2019 | Employment Law Services (ELS) LTD

Performance management guidance for employers

Posted on 9 October 201912 June 2023 by @deliver_els

Performance management is the process that employers use to maintain and improve the performance of their workforce so that organisational objectives are met.

Most performance management procedures will involve:

Employees being set performance targets
Performance meetings between managers and employees to discuss performance
Evaluating employees against their performance measures
Records of performance being taken

Why is performance management important?

Managing employee performance is critical to an organisation’s success. If the performance is not monitored then there are no standards, if there are no standards, employees will feel less inclined to perform to the best of their ability.

Further, it is an essential element of employment when getting things done. It gives employees and management structure that will help an organisation:

Motivate employees
Monitor employees and ensure that they are making valuable contributions towards the companies’ goals
Recognise and acknowledge the good work of employees
Detect and improve poor performance

How to get performance management right

Identify clear objectives
Think about what suits your organisation best
Be transparent about the full process
Consistently engage and consult with employees
Get senior managers on board

How can EmployEasily Legal Services help?

At Employment Law Services (ELS) we can offer training courses and e-learning on performance management for you and your team. We can also support through any individual issues that you may encounter.

If you are an employer who requires assistance with any of the issues raised in this blog contact us today for your free consultation 0370 218 5662.

Redundancy & Protective Awards

Posted on 27 September 201912 June 2023 by @deliver_els

Ex-Thomas Cook workers could be in line for thousands of pounds of extra pay.

When a business goes into administration or liquidation employees have a right to claim monies owed to them by the company but how this is claimed depends largely on their status as creditors.

Claims can be made on the National Insurance Fund via the Redundancy Payments Service (RPS), usually in the following circumstances:

1) By employees made redundant within the first 14 days of administration;

2) By those who have lost their jobs on company liquidation;

3) By preferential creditors (members of staff) who were retained during the initial administration period, but who have been unable to claim all monies owed to them from the sale of business assets.

However, where there has been complete failure by the employer to consult with employees regarding their dismissal, you can still make a claim for an additional “Protective Award” even if your employer becomes insolvent, and the tribunal is likely to award a payment of 90 days’ pay to each employee.

What is a Protective Award?

A Protective Award is an award of compensation of up to 90 days’ gross pay, that can be awarded by an Employment Tribunal, for failure by your employer to collectively inform and consult you where you have been dismissed on the grounds of redundancy and the government’s National Insurance Fund would cover your award.

How to Make a Claim

If you are interested in making a Protective Award claim against your former employer, contact Employment Law Services (ELS) for free initial legal advice. There are very strict time limits for bringing these claims and they must be brought within three months less one day of the date of your dismissal so please contact us as soon as possible.

New Vento Bands For Injury to Feelings Awards

Posted on 5 April 20199 June 2023 by @deliver_els

There are new ‘Vento’ guidelines for injury to feelings awards in discrimination claims presented after 6 April 2019.

The new bands are:

lower band (less serious cases): £900 to £8,800
middle band: £8,800 to £26,300
upper band (the most serious cases): £26,300 to £44,000

This annual update to the Vento guidelines, setting out the bands of awards for injury to feelings, adjusted for inflation, is taken into account by Tribunals when considering what to award for damages in discrimination cases as a remedy for the hurt, humiliation and degradation suffered by the employee and is considered separately from any claim for financial loss such as loss of earnings.

The EqA 2010, most of which took effect on 1 October 2010, brought together and strengthened the previous discrimination legislation. It is concerned with discrimination in respect of the “protected characteristics” of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

An employer can be “vicariously liable” for discrimination or harassment committed by an employee in the course of employment. However, there is a defence available to an employer if it can show that it took all reasonable steps to prevent the employee from doing the discriminatory act or from doing anything of that description, commonly known as a “statutory defence”.

How can Employment Law Services (ELS) help?

At Employment Law Services (ELS) we can offer advice and support to Employers to help them to ensure they have taken all reasonable steps to prevent discrimination including, drafting appropriate HR policies and procedures, offering training courses and e-learning on equality and diversity and bullying and harassment and support with any individual issues that you may encounter.

If you are an employer who requires assistance with any of the issues raised in this blog contact us today for your free consultation 0800 612 4772.

The new bands are:

New National Minimum Wage Rates – 1 April 2019

Posted on 1 April 20199 June 2023 by @deliver_els

New National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) Rates take effect from 1 April.

	Old Rate	New Rate	Increase (%)


25 years +	£7.83	£8.21	4.9%
21-24 years	£7.38	£7.70	4.3%
18-20 years	£5.90	£6.15	4.2%
16-17 years	£4.20	£4.35	3.6%
Apprentice rate	£3.70	£3.90	5.4%

The national minimum wage (NMW) is a prescribed minimum hourly rate of pay which employers must legally pay to most of their workers. The legislation which underpins the NMW is highly technical in nature and many employers have unintentionally fallen foul of the rules and have, in addition to being hit with sizeable financial penalties, have been named and shamed for underpaying their workers.

Employers must keep sufficient records to establish that workers have received the NMW and it will be presumed that the worker has not received the NMW unless the employer can prove to the contrary.

The NMW is enforced by HMRC. The enforcement measures available to HMRC include service of notices of underpayment, civil penalties, “naming and shaming”, recovery of underpayments through tribunals or civil courts, and criminal prosecution. HMRC’s policy on using these measures is set out in BEIS: National Minimum Wage Law: Enforcement.

If you are unsure about what records you need to keep and/or how long you need to keep them don’t hesitate to contact us.

How Employment Law Services (ELS) Help SMEs to Prevent Problems & Protect Their Business

Posted on 19 January 20198 June 2023 by @deliver_els

https://youtu.be/2laGL4dOsLw

A short video about the services Employment Law Services (ELS) LTD provide to SMEs throughout the UK. Thanks for sparing 2 mins to watch it!

If you’d like more information about how we can help you and your business, Contact Us via our website and one of our team will be in touch or alternatively you can call us on 0800 612 4772.

Employment Law Services Achieves a Major Milestone

Posted on 8 January 20198 June 2023 by @deliver_els

Back on 16 December 2008 Employment Law Services (ELS) was formally incorporated as a limited company and on 1 January 2009 we officially commenced our first year of trading and as the bells struck midnight on New Year’s Eve not only were we celebrating the dawn of a new year, we were also celebrating achieving a significant milestone in the history of Employment Law Services (ELS), 10 fantastic years of trading!

Employment Law Services (ELS) Achieves a Major Milestone

Over the past decade we have seen our team grow and our operations expand from being a local specialist employment law firm to being a UK wide employment law firm, providing employment law and HR advice and support and Employment Tribunal Representation not just for companies in central Scotland but for SMEs throughout the whole of the UK! Undoubtedly, the dedication and commitment of our amazing team has been key to our continuing growth and success but so too have many others, not least our clients who have put trust in us to look after all of the employment and HR needs year after year and whose demands, challenges and feedback has been invaluable in helping us to continue to drive ongoing improvements in how we deliver a fixed fee employment law service to employers that is prompt, practical, reliable, and tailored to their specific requirements at a price that won’t break the bank.

As we reflect on the past 10 years and look forward to the next 10 years and beyond we would like to acknowledge and thank all those who have helped shape our business and so to all of our clients, suppliers and supporters, thank you for 10 amazing years and we very much look forward to another 10 great years as the preferred employment law business partner for SMEs throughout the UK.

2019 – HR and Employment Law changes employers need to know

Posted on 7 January 20197 June 2023 by @deliver_els

In 2018, employers and managers had many employment law and HR changes to deal with. This included the introduction of GDPR, gender pay gay reporting, changes to taxation of termination payments and increases to the NMW.

2019 is set to be another busy year for employers; we have provided an overview of what to expect in the coming months.

Executive Pay Reporting

From 1^st January 2019, UK based companies who employ over 250 UK employees will be expected to publish the pay gap between their CEO and average worker.

It is important that larger organisations are prepared for not only the figures but any potential implications these figures may have on the company’s reputation and employee morale.

Brexit

On 29^th March 2019, the UK will officially cease to be a member of the EU, although a transition period will remain in place until the end of 2020.

The EU Settlement Scheme will ensure EU workers in the UK will be able to obtain settled or pre-settled status. This means EU workers will be able to live and work in the UK after 31^st December 2020. For individuals to have the right to settled status, they must have lived continuously in the UK for 5 years. It remains unknown how non-UK resident citizens will be affected by Brexit.

National Minimum Wage

From 1^st April 2019, the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage will both increase.

At present, the National Living Wage (the rate of pay for those aged 25 and over) will increase from £7.83 per hour to £8.21 per hour.

The National Minimum Wage (the rate of pay for those under 25) will increase as followed:

From £7.38 to £7.70 for those between 21 to 24-year olds;
From £5.90 to £6.15 for between 18 to 20-year olds;
From £4.20 to £4.35 for 16- and 17-year olds;
From 3.70 to £3.90 for apprentices.

Payslips

From April 2019, employers will be expected to provide itemised payslips for employee’s wages which vary on how many hours they have worked. Employers will be expected to include the number of hours the employee is being paid for.

Before this new legislation comes into force, employers should:

Ensure payroll processes are up to date and ready to collect new information required;
Adjust the format of current payslips so that this new information can be included.

How can Employment Law Services (ELS) help?

If you are an employer who requires assistance with any of the issues raised in this blog contact us today for your free consultation 0370 218 5662.