Tag Archive for: Employment Law

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.

Are You Impacted by the Brazel Judgment? What Should You Do If You Are?

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Now and again, we get an employment law decision from the Supreme Court that is very important. When this happens employers need to sit up and take note.

The decision in Harpur Trust v Brazel is one of the those decisions, particularly for our clients in the education sector and also for those in the hospitality sector.

In terms of the legal implications of the decision, we can’t put it any better than Simon Bevan, employment partner at VWV, has in this excellent article and we would urge you to review this if you haven’t done so already.

I Think We’re Impacted, What Next?

If you employ part-year and irregular hours workers and retain them on a year round basis, then you may well be impacted and you’ll need to take the time to work through the questions that Simon identifies. This may not be straightforward and you will not be alone in seeking some specialist assistance with this. Do get in touch and we can help support and signpost you.

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While We Work This Out, What Should We Say to Staff?

You might be getting questions from staff and if this is the case, it may be prudent to issue a holding communication to say that you are aware of the judgment and are considering it.

Alternatively, you might decide to hold off with any communications until you’ve had an opportunity to consider the implications and decide on how you want to address matters such as your contractual arrangements and any backpay due to staff.

Whichever route you choose, we would urge you to tackle this issue head on as it’s not something that it going to go away and proactively tackling it will help you to manage your costs and budget in the longer term.

For specialist support with the impact of this judgment on your organisation, please contact Sarah Martin in our team on 07799 136091.

Conflict at Work? Workplace Mediation Could Save Your Organisation Thousands

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Surprising statistics in a recent ACAS report estimated that workplace conflict cost organisations £2.85 billion in 2021. Workplace mediation is becoming increasingly popular as a more efficient, cost-effective alternative to formal legal proceedings.

The Cost of Workplace Conflict

The ACAS report ‘Estimating the costs of workplace conflict’ was published in May 2021. The analysis was provided by Professor Richard Suandry of the University of Sheffield Management School and Professor Peter Urwin of the Centre for Employment Research, University of Westminster. 

The headline statistics were a wake-up call. 

  • The cost of conflict to organisations was estimated at £2.85 billion, averaging out across employees this equates to more than £1,000 each. 
  • Close to 10 million people experienced conflict at work – of those over half suffered stress, anxiety and depression as a result.
  • Just under 900,000 took time off work – nearly half a million resigned and more than 300,000 employees were dismissed.

This analysis was based on 2018-19, impacted by #MeToo and BLM, but pre-COVID, which has further changed the landscape of work and employee expectations, as socio-political aspects of society that impact the workplace. It is anticipated that the cost of living crisis and summer of discontent will also impact more localised conflict.

Workplace Mediation Is Restorative and Cost-Effective

There is a growing demand for a restorative justice approach. This is where workplace mediation is most useful – as an informal and early intervention, with a no blame and win-win approach and ideally before the conflict becomes too entrenched and toxic. 

The role of the mediator in workplace mediation is to provide confidential, impartial and non-judgemental support to all parties. The mediator will foster a safe and constructive environment with open and honest dialogue to explore issues, with an aim to encourage participants to shift away from their adopted positions. The mediator will not direct or provide solutions – they come from the participants themselves, and own the outcomes.

How Does Mediation Work?

Workplace mediation usually takes place over a day, with some pre-planning and information for the participants, so they know what to expect. The individuals that take part must do so willingly, otherwise mediation will not work. 

The individuals involved are helped to articulate what the issue is, and to be heard (each individual has uninterrupted time when they are brought together). It is an opportunity to explore feelings and needs, to share hurt, which is rare in the workplace. Each participant is heard. Everyone engages equitably. 

The mediator will help all parties to generate and evaluate opportunities for future working. An agreement reached at the end can be useful, often just having the facilitated conversation can be enough to become unstuck and gain some movement and clarity.

Mediation can be used as an early intervention and an alternative to formal processes. It can be used part way through a formal process that will be paused, it can also be an outcome from a formal process It should not be used where there is a large imbalance of power, for bullying and harassment cases or where a formal disciplinary or grievance process is required.

Not all conflict is bad, conflict can be creative and help find solutions.

Narrow Quay HR offer a workplace mediation service. Our team of accredited mediators will be expanding in the autumn.  We offer an initial free of charge meeting to explore if mediation would be helpful.

For more information or support, please get in touch with Sarah Carrington in our team today on 07918 451 453.

More Companies Offer Mental Health Day Holidays for Employees

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In light of the challenges of the pandemic and as part of an ongoing commitment to employee wellbeing, Thomson Reuters has introduced two annual company mental health day holidays, commencing in 2022.

On those days, Thomson Reuters encourages employees to ‘use the time off with intention and do something that gives the day meaning to them’.

This poses a question for organisations who share this increased focus on employee wellbeing. Are they also willing to implement such policies?

Why Invest in Employee Wellbeing?

There is now a much broader understanding and application of holistic health and wellbeing approaches in many workplaces. It is also clear that some companies are not yet embracing the health and wellbeing agenda to full effect.

Investing in employee wellbeing can lead to increased resilience, better employee engagement, reduced sickness absence and higher performance and productivity. To gain real benefit, employee wellbeing priorities must be integrated throughout an organisation, embedded in its culture, leadership and people management.

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Rising Mental Health Concerns

There has been a rise in the number of reported mental health issues over the past 10 years and it’s well recognised that in many cases the main risks to people’s health at work are psychological. This has led to a growing recognition of the need for employee wellbeing practices to address to psychological, as well as physical, aspects of health and wellbeing.

CIPD’s 2022 Health and Wellbeing at Work survey report show that organisations’ wellbeing activity is increasingly focused on mental health, with most organisations taking steps to support mental health and address workplace stress.

The survey also found evidence of a range of unhealthy working practices such as ‘presenteeism’ (people working when unwell), with 81% of organisations reporting presenteeism among people working from home and 65% in a physical workplace. Two thirds (67%) have also observed some form of ‘leavism’, such as using holiday entitlement when unwell or to work, over the past 12 months.

Looking Beyond the Statistics

There is still a lot of work to be done to ensure all workplaces are giving this topic the time and attention it deserves. Employers need to look beyond absence statistics to understand the underlying factors, such as unmanageable workloads, that are driving unhealthy working practices and influencing people’s wellbeing.

Your organisation may wish to support its wellbeing agenda through new initiatives such as additional wellbeing days for its employees, to demonstrate this driving focus on supporting them through the ever-evolving challenge of balancing work and life pressures.

For specialist support with these issues or for advice in implementing any new initiatives, please get in touch with Sarah Martin in our team on 07799 136 091.

What Are the Latest Employment Law Changes in April 2022?

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There are several employment law changes coming into force in April 2022.

National Minimum Wage Rises

From 1 April the national minimum wage will increase. You should ensure that your hourly wage rates of your employees meet the new threshold in your April salary payments.

  • Increase from £8.91 to £9.50 for workers aged 23 and over (the national living wage).
  • Increase from £8.36 to £9.18 for workers aged 21 or 22.
  • Increase from £6.56 to £6.83 for workers aged 18 to 20.
  • Increase from £4.62 to £4.81 for workers aged under 18 who are no longer of compulsory school age.
  • Increase from £4.30 to £4.81 for apprentices under 19, or over 19 and in the first year of the apprenticeship.

Gender Pay Gap Reporting

The deadline for gender pay gap reporting is 30 March for public-sector employers and 4 April for private and voluntary sector employers. You can submit your report through the GOV.UK website and you should also ensure you publish it on your organisation’s website. Read further government guidance.

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Family-Related Pay and Sick Pay

The statutory minimum rate for maternity, adoption, paternity and parental bereavement pay increases to £156.66 per week from 3 April 2022.

The statutory sick pay rate increases to £99.35 per week from 6 April 2022.

You may wish to review your policies to check that you have amended these pay rates in line with these changes.

IR35 Compliance

The grace period for enforcement of non-compliance to IR35 rules ends on 6 April 2022. Organisations should review their IR35 compliance and ensure they update their status determinations where necessary. As a reminder, employers are now responsible for determining a contractors’ employment status to assess if IR35 applies. If IR35 does apply, the employer is deemed to be their employer for tax and national insurance purposes. Find out more information on IR35.

Right to Work Checks

There has been an extension to the Home Office online right to work check process, until 30 September 2022. You can continue to use the online right to work service and make document checks remotely until this date.

British and Irish citizens, who are currently unable to evidence their right to work through the online service will be able to start using the new digital identity checking service online which is due to be introduced 6 April 2022. This new service will use Identification Document Validation Technology (IDVT) providers who will carry out checks on behalf of employers.

Statutory Redundancy Pay

From 6 April 2022 the weekly statutory redundancy pay for employees with two years’ service will increase to £571.

For specialist support or advice on how these changes may affect you and your employees, please get in touch with Helen Couchman in our team on 07799 901 669.