In the HR news ...

Extra Bank Holiday – Queen's Diamond Jubilee

It is proposed to have an extra bank holiday on Tuesday 5th June 2012 to celebrate the Jubilee. The late May Bank holiday that year will also be moved to Monday 4th June to create a long weekend. If your contract of employment states that the annual holiday entitlement is 28 days inclusive of Bank holidays you will not be required to give an extra day's holiday. You would only be required to give an extra day if your contract says 28 days plus Bank holidays. It's been a tough few years and most employees have accepted cuts or freezes in pay, reduced hours, extra work etc, so we recommend that you are not mean and give this extra Bank holiday as a paid holiday.

At last Serial Litigants Are Being Caught Out

We all know that there are people who try it on at an employment tribunal and it is cheaper for employers to settle out of court, so the person does it time and time again. People also make false claims at the recruitment stage. At last the courts are catching up with the views of employers that this should not be allowed to happen. Margaret Keene and John Berry both serially claimed discrimination at the recruitment stage but never had genuine interest in the jobs. The courts decided that there was no discrimination if the applicant doesn't really want the job. They were made to pay costs to the employer.

It is also proposed to introduce a service so that employers can find out who are serial litigants.

We will keep you posted!

Fit Notes

Fit notes replaced doctor's certificates from 6 th April 2010 . Now doctors can give the option that the employee may be fit for work and can suggest:

• Phased return to work
• altered hours
• amended duties
• work place adaptations.

GPs are not Occupational Health Doctors and do not know your work place, they may also side more with the employee - so some teething problems are expected.

The key thing to remember as long as you act reasonably and consider how you could provide light duties or alternative work, as per guidance on the fit note, it is only guidance. You are not legally bound to provide such work. If you do not provide the work the employee remains on sick leave and SSP or company sick pay (if you provide company sick pay).

We recommend you review your sickness policy so that your employees know how you will deal with fit notes and any temporary reduction in hours, alternative duties etc.

Action Point: Call or email us today to arrange for your policy to be reviewed and updated.

Reasonable Adjustments – Disability

The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 makes it a duty for employers to make reasonable adjustments both in employment and service provision. This duty can include altering premises. How far is reasonable? For The Royal Bank of Scotland the courts decided that the installation for a lift for £200,000 was not disproportionate.

Which is stronger – Religious or Sexual Discrimination?

A Registrar of births, marriages and deaths refused to officiate at civil partnerships. She claimed that ‘marrying' same sex partners was against her strong Christian beliefs. She was dismissed. The court of appeal did not find in her favour. It took into account that the Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2007 restricted the right to ‘freedom of religion or belief' when good and services are provided to the public. The actual consequences of the employee's beliefs for her employer were that same sex couples were being directly discriminated against and the employer could not be placed in this position by an employee. By the employee's actions the employer risked other action for discrimination.

Key Point: This case will apply in the private sector. Whilst an employee's religious beliefs will be respected, they cannot exercise them in a way that causes the employer to breach other areas of discrimination law.

Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) if an Employee Works for two Employers

If a female employee works for two employers and meets all of the qualifying criteria for SMP with each employer then both are liable to pay SMP. She can return to work early with one employer and not the other. SMP payments will continue for the employer to whom she has not returned to work. If however, the employee starts work for a new employer, i.e. they did not employ her when she started maternity leave, your liability to SMP ceases.

Additional Paternity Leave

New rights will apply for fathers of babies born after 3 rd April 2011 . If the:

• the father has 26 week's service with the employer and
• the mother of the baby has returned to work and not taken all of her maternity leave
• the mother has returned to work at the end of her maternity leave

The father can take up to 26 weeks leave before the child's first birthday. The minimum period of additional paternity leave will be two weeks.

If the mother has not taken all of her statutory maternity pay the balance will transfer to the father.

There are procedures for applying for the leave and 8 weeks notice must be given. Both the mother and father must sign self certification forms. The employer can ask for the child's birth certificate and make enquires to the mother's employer. HRMC will also conduct compliance checks.

Statutory Payment Rates

Rates from 4th April 2010 are:

Bribery Act

This act replaces the current statutory and common law offences. It creates 4 new offences.

• Active bribery - giving, promising or offering a bribe
• Passive bribery – requesting, agreeing to receive or receiving a bribe
• Bribing a foreign public official
• New corporate offence – failure to prevent persons performing services on their behalf from paying bribes.

The Government are to issue guidance on procedures that can be put in place.

Action Point: Companies need adequate procedures and polices in place to prevent bribery as a defence to the corporate offence.

Whistleblowing

From 6th April 2010 employment tribunal administrative staff will be able to refer whistle-blowing concerns to appropriate regulators with the claimants consent. This is a significant development for all employers, especially those involved in health and social care, financial services and potentially hazardous workplaces.

The new arrangements are likely to increase referrals to regulators. Claimants who otherwise would not have thought of involving a regulator will just need to tick a box on the employment tribunal claim form. The employee may not be aware that regulators can make onerous demands on whistleblowers during their investigations. Sometimes they also don't reciprocate by permitting access to materials supporting an employee's claim.

In the new arrangements employers may find themselves having to deal not only with an employment tribunal claim but also a regulatory investigation.

Key Point: Always take employees' concerns seriouslyl.

JCV Consulting News

Terry has completed his NEBOSH course and is awaiting the results of his exams. We hope to be able to provide you with a health and safety service directly from JCV Consulting Ltd shortly.

Emma is no longer working for us and is concentrating on her studies.

We are developing a new service to coach graduates how to deal with job hunting, job applications, interviews and assessment centres. We will give you more news as this progresses.

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