The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 explains what you, as an
employer, may need to do to protect your employees from any risks associated with Display Screen Equipment (DSE) (ie computers and laptops).

These Regulations only apply to employers whose workers regularly use DSE as
a significant part of their normal work (DSE users).

These Regulations do not apply to workers who use DSE infrequently or for
short periods of time.

If you have DSE users, you must:
■■ analyse workstations to assess and reduce risks;
■■ make sure controls are in place;
■■ provide information and training;
■■ provide eye and eyesight tests on request, and special spectacles if needed;
■■ review the assessment when the user or DSE changes.

What are the health risks with DSE?
Some workers may experience fatigue, eye strain, upper limb problems and
backache from overuse or improper use of DSE. These problems can also be
experienced from poorly designed workstations or work environments. Helping spot these risks help make workplaces safer and better places to be.

Advice: it is suggested that an employer who has DSE users consider the following:

Pay for the cost of an eye test every two years and the cost of a basic set of specs (usually around £100 or perhaps 75 contribution towards glasses if deterioration due to DSE use – the optician is able to assess this). There’s no requirement to pay for designer frames- that’s down to the employee.

Sometimes employers may be able to have a corporate agreement with an optician to provide fee eye tests for employees and family members if they use their glasses.

The Modern Slavery Act 2015 came into force in October last year and applies to financial years ending on or after 31 March 2016.

The Act requires large organisations doing business in the UK, with a minimum total turnover of £36 million per year to publicly state each year the action(s) they have taken to ensure that their supply chains are slavery free.

We would advise that the statement must include or state as follows:

• the steps the business has taken during the financial year to ensure that slavery and human trafficking is not taking place in any of its supply chains, and in any part of its own business; or
• that the organisation has taken no such steps.

The statement may contain other information, such as the organisation’s structure, its due diligence processes in relation to slavery and human trafficking and any training on the subject that is provided to its employees.

While there is no set time limit in which to make the statement, the Home Office guidance provides that a business is encouraged to make it within six months of the end of the previous financial year.

If the organisation has a website, it must publish the statement on that website and include a link to the slavery and human trafficking statement in a prominent place on the homepage.

Employers:  even smaller companies are being asked to publish a Modern Slavery Act Statement if they are tendering for work with certain customers.

We can provide further information on this topic and can also assist organisations in preparing a compliant statement.

Contact us if you need help with a Modern Slavery Act Statement

Sunday Trading

The government has decided to move ahead with its plan to loosen the restriction on Sunday trading hours in England and Wales, despite opposition.

At the moment, large shops in England and Wales (ie those with over 280 square metres of floor space) are allowed to open for only six hours on a Sunday, between 10 am and 4 pm.

The government is proposing to allow councils to extend those hours, so retailers can have the flexibility to compete for trade. Councils will also be able to restrict the longer hours to certain zones, such as high streets and city centres, although there are fears that the additional hours will benefit large chains to the detriment of independent high street stores.

An additional proposal is to make it easier for those who work on a Sunday to opt out of doing so. At the moment, all employees can opt out of Sunday working by providing three months’ notice. Under the new proposal, the required period of notice to opt out would be reduced to one month.

Contact us if you need any help with zero hours or part-time contracts

- Potentially no need to duck for cover when the employee is firing blanks..

Fit for Work Service ready for use

A new service is being launched that allows employers and GPs to make free Occupational Health referrals for employees off work for four weeks or more. The service will be voluntary and so employees must give their consent to be referred by either their GP or their employer.

The service is not fully operational at present but the Fit for Work service for England and Wales has started trialling the service in Sheffield. It is expected that the service will be fully rolled out across England and Wales over the next few months.

The aim of the service is to help employers and employees alike to manage sickness absence more effectively at an early stage so that employees can be helped back to work.  It is estimated that over 130 million days are lost to sickness absence each year at a cost to employers of £9 billion per annum in terms of loss of production and sick pay costs.

Research has shown that early intervention at four weeks compared to six months has a greater impact on getting an employee back to work (when they still have an attachment to their work). Evidence suggests that the longer an employee is off work, the lower the chance of them returning to work.

Some of the key benefits of the Fit for Work Service are:

Free occupational health referrals from an employee’s GP or employer after four weeks of sickness absence

1. In addition to the referral a practical step by step Return to Work plan will be produced to assist employees in returning to work.
2. An advice line to offer assistance to both employers and employees so that advice can be sought at an earlier stage

The service should provide some relief for employers faced with increasing sick pay costs since the withdrawal of the Percentage Threshold Scheme. Though the service remains as voluntary it is to be hoped that the independent and impartial nature of the service will encourage more employees to engage with Occupational Health with a view to returning to work as soon as is practicable.

Employers:  details of the service can be found at www.http://fitforwork.org/

This month marks the beginning of the introduction of Shared Parental Leave (SPL) for employees whose Expected Week of Childbirth (EWC) is on or after 5 April 2015. Pregnant employees now reaching that all-important 12 week stage, may be notifying their employers of their pregnancy. This means that employers may start to get questions about the operation of the new scheme.

Employees are not obliged to take up the option of SPL and the current scheme of 52 weeks’ Maternity Leave will remain the default position unless agreed otherwise.

SPL gives parents who meet the eligibility criteria more flexibility regarding the leave they take upon the birth or adoption of a child. Both parents essentially share a ‘pot’ of leave which can be taken in turns or at the same time. Mothers will still be required to take at least two weeks’ compulsory maternity leave immediately after the birth but the remaining time (a maximum of 50 weeks) can be shared by both parents as desired.

For the first time, weeks of the ‘pot’ of leave can be used simultaneously by both parents. SPL must be taken in complete weeks and can either be taken in a continuous period, which an employer cannot refuse, or in a discontinuous period, which the employer may be able to refuse.

To be eligible for SPL an employee must have at least 26 weeks’ continuous service at the end of the 15th week before the EWC.  The employee must still be employed in the first week that SPL is to be taken and must give sufficient notice of their intentions. To qualify for Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) they must also meet the same average earnings threshold as with Statutory Maternity Pay (currently £111 per week).

In addition to these criteria, the other parent must have worked for 26 weeks in the 66 weeks prior to the EWC and have earned a minimum of £30 in 13 of these 66 weeks.

The new regulations come into force on 1 December 2014, from when employees will have protection from any detriment or dismissal for a reason related to SPL.

The current general rule is that pregnant employees can begin their maternity leave up to 11 weeks before their EWC. This will also be the case with SPL, so for those first employees to whom SPL will apply, they will be able to begin their SPL on or after 18 January 2015.

Employers:  Contact is of us if you need assistance with an SPL request or drafting any of the letters.  You may need to add this new policy into your Company Handbooks.

Open-plan offices can certainly take some getting used to, particularly if employees have had their own office.  Private offices are increasingly seen as a luxury of the past.  While many employers may wish to concentrate upon the benefits of open-plan working, especially when trying to ‘sell’ the idea to their employees, it would be worth highlighting some of the pitfalls – some obvious some less so.

Health & Safety – The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 have specific workplace duties in terms of dimensions and space, lighting, ventilation and temperature.

The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 – impose further duties in terms of noise levels – although it is unlikely that noise levels in a normal open-plan office would exceed the limits specified – nevertheless individual employees may still be unhappy with the level of noise – whether it be too much or too little (believe it or not some employees complain offices have become too quiet and gloomy).  Other employees who need to concentrate may complain of noise-related stress (and consequent illness).

Disruption: a move to an open-plan office might create a working environment that is unduly disruptive and could be unsuitable for certain types of employee in the performance of their duties.  If an employee is unable to concentrate and the employer does not manage the situation there is a risk the employee may resign and claim unfair constructive dismissal.  In the case of Dunne-Smith v London Borough of Greenwich an employee successfully claimed unfair constructive dismissal after a move to an open-plan office when the employer did nothing to remedy the noise, distracting and intimidating environment.

• Harassment: with employees working in closer proximity there have been higher incidences of harassment as it is the employer’s duty to provide reasonable support to enable employees to carry out their duties without harassment or disruption from colleagues.
• Contractual right to an office?  Employees who have habitually worked in their own offices might potentially have a case for arguing that it is an implied term of their contract (ie by virtue of custom and practice).  So far this argument has remained untested in the courts.

Employers: It is accepted that the points cited are likely at the extreme end but it is worth bearing in mind if you are considering a change to a open-plan office to consult with your employees beforehand and consider their concerns when you have moved.

Employers should play safe when asked about a former employee’s job history.

Tell me about yourself? What are your strengths/weaknesses? Where do you see yourself in 5 years?….. Have you heard these before?

Today’s candidate are smarter and more prepared – so we need to be asking questions at interview to get to the “true” candidate.  Candidates have long known how to dance around the standard interview questions – leaving you with an employee who is good on paper but practically not able to perform when you test them.  You need to get to the employees who are honest about setbacks and willing to learn from their experience.

Here are some questions which may help you reveal a candidate’s true character:

What is the toughest feedback you’ve been given and how did you learn from it?  A good employee is one that can take constructive criticism that’s difficult to hear and use it to grow professionally.  If they can’t think of an occasion when they have received feedback – then they probably don’t take it and use it well.

What are people likely to misunderstand about you?  You need employees who are able to understand how others see them.  Work is not a popularity contest, but an employee who acknowledges the things that they do that push others’ buttons’ is likely to make the effort to be a team player. This is particularly important in small business where you need to be able to fit into the team.

How do you think this job will stretch your professional capabilities?  When you ask a candidate about a weakness  – they can use this to spin their answers, giving replies like, “sometimes I work too hard”.   However, if you ask them about how a job will challenge comfort zones this will make candidates have to consider the skills they need to improve on and helps prepare them for inevitable setbacks.

In what areas have you improved the most in your career?  Don’t let candidates shy away from showing their past mistakes – help them realise that they have come a long way and see they can always improve with support and guidance.

Employers:  think carefully about your interview questions and keep a record for each candidate so you have objective evidence on why you choose a particular candidate when you need to give feedback to the unsuccessful candidate.

Business Improvements – how we can help your Business

Congratulations. By making it this far, you are well on the way to sorting out your HR and Employment Law problems. We work on a daily basis with HR Directors, CEOs, MD’s and Senior Managers of retained clients.