BackupHR - :: The complete HR solution for SMEs

	Briefing: HSE begins charging for their Services We have previously alerted clients that the Health & Safety Executive, HSE, would start charging employers under certain circumstances. This newsletter is a brief reminder that the HSE new cost recovery scheme, Fee for Intervention (FFI), came into force on Monday, 1st October 2012. Fee for Intervention it is believed will provide a further incentive for businesses to manage health and safety effectively, operate within the law, and, help level the playing field between those who comply and those who don't, although time will tell as to whether that proves to be the case. Published Feb 22, 2013 - 11:58 AM Read more... (3812 bytes more) comments?
	Briefing: Employment Law Update - 2013 New Statutory Figures The annual increase in compensation limits has been announced. The new limits are applicable where the event that gives rise to the award or payment occurs on or after 1st February 2013 and are: - £450.00 - the maximum amount of a week's pay for calculating statutory redundancy pay and the basic award; (up from £430.00) - £13,500.00 - the maximum statutory redundancy payment or basic award i.e. 30 weeks; and - £74,200.00 - the maximum compensatory award which can be made for unfair dismissal (up from £72,300.00). Published Feb 22, 2013 - 11:55 AM Read more... (2386 bytes more) comments?
	Briefing: Interns - Working through the Internship Issues Interns - What are they? Three years ago, if asked the question "What is the difference between an intern and a volunteer?" then quite frankly any answer was likely to be vague. Even now, after due consideration, the issue of interns can lead to some difficult areas of employment law. It is quite a new development as there are now many interns doing what would traditionally have been termed Graduate Trainee jobs. Over a third (37%) of internships are currently unpaid, according to research by the CIPD and is probably higher than that when smaller employers are taken into account. Although some employers still see internships as a source of cheap labour, many employers now recognise that taking a more professional approach to training programmes and temporary placements makes them an invaluable recruitment tool. Published Feb 22, 2013 - 11:52 AM Read more... (7332 bytes more) comments?
	Briefing: Yet More Holiday & Sickness Problems In Newsletter 31 (February 2010) we reported on legal developments in the area of holiday pay and sick pay and the two separate but linked issues of holiday accrual during long term sickness and what to do about people who are (or claim to be) sick whilst on holiday. We provided guidance which said; do not be panicked by headlines, deal with problems and watch this space because the law is still not clear. Sadly the law whilst still not as clear as we might wish is becoming increasingly solidified. Published Feb 22, 2013 - 11:46 AM Read more... (6052 bytes more) comments?
	Briefing: The Pensions Bill - Auto Enrolment The Government have introduced legislation to get more people saving for their future. This will mean that all employers are required to automatically enrol certain employees into a qualifying workplace pension scheme (QWPS) and make contributions into it. Changes will begin to take effect from October 2012 but it is unlikely that most of our clients will be affected until much later as the date will be determined by the number of employees, as detailed below. The date the employer duties first apply is known as their 'staging date'. Each employer must identify their own staging date (the date when a Qualifying Workplace Pension must be in place) and ensure they have everything in place for it. The formula is based on the number of people in an employer's Pay As You Earn (PAYE) scheme on 1 April 2012. If an employer has more than one PAYE scheme then the staging date will be based on the numbers within the largest scheme. Any changes to the size of the workforce after 1 April 2012 will not affect the staging date. Published Feb 22, 2013 - 11:40 AM Read more... (3394 bytes more)
	Briefing: Can you be rid of RIDDOR? The rather inelegantly entitled RIDDOR, which stands for the equally inelegant Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations, was introduced in 1995 and brought together a whole load of disparate reporting requirements from different industries under one statutory umbrella. We regularly get asked about it, even from clients who do not take our health and safety service, and so we thought we might distil some of this advice in our newsletter. Published Nov 29, 2012 - 04:21 PM Read more... (10022 bytes more)
	Briefing: New to the Job Workers regardless of whether they are permanent or temporary employees, agency workers or volunteers are as likely to have an accident in the first six months at a workplace as during the whole of the rest of their working life. Published Nov 29, 2012 - 04:00 PM Read more... (7301 bytes more)
	Briefing: Employment Law Reform Proposals There has been a lot of media coverage about various Government employment proposals, which have included the words 'bombarded' and 'plethora'. It is very important to stress that none of these changes have, in fact, been finalised. The Government has recently confirmed that it will introduce reforms to the Employment Tribunals system that are designed to reduce the number of claims being brought in the Tribunals and, to give extra protection to employers against vexatious claims. We thought that clients may want to be aware of some of the most interesting, and possibly more relevant changes, which are as follows:- Published Nov 29, 2012 - 03:53 PM Read more... (6670 bytes more)
	Briefing: Variation of Contract Introduction It is common for Employers to want to change their employees' terms & conditions of employment from time to time - to bring them into line with changes in the law, or to make them more "user friendly". Often a change will be to reflect a promotion, transfer or different working hours. In the current economic downturn, many employers have considered varying terms to save costs - e.g. by changing shift patterns to reduce the need for overtime, removing benefits that can no longer be afforded, or even reducing hours/rates of pay. Those who have done it successfully have either done so properly, i.e. within the constraints of employment law, or if not, employers have been lucky not to be challenged. Published Nov 29, 2012 - 03:48 PM Read more... (9053 bytes more)
	Briefing: Social Media for Employees The proliferation of social media has blurred the lines between employees’ public and private lives. There have been a number of recent cases concerning employees and their use of Facebook etc. to moan about work. Some of them have attracted negative public reactions to the employer's action and other have resulted in expensive Tribunal awards. In a recent case a footballer who posted a homophobic remark on a social media website was sacked by his club. Oxford City striker Lee Steele made a comment on Twitter about the gay former Wales rugby player Gareth Thomas. Tweeting about Thomas's appearance on Celebrity Big Brother, he wrote a "strongly-worded" message about being in a bed near the contestant. Oxford City's manager Mike Ford said: "On this occasion Lee's had to pay for his error of judgement." Published Nov 29, 2012 - 03:45 PM Read more... (4843 bytes more)