Goodharts Solicitors

Employee Monitoring: An Employer’s Guide

Recent advances in technology mean that there are now numerous ways to monitor employees, including via a webcam on staff computers or by checking browser histories, email content and phone records. Productivity-tracking software offers a raft of ways to assess how employees spend their working day. Employers can also keep tabs on their employees’ movements through the working day using CCTV, vehicle location tracking, dash cameras and devices, or access cards which track employees’ movements in the workplace.

Adoption Rights: what Employers need to know

According to the charity Adoption UK there are nearly 3,000 children in care waiting to be adopted, and as charities seek to raise awareness of this during National Adoption week (17-23 October 2022), employers may get questions about employment rights related to adoption.

Employee Benefits: Pitfalls to avoid 

Employee recruitment and retention remains challenging for employers and offering an attractive package of benefits can give employers an edge. A wide range of benefits can be offered, including buying or selling annual leave; reduced gym membership; private medical insurance; critical illness insurance and retail discounts or vouchers. 

Employers need to take care with employee benefits as the rules around different benefits can be complex, and there are often unanticipated knock-on effects.

Negotiating a Senior Executive Package

Recruiting the right senior executive can be an immense benefit to a company if they bring the right mix of skills, experience, and contacts to the business. It is not uncommon for the recruitment process to include some informal occasions, at which terms, conditions and incentives might be discussed. Failing to capture such casual agreements and to spell them out in detail in the employment contract can lead to problems down the track if there is a misalignment of understanding. 

Summer 2022 - Employment Law Update

This year’s Queen’s Speech was surprisingly light on employment law developments, with the omission of the long-awaited Employment Bill. However, the last few months have seen a couple of announcements from the Government regarding the future of work, data protection, exclusivity clauses and the menopause which employers need to be aware of, and tribunal and Employment Appeal Tribunal decisions continue to provide interesting reading, including decisions in the context of Covid-19.

Employers - Let’s talk about Pay

The subject of pay is always a hot topic and requires sensitive handling. Employees feel they need more, due to the rising costs of living, or believe they deserve more due to increased responsibilities or experience. Meanwhile, employers are under pressure to cut costs while seeking to attract the best people with an attractive package. 

Investigating Employee Misconduct: how to get it right

Being dismissed for misconduct can have a devastating impact on an employee’s future job opportunities. Before fairly dismissing someone for misconduct, employers must be able to show that they reasonably believe that the employee is guilty of misconduct. A fair investigation is the cornerstone of a fair process and for establishing that it was reasonable to believe that the employee was guilty. We explain below how to ensure a fair investigation is followed.  

April is usually the month when the Government introduces new employment legislation, and in recent years has announced its commitment to introducing significant new rights, such as neo-natal leave and a duty to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace.

While there are very few big changes this April, employment law remains a fast-moving area of law. We explain below the key changes employers need to know about this year and looks back at recent developments.

The law gives five potentially fair reasons for dismissal, including breach of a statutory duty or restriction and some other substantial reason capable of justifying dismissal. The most commonly used reasons are redundancy, capability and misconduct.

Even if your employee is guilty of misconduct or their job is clearly redundant, you still need to take care when dismissing. An employment tribunal will also decide if the dismissal was fair in all the circumstances.

The last 18 months have seen employers turn on a dime to keep their business on track, while guarding the health and wellbeing of staff and customers. While flexibility has been key, it has also been important to update and comply with frequently changing health and safety policies.