Examples of gross misconduct & sackable offences

Gross misconduct is behaviour or action which is so serious that it justifies an employer dismissing the perpetrator without notice or pay in lieu of notice. This is known as summary dismissal. For employers, it’s important to recognise the type of conduct that meets this threshold. If the misconduct is not sufficiently serious to be […]
Accident reporting at work guide for HR
Accident reporting is a fundamental aspect of monitoring safety in the workplace. A well-maintained record of accidents and incidents can help employers learn from errors, meet their legal obligations and ensure health and safety at work. The reporting of diseases, injuries and dangerous occurrences at work is taken seriously by the HSE. Failure to report […]
Hiring young workers

Employing young people can provide a number of advantages to a company, including the ability to satisfy staffing demands, build an employer brand, and construct a talent pipeline, as home-grown talent can be a cost-effective approach to replace any future skills gaps. In the UK, workers under the age of 18 enjoy special legal protections, […]
Do workers have to disclose criminal convictions?

It’s understandable that employers want to determine whether a job candidate is trustworthy and of good character before hiring them, and to be certain that workers maintain this standard during the course of their employment. Pre-employment checks play an important role in vetting candidates and reducing risk during recruitment. Even if criminal record checks are […]
How to deal with data subject access requests
Employees have the right to request and acquire a copy of their personal data kept by their employer or former employer. This is known as making a data subject access request (DSAR) under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). When dealing with subject access requests, employers have to ensure they comply with their compliance obligations […]
Minimum Wage Rates & Other Statutory Payments 2022-2023
Changes have now taken effect relating to statutory employment payments. Employers must ensure they have taken action to ensure compliance, including reviewing and updating policies and documents, and adjusting statutory employment payments in line with the new applicable rates. Increase in statutory sick pay The weekly rate of statutory sick pay has increased from £96.35 […]
Redundancy notice period guide for managers
Employers making workers redundant have to follow a fair and lawful redundancy process. As part of this, employers must ensure affected workers are given their legal entitlement to redundancy notice and pay. Failing to meet your obligations can expose your organisation to claims for unfair dismissal. In this guide for employers, we explain the rules on […]
Overtime pay & rules: employers’ guide
Overtime is when someone works beyond their normal contracted hours. For managers, overtime can easily become difficult to manage, particularly when dealing with workers’ pay and holiday entitlement if they have worked additional hours over and above their contracted working time. In this overtime pay guide for employers, we will help you understand employees’ rights […]
When is a director an employee?

Whether a director is an employee is an important consideration for tax and employment right purposes, as well as other statutory requirements. Below we examine the question of employment status for directors in more detail, focusing on the rules used to determine if a director undertaking regular remunerated work for a company is an ‘employee’ […]
Employment case law update February 2022
Read on for our monthly digest for employers on upcoming employment law changes and key employment cases that have recently been decided. Employment status & holiday pay entitlement Smith v Pimlico Plumbers Ltd In Smith v Pimlico Plumbers Ltd, the Court of Appeal considered the impact of worker status on holiday carry over entitlement. The […]