Tag: Employment Law Advices for Employers

How employers can prevent reputational damage

It is important that employers protect their organisations reputation, Personnel Today have listed six ways in which employers can reduce the risk and ensure that damage is kept to a minimum.

(1)  Put in place a firm Social Media policy

Employers should ensure they have a robust social media policy that applies clear rules on the use of social media. E.G. Remind employees that they should not assume opinions and remarks made on social media platforms are private. Your workplace policy should set out clear procedures of disciplinary action that may be taken if rules are broken.

The case of Plant v API Microelectronics LTD notes the importance of being cautious when making comments regarding your place of work on social media platforms.

In this instance, the employer implemented a social media policy reminding employees on what they considered as acceptable content on social media. On doing so, the organisation provided all employees with a list of things that they should not be doing, in the event that it may damage the company’s reputation.

Ms Plant, who had served 17 years at the organisation with a spotless disciplinary record made the mistake of posting a comment on Facebook about her employers that stated: “PMSL (piss myself laughing) bloody place, I need to hurry up and sue them PMSL.”

Following this comment, the employee was invited to attend a disciplinary meeting to discuss her actions. The employees defence was that she did not think her Facebook was linked to the company in any form and that the comments made were not aimed at her employers. There was no further explanation given.

Her employers argued that because of their strict social media policy that they had implemented and the nature of the comment, the employee should be dismissed. Ms Plant was given the chance to appeal this decision.

On appeal, the Employment Tribunal found that: “It may be seen as harsh, but the company taking into account Ms Plant’s long service and clear record nevertheless was dismissed for a clear breach of the policy and that would fall within the range of a reasonable response open to an employer.”

(2)  Address inappropriate comments made on Social Media

In the event that an employee has posted an inappropriate comment on social media that involves the organisation, you should gather enough evidence and take the correct steps to delete the material quickly. This may involve asking the employee to do so. Depending on the content, disciplinary action may be required.

(3)  Have your managers properly trained in the correct recruitment practices

It is crucial that managers manage recruitment processes in a professional manner. Even more so when updating an unsuccessful applicant.

A recent case of “recruitment mishaps” saw an unsuccessful job applicant who tweeted a screenshot of a text that they had received informing them of why she had not been chosen for the role, the text message was sarcastic and at the end of the text the manager had used a cry-laughing emoji.

Another example concerned an email that had been accidently sent to the applicant calling her a “left wing loon tree hugger.”

(4)  Ensure your staff are aware of behaviour that will be expected out of the workplace

Inappropriate behaviour outside of work can have a severe impact on an organisations public image. It is the line managers duty to pre-warn employees what will be viewed as acceptable and unacceptable behaviour in the workplace or at a public event.

If your employee has committed a criminal offence out of the workplace, the employer should consider dismissal in the event that continued employment would see damage on the company’s reputation.

(5)  Prepare for gender pay gap reporting

Large organisations that do not publish gender pay gap figures by April 2018 run the risk of negative publicity. You can start preparing for gender pay gap reporting now. This can be done by putting figures into context and producing a narrative commentary.

(6)  Consider the organisations reputation before pursuing Employment Tribunal claims

In February 2017, Employment Tribunal decisions were made available online and as a result of this, it may put the business at risk of negative media interests. Further, it may put potential job applicants off working for your organisation.

Thus, you should take reputational damage into consideration when deciding to defend an Employment Tribunal case.

How Can You Avoid Getting Caught Out?

If you are unsure about how these changes to employment law might affect your business, or simply want to check your company’s compliance generally, Contact Us and we will undertake full review of your current arrangements and provide you with our findings and recommendations.

Fire Risks in the Workplace

Following the fire that tragically destroyed Grenfell Tower in West London on June 14^th, it is important that employers are made aware of their legal obligations when carrying out fire risk assessments and what procedures they should follow in relation to this.

Legal Duties

The Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 and the Fire (Scotland) Regulations 2006 have replaced most workplace fire regulations. Under this legislation, those who are responsible for fire safety in the workplace include:

-The employer;

-The owner;

-The landlord;

-The occupier; and

-Anyone else with control of these premises

What do you have to do?

Employers are legally obliged to carry out fire risk assessments and keep these documents up to date, this is similar to a health and safety assessment.

Depending on the findings of this assessment, an employer will have to ensure that the appropriate measures are then put in place to minimise any risks. You must then take action to control these risks and consider how you will protect people in the event of a fire.

If you are responsible, you should take steps to prevent the impact a fire may have to the work environment. It is your responsibility to prepare and maintain any fire safety measures which will be required in order to safeguard anyone in the workplace – this includes visitors!

Additionally:

-When safeguarding employees, employers must appoint individuals to specific roles that may be required in an emergency plan;

-Employers should consult their employees of who has been nominated to carry out any role in connection with the fire and safety proposals;

-On carrying out fire and safety risk assessments, employers should inform anyone else that shares the building of any significant risks found;

-If you do not employ anyone else, yet, in control of a premise, you are legally obliged to ensure fire legislation is complied with in any area that you have control over;

-Employers should establish a sufficient means of reaching the emergency services and arrange that they can be easily reached;

-In some buildings, there may be a requirement of a licence before the business can operate, your local authority can inform you of this

The Equality Act 2010

When carrying out a fire risk assessment, the first aspect to be identified is, those who are at risk. Employers should assess those who are most vulnerable, E.G. children and those with a disability.

The Equality Act 2010 provides that those with a disability should not be treated less favourably. An employer should ensure there is arrangements in place to safely evacuate disabled employees/visitors from the building. You may be held liable for discrimination should you fail to implement this into your evacuation plan. It is important to note in this instance; the definition of a disability is not just restricted to physical disabilities.

Other measures to safeguard those that have a disability under the Equality Act 2010 include, providing clear, concise instructions and maps with diagrams that set out how disabled employees can get to a place of safety.

Additional information on fire safety

You can find a comprehensive guide to fire and safety by visiting the Scottish Government website through this link  https://www.gov.scot/Topics/Justice/policies/police-fire-rescue/fire/FireLaw

Failure to comply with the law, even unintentionally, can leave your business vulnerable to costly Employment Tribunal claims. Seeking Employment Law Advice from qualified employment law practitioners can help you ensure you safely manage issues in arguably one of the most complex areas for any business to get to grips with.

Employers concerned about how these new regulations might impact them can take advantage of Employment Law Services (ELS) free consultation service – Contact us today to arrange your free consultation.