Archive

One in four UK adults are planning to make do without heating this winter. With soaring energy costs and nearly 40% of employees in hybrid working routines, a migration back to the office this winter could be a cost-saving necessity for employees. Here are a few things you might want to consider. 

No one-size-fits-all – everyone’s circumstances are different. Balancing rising energy bills with fluctuating forecourt fuel prices (amongst other outgoings) will be entirely individual. Encouraging employees to approach their manager with concerns means you’re in the best position to understand challenges and put plans in place where you can.

Flexible flexibility – employees might want to gauge the impact of rising winter costs when they start to bite in colder months. Taking a flexible approach to increasing office days (or increasing home working if commuting costs are a primary concern) enables agility and avoids employees potentially being left out in the cold.

Practical planning – if you’ve reduced office space after an increase in remote working, plan early for how you might need to accommodate an increased employee presence. Asking employees to communicate in advance when they plan to be in the office will help to manage any limited desk space.

Consider contracts – if your contracts set out the specifics of a hybrid or home working arrangement (two days in the office and three at home, for example), you’ll need to agree in writing any variation with the employee to enable them to increase or reduce their remote or office working.

We’ve added a new financial well-being policy to Intelligent Employment – click here to access. If you’d like to know more about how Intelligent Employment can benefit your business, get in touch. 

If you’re reshaping your business to future-proof against rising costs, you’ll need to consider whether redundancy laws apply. It’s not always obvious, so here are a few things for you to consider:

1. Even if you have the same amount of work, if you need fewer people to do that work, it is still likely to be a redundancy situation.
2. Focus on what employees do in practice rather than what was written down in their job description – often the two differ greatly.
3. Asking employees to change what they do, perhaps by reducing their role or hours, may amount to a redundancy.
4. Asking someone to do additional tasks may be a redundancy if the particular kind of work that the employee usually does/is doing is disappearing or reducing.
5. Changes in ways of working are unlikely to amount to a redundancy situation (but take advice to ensure that’s the case).

If you need advice, guidance or simply to sense check your approach, Intelligent Employment is here to help. Find out more about our unlimited, day-to-day employment law support. 

Around 1.2 million people in the UK have a second job and this number is on the increase. Second jobs can cause tiredness, irritability, and conflict. Or, they can result in loyalty and innovation. Here are our thoughts on managing this increasing people trend. 

Policy – your employment contracts would ideally call out whether or not employees can work elsewhere. Either way, a policy explaining that anyone with a second job needs to chat about it with their manager is vital. You’ll want the opportunity to discuss with the employee how they’re going to manage and stay safe whilst still delivering in the role they do for you. You can find our ‘working outside of employment’ policy on Intelligent Employment.

Spotting changing behaviours – watch out for patterns and changing behaviours. Excessive working hours may create tiredness and absence – early conversations are vital to avoid escalation.

Well-being – ensuring your employees are taking their legal quota of rest is your responsibility. If they have a second job this may be compromised along with their health and safety. Knowing about the second role is vital to help manage rest breaks and the well-being of the employee (and also their colleagues).

Conflict – it’s possible an employee’s second job conflicts with your commercial interests. Early and honest conversations mean you have the opportunity to discuss solutions. Ensure that employment contracts set out clearly your expectations in respect of a second role so that if you do need to take decisive action the contract supports your approach.

Get in touch if you need our advice or support in managing anything we’ve covered above.