, with a view to it being extended to all employees of small and medium sized businesses in April 2011.

This has now been delayed to give Government Ministers more time to examine the potential impact on smaller businesses.

If you would like further help and advice on this subject on any other HR issue contact us on 01980 878698 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

Statutory Sick Pay is to rise from £79.15 to £81.60 per week.

Statutory Maternity, Paternity and Adoption Pay is to rise from £124.88 to £128.73 per week.

If you would like further help and advice on this subject on any other HR issue contact us on 01980 878698 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

Currently an employer can issue an employee with a notice to force retirement at the age of 65 without paying any financial compensation, with the normal legal obligations in place such as a six month previous meeting and relevant notice.

With this change from the government we encourage employers to hold ongoing communications with their staff to establish their plans, since employees will then have the power to decide their own retirement date.

Have you thought about how this is going to affect your nursery? Need advice? Then give the team at hr4nurseries a call, we're here to help. 01980 878698 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

Right to request flexible working extended to parents of children under 18 - From April 2011, the right to request flexible working will be extended to parents with children under the age of 18 years old. Previously this has only been available to parents with children under the age of 17, or under the age of 18 if the child is disabled, and also for employees who care for adults aged 18 or over.

Equal rights for agency workers - Coming into force in October 2011 will be The Agency Workers Regulations 2010, which will mean agency workers will be entitled to the same rights as permanent staff after 12 weeks in a job. This will include the basic working & employment conditions, including their pay and holidays.

Additional paternity leave regulations - From April 2011 employed partners will have the right to take up to six months extra leave, provided the mother has returned to work before using her full entitlement to maternity leave. This regulation will only affect parents with children due on or after 3rd April 2011.

As always if you would like further help and advice on any of these subjects, or any other HR issue, contact us on 01980 878698 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

If you would like further help and advice on this subject on any other HR issue contact us on 01980 878698 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

We expect most nurseries to offer their employees an additional days paid leave for this public holiday, however for some bigger chains they will be weighing up what the cost of this will mean for them.

Employees do not automatically have the right to have paid time off on a bank holiday or public holiday, it depends what is written into their contracts or is given at the discrection of the employer.

Call or email our team at hr4nurseries if you would like help & advice on any HR issue on 01980 878698 or info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

Jacqui Mann, Managing Director of hr4nurseries reports on the importance of having employment contracts and documents in place and up to date in Nursery World Magazine.

When an owner sets up their nursery, they will want to make sure they have everything in place for their staff. But as the years go by and everyone is busy dealing with the children and all the regulations that occur with running a nursery, often they don't revisit the staff employment contracts or handbook. This could prove to be a big mistake.

I have visited many nurseries and reviewed their employment documents, only to find that they are seven or eight years out of date. During this time there have been so many changes in employment legislation, which include statutory rights for employees that the law says you must provide.

Often a common thing I find is that some nurseries choose not to issue contracts to staff, only giving offer letters to new employees stating their hourly pay rate and working hours. To make sure that you are legally protecting your nursery, you need to issue a proper contract of employment that clearly outlines the terms and conditions of the employment, which forms the basis of the employment relationship.

Contracts need to be issued to staff within eight weeks of them starting their employment with you. A contract is made once the offer of employment is accepted.

Some statutory rights are effective immediately, although most statutory rights don't apply until the employee has actually started in your workplace. Ideally, the contract should be issued before the new employee starts work.

It's also a good idea to have an employee handbook that you can issue to all staff when they first start working with you. It's a simple practice to put into place, and something that could save you a lot of time and problems in the future. This handbook can outline to all your staff what is acceptable and what is unacceptable at work.

We have come across several nurseries that have problems with staff smoking or using mobile phones. A handbook is an ideal place where you can put policies into place to help protect yourself from problems such as these.

To make sure that you don't get caught out, I recommend that you review your contracts of employment and employee handbook every year. If you don't have employment contracts or handbooks already within your nursery and you want to introduce them, you will need to consult with your existing staff and make sure that they understand and agree with the terms that are outlined.

There have been so many changes lately in employment law, it is hard to keep up to date, especially when you have a nursery to run. And let's face it, Human Resources can be incredibly time-consuming and confusing and not a priority to you when are busy running a childcare setting. Having all these practices in place and keeping them up to date could save you from issues arising in the future - and who knows, it may even save you from a costly tribunal!

Jacqui Mann

• Protection against direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation
• Clarification of protected characteristics – these are the grounds on which discrimination can occur. This now includes: Age, Disability, Gender reassignment, Marriage & civil partnerships, Pregnancy & maternity, Race, Religion or belief, Sex and Sexual orientation.
• Changing the definition of gender reassignment to include an individual who has started, proposes to start, or has completed a process to change his or her gender. The individual does not need to be under medical supervision to be protected.
• Associative & perceptive discrimination
  • Associative discrimination means discriminating against individuals who associate with an individual with a protected characteristic. E.G. an employee who cares for a disabled relative.
  • Perceptive discrimination means discriminating again individuals who it is thought or perceived to have a protected characteristic.
• New concept of ‘discrimination’ arising from disability
• Ban on pre-employment health questionnaires
• Extended protection from third party harassment, to all protected characteristics
• Making secrecy clauses unenforceable

What do you need to do as an employer?

• Review your equal opportunities policy
• Review your application form
• Ensure that your managers and employees are aware of the changes.
• Reduce risk of discrimination in recruitment e.g., have clear job descriptions; ensure that interview questions are related to job/skills.
• Do not issue any further pre-employment health questionnaires.
• Take action if an employee alerts you to 3rd party harassment.
• Ensure that any secrecy clauses are removed from contracts of employment.

Call or email our team at hr4nurseries if you would like further help & advice on this subject or any other HR issue on 01980 878698 or info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

All in all, UK employment claims are up by over 56% from the previous year. This increase is huge, the main areas of dispute to see an increase are Working Time Directive claims with an increase of 300%, deduction of wages and redundancy pay claims. However despite the dramatic increase in these areas, the classic unfair dismissal case is still topping the charts at a massive 51,000 claims!

Sexual discrimination claims have stayed almost the same, and disability, race, religion/belief and sexual orientation cases have all increased, in line with unfair dismissal claims overall increase. We may well see a rise in equality related claims now that the new Equality Act has come into law.

Unfortunately almost 70% of Employment Claims are successful, twice as many than are unsuccessful. Are you up to date with employment law and protecting yourself from a tribunal claim in the future? If you would like to discuss any issues relating to this and any other employee issue then please contact the team here at hr4nurseries, we're here to help. Tel: 01980 878698 or email us info@hr4nurseries.co.uk

The hr4nurseries team!

From 6th April 2010 the sick note was no more and was replaced by the new fit note. Many people with health conditions that would normally be signed off sick, could with some basic support from their employer, work as they recover from their condition. This not only helps the individual but also can benefit the employer by reducing your sickness absence.

To help more people get the support they need to return to work the new fit note system means that the doctor can advise that your employee is either:

• unfit for work; or
• may be fit for work.

A doctor will only give a 'may be fit for work' statement if they think that the employees health condition may allow them to work with suitable help and support from their employer. Suitable types of support may be;

• a phased return to work
• altered hours
• amended duties
• workplace adaptations

If an employee is too ill to work the doctor will advise 'unfit for work', just like the old sick note.

If it is not possible for you as an employer to provide the support for your employee to return to work, you should discuss this with them and use the statement as if the doctor had advised 'not fit for work'

The hr4nurseries team!

Home Secretary Theresa May said 'Vulnerable groups must be properly protected in a way that is proportionate and sensible. This redrawing of the vetting and barring scheme will ensure this happens.'

Employers should continue to undertake all relevant CRB checks for new employees wishing to work with children or vulnerable adults.

The hr4nurseries team!