Tag Archive for: Discrimination

Menopause Not Set to Become a Protected Characteristic

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With just over 15 million women in the workplace, the last few years has seen a welcome focus on how the menopause can impact staff and what employers can do to best assist women through this stage.

Last week the Government responded to the House of Commons Women and Equalities Committee report Menopause and the Workplace (July 2022). 

The report had made a number of recommendations, including:

  • introducing sex and age as a single dual protected characteristic under the Equalities Act 2010 to protect women going through menopause
  • launching a consultation on how to amend the Equalities Act 2010 to include ‘menopause’ as a new protected characteristic

What Are The Government’s Plans?

The Government’s response does not accept either of these recommendations, pointing to existing protections available for those experience menopause. This response was in many ways as expected and in accordance with previous government statements. 

However, the Government has, in part, accepted some of the Committee’s other recommendations, including the appointment of a Menopause Ambassador/Champion, a ministerial appointment within the Department for Work and Pensions; and, bringing forward legislation to make the right to request flexible working a day one employment right. 

No timetable has been announced in respect of introducing these provisions. We will keep you posted as and when the Government releases further details, and provide information of how they may affect your business.

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How Can You Best Support Staff Going Through Menopause?

You may want to consider how best to support any staff currently going through the menopause. This could include:

  • Introduce a Menopause Policy for staff. Many of you will have already done this, it is a useful way to show your support for staff, emphasise your commitment to addressing the impact of menopause and a useful way to channel any queries from staff.
  • Appoint a Menopause Champion to act as a central point of contact for staff.
  • Provide training for line managers on the symptoms of menopause and how to support and speak with staff who may be experiencing symptoms. This can be a sensitive subject and line managers are often the first point of contact for staff and may need guidance on how best to approach conversations such as this.
  • Consider what can be done to help staff experiencing the menopause, for example considering home working and adjusting working times.
  • Reviewing the working environment to ensure it is conducive to working if a member of staff is experiencing the menopause – for example, the room temperature and access to toilets.
  • Create an open and trusted environment for staff. Implementing the recommendations above will help you to do this. Menopausal symptoms can be managed in a way that supports staff to be able to continue to work in the best interests of your business.

For further information or to discuss how NQHR can help your business to support staff please contact Rachel Brodie in our team on 07881 092528.

When It All Kicks Off – Is Supporting a Football Team Considered a Philosophical Belief?

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You may have seen a recent Tribunal case involving Mr McClung – a subcontractor, and importantly for this Tribunal case, a lifelong Glasgow Rangers fan. He alleged that a manager, who was a Celtic fan, did not offer him later work due to his support of the rival Glasgow team.

What’s Considered a ‘Philosophical Belief’?

This is not the first time I have heard similar tales, and not just in Tribunal judgments. In Bob Mortimer’s brilliant autobiography, ‘And Away’, he wrote about his time in a chicken abattoir/processing plant. He was wearing the shirt of his beloved Middlesbrough and was given the worst job in the plant (it’s too stomach churning to go into the details) because his manager was a supporter of a local rival. This sort of thing does happen.

Mr McClung claimed that his support of Rangers was so strong and such an intrinsic part of his existence that it was akin to a philosophical belief. To meet the ‘philosophical belief’ threshold, a person’s belief must be:

  • genuinely held
  • not an opinion or viewpoint
  • must be a substantial aspect of human life and behaviour
  • must have a certain level of cogency, seriousness, cohesion and importance
  • must be worthy of respect in a democratic society and must not conflict with the fundamental rights of others

The Tribunal found Mr McClung met the first test but not the others.

I am not sure I agree with this decision, Mr McClung told the tribunal hearing that supporting Rangers is a way of life and it was as important to him as it was for Christians to attend church. I think there was probably an element of the Tribunal not wanting to open the floodgates to other similar claims.

Resolving Differences in Opinion

Importantly, just because his passion for Rangers has been found to technically not amount to a protected characteristic, it is still worth considering what the company could have done differently.

If it did identify that there was tension between a manager and subcontractor would it not have been better to try to get them to work together and to put aside any differences? You don’t necessarily need them to be best friends, just to be able to work together. These things can be achieved.

If the company had taken steps to manage the conflict it could have meant that the two people could have carried on working together and avoided a time consuming and expensive Tribunal claim. No doubt both sides would have paid their own legal costs and so the company’s ‘victory’ would still have come at a substantial cost. That might all have been avoided with better, more proactive management of this situation.

For specialist HR support with managing conflict in the workplace, please get in touch with Simon Martin on 07384 813076 in our team.

Is It ‘Just Banter’? How Do You Draw the Line in Your Workplace?

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Banter in the workplace can help build good working relationships amongst staff, but with a 45% increase in tribunal claims relating to workplace banter, it’s clear the lines between banter and harassment are getting increasingly blurred.

A few years ago a company asked us to deliver some training for their staff on the subject of workplace banter. They had identified that in a particular area of their business, things had become a little bit too well, bantery, and they were concerned that the invisible line we all talk about was in the process of being trampled over.

According to recent research conducted by employment law firm GQ Littler, they were right to be concerned. The number of tribunal claims relating to workplace banter has increased by 45% in the last year. 

The statistics refer to the number of claims where ‘banter’ was an integral part of the employers defence, the ‘it was just a bit of banter’ defence.

What Does the Law Say About Banter?

As you might imagine, the term ‘banter’ is not one that is defined in law. 

The Equality Act 2010 prohibits less favourable treatment on the grounds of ‘protected characteristics’, namely sex, race, sexual orientation, age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity and marriage and civil partnership. 

Employers need to be concerned as they can be vicariously liable for the acts of their employees. In simple terms this means a claim can be brought against the employer and the employer can be held responsible and ordered to pay compensation. 

What Are the Common Issues?

Often, the sorts of issues that can give rise to unhappy employees are jokes or nicknames that are intended to be, and often are funny. However, the reason it’s tricky is because, as Joe Lycett recently found out when a member of his audience reported one of his jokes to the Police, what one person finds funny, another can find offensive.

So how can employers create the right balance of creating a workplace that encourages a collegiate atmosphere where people get on well and develop relationships but don’t offend one other?

Best Practice

In truth, employers probably need to accept that their staff are not going to get it right all of the time. But there are things employers can do to help (and minimise their potential liability if it does go wrong). Suggestions include:

  • Set the right tone – it’s got to start with senior staff and line managers. If they are not behaving in a respectful and appropriate way, it will inevitably lead to problems.
  • Create an environment where people are confident to call out or challenge behaviour they find upsetting or offensive. Often things deteriorate when they are allowed to fester. If people feel comfortable to speak up then issues should hopefully be easier to resolve.
  • Ensure managers are skilled in having difficult conversations. It is a skill and it can be learnt. Things rarely improve if they are not addressed.
  • Consider how you incorporate the types of positive behaviours you want to see from staff into your core values or a company charter. It is one thing having a dignity at work or bullying policy for when things go wrong but implementing these things can be a more proactive and positive tool.
  • Offer staff training, either on induction or as part of a more general training agenda. It does no harm for any of us to be reminded about these issues and it can be a helpful reset button if you’ve identified that there is a problem.

Our team are experienced in offering bespoke staff training for a variety of organisations. Please get in touch if you’d like to discuss training on workplace banter, managing difficult conversations or your other training needs. Please contact Sarah Martin on 07799 136 091.

Is It Legal To Monitor Employee Behaviour?

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In a recent case, it was held that the covert surveillance of employees by their employer, who set up CCTV cameras to monitor suspected thefts, was an infringement of those employee’s rights to privacy.

Employers looking to monitor the conduct of their employees – particularly those using covert recording – should consider their actions carefully, particularly in light of the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which becomes law on 25 May 2018.

Read the full article by Mark Stevens, VWV

Narrow Quay HR are specialists in advising HR Directors, Managers and Business Leaders in all forms of employee rights, engagement and management. Contact us to discuss your needs.

How to Manage Employee Underperformance

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How to effectively manage employee underperformance is a key skill in a manager and team leader’s repertoire.

This article is designed as a general guide for how to begin approaching this sensitive subject. It is not a replacement for professional advice and support so please get in touch so that we can help your particular situation.

There are many reasons why underperformance needs to be addressed, quickly and effectively. These include: improving the performance and quality of output of the organisation; encouragement of optimum performance from staff members; minimising of sickness absence; avoiding legal challenges such as discrimination; minimising damage to staff morale, burden and quality of service.

Poor performance may manifest in a variety of ways such as declining quality of work, reduced productivity or delays in completion of projects and tasks and an overall decline in attitude to work, peers and management.

To address employee underperformance a fair procedure must be followed where there is a clear definition of the poor performance from the outset. Of course, if the underperformance is occurring at the start of someone’s employment then a probationary period with clearly defined purpose, length and terms, can help alleviate quickly and effectively, increasing issues later.

The process of dealing with underperformance of a member of staff begins with an informal approach. This may include establishing the facts, informing the employee of the situation, an initial meeting and discussion with them, setting of clear and attainable written targets for improvement within clear timescales and provision of support to help them achieve them. At this point a clear review date is required and a warning that failure to meet the targets may lead to formal action.

Gathering the facts at this informal stage may identify the root of the problem, underlying issues, and the triggers.

If the informal approach does not achieve the desired positive outcomes then the formal approach is required.

The formal approach requires a detailed investigation, written invitation to the employee to attend a capability meeting (the employee may be accompanied) with a note taker present and a reference back to the informal approach or appraisal. Further targets and timescales for improvement may be set at this stage and further appropriate support may include additional training, delegation of work and re-allocation of duties.

At this point, sanctions may need to be applied, such as a written warning, final written warning, dismissal with notice or other sanctions such as demotion.

If the result of the process is a dismissal then it must be fair in all the circumstances under consideration. There is an ACAS guide to disciplinary and grievance procedures for example which contains general principles of fairness and these can be incorporated within the employer’s own procedures.

Managing an employee who is underperforming is a complex, intricate and sensitive legal process. To ensure you have the appropriate support and processes in place please get in touch and we can talk you through the steps required.

Acas New Pregnancy and Maternity Discrimination Guidance

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Acas has published guidance for employers on how to prevent pregnancy and maternity discrimination at work. Several measures are recommended, including:

•          Developing a policy that outlines the responsibilities and rights of pregnant employees (or those on maternity leave), including assurances that they will not be dismissed or made redundant as a result.
•          Ensuring that employees on maternity leave are aware of all promotion and training opportunities.
•          Making reasonable adjustments to protect the health and safety of a pregnant employee and their unborn child.
Acas published its new guidance after receiving 14,000 calls about pregnancy and maternity discrimination in the last year (a 10% increase compared to the previous year).
Get in touch for more assistance and guidance that compliments this article.