HR & Employment Law Insights

Helping family businesses, start-ups and early stage growth, third sector, professional services, trades and construction, manufacturing and engineering, and other growing or established businesses throughout the UK make sense of HR and employment law challenges.

We hope you enjoy the wide range of blog articles featured. We cover a wide range of topics including HR best practices, employment law updates, recruitment strategies, employee engagement, tips for effective people management, and addressing people challenges to help businesses navigate their HR needs with confidence.

How to Make Sure that Sick Pay Doesn’t Become Sick Leave

People get ill all of the time but you need to make sure your staff aren’t abusing any sick pay benefits you offer. According to the latest research, the average UK worker is absent from work for 8.4 days a year, costing businesses around £12 billion, which works out...

Can I make permanent employees redundant while I have agency staff carrying out similar roles?

It’s been another busy week at The HR Booth, where we have been solving customer problems and helping with HR related enquiries. Here’s another question we’ve been asked to respond to this week. Question Can I make permanent employees redundant while I have agency...

Can I stop an employee from using their mobile at work?

Struggling with mobile phone distractions at work? Learn how to enforce effective policies to boost productivity and maintain professionalism in the workplace

Employees Responsibility to keep Corporate Data Secure

Keep your corporate data secure by talking to your staff and training them on its importance. Nearly a quarter of employees believe that corporate data security is not their responsibility. A survey conducted in 2014 by Absolute Software found that 23% of employees...

What can I write in an employee reference?

An employee reference is an important part of the employment process. With this in mind, employers should make the effort to write a reference and provide accurate and informative feedback when doing so. Providing a reference is a professional courtesy that...

Why HR Has a Data Driven Culture

Data plays a key role in helping HR departments make important business decisions across all areas. Over the years, human resources have become increasingly data driven. HR departments now collect and analyse data from a wide range of sources in order to make...

How to Handle a Dismissal Appeal After an Employee has been Dismissed

A dismissal appeal is a formal process undertaken by an employee who believes their termination from employment was unjustified. This procedure allows the employee to challenge their dismissal and present their case for reconsideration. Furthermore, the appeal...

I believe that there is no statutory right for employees to be accompanied during a redundancy consultation process – is this correct?

Discover employee rights in redundancy consultations and whether accompaniment is guaranteed by law

How to Manage Workforce on Demand Effectively

With more and more businesses requiring specialised expertise and the need for greater flexibility, there has been a sharp rise in the use of on-demand workforce planning. This approach is cost effective, flexible and allows companies to carefully acquire talent to...

Dismiss due to long term absence or defer?

Do we need to offer an employee another role in our organisation or can we dismiss due to long term absence?We get asked HR related questions every day and each week we will be sharing our top question of the week that we have been asked here at The HR Booth. This...

Non Executive Director benefits to an SME

We get asked HR related questions every day and each week we will be sharing our top question of the week that we have been asked here at The HR Booth. Question This week we address a question that we are often asked here at The HR Booth, “What benefits does a...

What should I do when an employees medical certificate runs out and they have no intention of returning back to work?

We get asked HR related questions every day and each week we will be sharing our top question of the week that we have been asked here at The HR Booth. This week Alistair answers the question "What should I do when an employee's medical certificate runs out and they...

The need for lifelong learning in HR employees

It’s important that HR employees embrace lifelong learning. HR is a complex field and it’s one which requires a great deal of knowledge and expertise to be successful in. However, it’s about much more than simply acquiring a position; to have a good career in HR you...

What Happens when an Employee is not Eligible for SMP?

We get asked HR related questions every day and each week we will be sharing our top question of the week that we have been asked here at The HR Booth. This week we answer the question "What happens if an employee is not eligible for SMP?" Question We had a girl who...

Can I recover the cost of training if an employee leaves my company?

"Can I recover the cost of training if an employee leaves my company?" This is a question we get a lot before making an employee training repayment agreement. We understand a lot of business owners get frustrated that after investing in training, an employee chooses...

Is there really freedom of speech in the workplace?

Freedom of speech is a fundamental human right that is enshrined in many national and international laws and declarations. However, when it comes to freedom of speech in the workplace, this right can be a bit more complicated. We take a closer look at...

Can an employee who walked out pursue an unfair dismissal claim?

We get asked HR related questions every day and each week we will be sharing our top question of the week that we have been asked here at The HR Booth. This week we were asked if an employee who walked out can pursue an unfair dismissal claim. THE QUESTION We had an...

The Spiral Staircase Approach to Employee Career Management

We investigate the spiral staircase approach to employee management. That all-important career ladder may feel like a rush to the top, with each step moving closer to the pinnacle of power, but this isn't the case in the modern workplace. Careers are a far more...

Can I fire an employee if they will not relocate?

We are pleased to announce the first edition of our brand new blog series - Question of the Week. We get asked HR related questions every day and each week we will be sharing our top question of the week that we have been asked here at The HR Booth. This week we were...

The Role of the Manager and HR Department in Resolving Employee Complaints

In an ideal world, the workplace would be a harmonious place with employees and managers working together peacefully. However, this sadly isn't always the case and employee complaints are bound to happen. Whether a grievance is related to a particular work...

Carer Positive

As it is National Carers Week we thought it would be good to share some useful information regarding positive steps employers can take to support employees who may have to look after relatives. This week, Alistair attended the Kitemark launch in conjunction with Carer...