HR Update - October 2024

October has been a busy and impactful month! Aside from the release of the Employment Rights Bill / Labour 100 day Paper Results on 10th October (which we have tried our best to summarise for you later in our newsletter), it was also World Mental Health Day on 10th October, World Menopause Awareness Day on 18th October, and it’s also been ADHD awareness month. Wow that’s a lot!

Prescription for Nature

You may have seen the WWF advert on TV lately where the GP writes out a prescription for nature. Research has shown that spending time outdoors, a dose of at least twenty minutes per day, does help to improve our mood and wellbeing. I am lucky to live near the coast and a walk on the seafront does wonders to help me feel refreshed, and there’s just something about wrapping up warm at this time of year. I would wear a bobble hat all year round if I could! Inland walks, kicking those autumn leaves, are just as good. We are very lucky in the Northeast to have access to so many amazing walks in the Northumberland countryside.

Recognising how important it is to look after our mental health is something we need to do all year round, and with poor mental health being one of the top reasons for long term absence employers need to think about what impact they can make to improve their employees’ mental health. You may already have EAP programmes in place, but not everyone takes advantage of these. It might be time to send a reminder out or think about access to more specialised mental health support.  Jackson Hogg’s HRP have partnered with Talk Works who provide gold standard, clinician-led, mental health training and education as well as rapid access to evidence-based therapy for those who need it.

Reach out if you want us to refer you in for a chat with Talk Works to see how they can help your people.

 

Menopause Awareness

I listened in to a Menopause awareness webinar with the CIPD this month, and it’s evident there is some confusion over whether Menopause is now considered to be a disability. Employers just aren’t sure what they need to do to help employees who are struggling with symptoms, which might also be having an effect on their performance/ability to do their job effectively.

Symptoms due to both Perimenopause and Menopause can be ongoing for years, typically from early 40’s for some, up to the age of 55+. The symptoms typically vary quite significantly for individuals. Although Menopause itself is not classified as a disability, if the symptoms as a result have a lasting effect / long term effect of 12 months or more on someone’s ability to carry out day to day activities, then it could be classed as disability and a protected characteristic for some. Employers do have a duty of care to look at what reasonable adjustments can be put in place to make allowances for what effect the symptoms have on how well an employee can do their job. At age 43 I already experience brain fog as a result of hormonal imbalance, but luckily, I can be open with my team, and they help me out!

You may only have a few, or even just one female in your workforce, but you may also have to consider whether there is anyone who may be going through symptoms that has not disclosed their gender at birth, such as trans and non-binary staff.

Introducing a Menopause Policy, setting up a Menopause Support Group, delivering awareness sessions and just being more open to talking about the issue at work, will all help to improve inclusivity for those experiencing Menopause and help with your retention.

Please reach out to us if you would like our support with putting a Menopause Tool Kit together that will work for you and your business.

 

Embracing Neurodiversity – see the Positives!

This is a subject very close to my heart as I am currently going through the process of trying to get an ADHD diagnosis for my eldest son. Educationally there are no concerns, but the fact he can struggle to concentrate on one thing can often set him back, and I can see that making small changes to how he learns at school can make all the difference- as well as having something to fidget with!

These small changes also need to be considered at work for any employee with a neuro-diverse condition, regardless of whether they have had a formal diagnosis. We need to look at making reasonable adjustments wherever possible if this means those individuals are able to thrive as a result and allowing them to be their most productive.

This month we invited Rosie Brighty in from Divergent Consulting to deliver a session to our Jackson Hogg HRP Team and Recruitment Consultants, to help increase our own awareness of neurodiversity. This will then mean we can in turn advise you on how best to support individuals and reap the benefits of making these small changes.

Please reach out if you would like more information or Rosie to come to your workplace for an awareness session which is guaranteed to enlighten your managers and the wider workforce.

 

Sexual Harassment – focus on prevention!

Jack informed you in last month’s newsletter of the updates to legislation as of 26^th October around Sexual Harassment in the workplace and employers now having to demonstrate that they have put preventative measures in place to protect their employees- not just from harassment between workers but also from third parties.

We have now reached out to our retained clients to talk through the Tool Kit we have put in place, and we are already starting to update existing policies and employee handbooks. This is in addition to talking through the risk assessments you should be carrying out regularly to ensure you are on top of prevention! As part of our Tool Kit, we are also offering awareness training at all levels of the business as well as specialist line management training on this topic.

If you have yet to get back in touch with us regarding the updates, give us a call and we can go through the tool kit and discuss what you think you need to put in place.

 

Employment Rights Bill / Labour 100 Day Paper Highlights

While Labour had aimed to implement these changes by October 2024, it typically takes time for legislation to pass through parliament and some of these changes we will not see come into force until at least April 2026 - but we need to be on our toes and be aware of the upcoming changes to allow good preparation.

• Ending Fire and Re-hire - it will be automatically unfair to dismiss an employee for refusing a contract variation. A very limited exception to this is that a business can show serious financial issues that threaten the business staying open and must have undertaken a lot of consultation first.  This is a risk for bigger businesses, but it may be easier to justify this exception in a smaller business however is a much higher threshold than currently exists. What does this mean? Thinking about changing some contractual terms- Now may be the time!!

• Sexual Harassment - employers currently have a duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, (including harassment by third parties), but are not technically liable for third party harassment currently. This will change, and employers will be liable for third party harassment. Employers will also be expected to take not only ‘reasonable steps’ but ‘ALL reasonable steps’ as the legislation evolves. Whilst what is reasonable is not clearly defined at this time, it’s likely to include the requirement for specific risk assessments, processes for reporting harassment, organisation wide-training and updating of policies.

• Unfair Dismissal/Day 1 Right - as expected, the government will remove the 2-year qualifying period required to bring a claim for unfair dismissal. This will make the need for high-quality recruitment processes essential, as an employer you will no longer be able to terminate someone in the first two years without a good reason or a documented process during a probation period.

• Statutory Probation Periods - further consultation is to take place on this, and we are expecting to see a cap of 6 months, but rumours suggest it could be 9 months. There are multiple options regarding how this could be enforced, and we still await further information. One thing that is clear however is the need to have a robust, documented probationary process which is well embedded in your business.

• Zero Hour Contracts – complex rules have been suggested but in general there will be a guaranteed hours provision, a right to reasonable notice and a payment for shifts cancelled at short notice. Expect a prescribed reference period which will dictate how many hours an employee should be guaranteed.

• Flexible Working - no major changes. Currently, employers must deal with flexible working requests in a ‘reasonable manner’ and can refuse the request for one or more of eight specified reasons. The change seems to only be that the refusal needs to be ‘reasonable’, and the employer will need to clearly state the grounds of refusing the application and explain why they consider it reasonable to refuse the application. The need to have a robust, documented process for dealing with requests and justifying though processes in decision making is essential.

• Statutory Sick Pay - as expected, SSP will be payable from day 1.  It will be a financial burden for SMEs (needs to be budgeted for) and short-term absences may well increase as there is no longer a need for an employee to “think twice” about taking time off due to loss of pay. The minimum earning criteria will also be removed with a % of pay rule payable instead.

• Collective Redundancy - the 20 employees affected guideline for collective consultation will now apply to the whole business and not just one site. So, if you have multiple UK sites- this is a key change!

• Equality - any business with 250 employees or over may be required to produce an equality action plan. There will also be consultation on whether employers will also have to carry out Ethnicity and Disability pay gap reporting.

• Statement of Particular / Contracts - Contracts will need to include a written statement that the worker has the right to join a trade union – we’ll find out later exactly what wording needs to be included and there will be rule changes to simplify the process for unions seeking recognition.

• Bereavement Leave - a statutory right will be introduced for a period of one week.  It remains at two weeks for parental bereavement leave.  Most businesses already do this as good practice, but it will become law. It’s unclear yet how a bereaved person will be defined in terms of their relationship with the person who has died.

• Enforcement Agency - a newly created government body will be able to pursue employers that behave badly and fail to comply with employment legislation.  I suspect this is to prevent cases such as the P&O Ferries situation from happening again.

• Parental and paternity leave -both of these will become day one rights. Parental leave is the right to take up to 18 weeks’ unpaid leave in respect of each child up to their child’s 18^th birthday, sometimes used to cover school holidays or similar.

• Enhanced dismissal protection for pregnant employees and new parents - There are existing protections when it comes to redundancy, but there are proposals to strengthen protection even further against dismissal for pregnant employees and those returning from family leave. It’s not clear what the protections will be.

We will keep you updated on all of the above as and when changes come into force, and we are here to support with the changes you will need to make to your policies and internal processes. A lot of the changes require some thought/action to be taken now rather than in the future and it is clear having a trusted HR partner will be more valuable than ever!

 

Case law snippet – failure to make reasonable adjustments!

Teacher wins £170k after falling asleep in class leads to dismissal.

A senior teacher with significant mental health difficulties has won £170k after being unfairly dismissed by Wetherby Prep School, previously attended by Princes William and Harry. The claimant was sacked for absences, mood swings, and falling asleep in class. The tribunal found the school failed to make reasonable adjustments for his mental health, particularly when scheduling a key dismissal meeting without his presence or input.

The panel ruled that the school skipped vital procedural steps, moving straight to dismissal without giving the claimant a chance to improve or be fairly heard. This was deemed both unfair dismissal and disability discrimination.

It’s a classic example of a situation where a dismissal may well have been fair eventually, but failure to make adjustments and skipping procedural steps have cost the employer in this case.

 

Discrimination payout increased to £350k for pregnant employee described as “emotional”.

A pregnant account manager has been awarded over £350,000 in compensation after a tribunal found she was discriminated against by her employer, facilities management provider Mitie. Initially awarded £37,000, the claimant’s payout was increased tenfold after additional details about her loss of earnings were considered.

The tribunal heard that the claimant informed her boss about her struggles with work-related stress and panic attacks. The boss described her as “very emotional and tearful” in an email, comments which the judge deemed “dismissive and belittling,” stereotyping her as an "emotional, hormonal pregnant woman."

The employer failed to carry out a legally required risk assessment during her pregnancy and did not address the health concerns she raised. The judge criticised the line manager’s unsupportive handling of the claimant’s situation, which led to her feeling overwhelmed and ultimately resigning.

The tribunal ruled that Hinds had been discriminated against due to her pregnancy and was also unfairly constructively dismissed.

This case serves as a warning for employers to meet their legal obligations towards pregnant employees and to avoid using harmful stereotypes when it comes to language, as failing to provide appropriate support can lead to significant financial and reputational consequences.