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Managing performance remotely

Managing performance is more difficult if you have less contact with your employees and only meet them remotely. New starters may be unfamiliar with how you work. Some employees may find their working time loses out to home-schooling or caring for shielding or sick people in their household. Others may find it difficult to switch…

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An employee facing disciplinary proceedings goes off sick. What should you do?

Postpone They may be unfit to work but still able to engage with a disciplinary hearing. It will depend on the reason for their absence. Postpone the hearing rather than immediately setting a new date. That will prevent the people who are conducting the meeting and taking the notes from making plans that they then…

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Swiss insurance firm Zurich has introduced ‘lockdown leave’, constituting two weeks of paid leave

You can but you shouldn’t unless you have a legitimate reason to do so. Coronavirus vaccines have been approved and are being rolled out. Whilst the government has drawn up a priority recipients list, it has pledged to offer the vaccine to all adults by the autumn. Currently, you can’t insist that an employee has…

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Should you provide ‘lockdown leave’ for parents with childcare needs?

Swiss insurance firm Zurich has introduced ‘lockdown leave’, constituting two weeks of paid leave for parents facing emergency childcare problems in the face of primary and secondary school closures during the third national lockdown. This is more than an employee’s statutory right to take time off work to deal with emergencies involving the care of…

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Homeworkers and sickness absence

One survey suggests that the average homeworker takes 2.4 days off sick each year. By contrast, other research has found that a ‘typical employee’ takes 6.4 days off sick each year. This survey focused mainly on work-based employees. Great news, right? Not necessarily. The difference may be down to ‘presenteeism’. This is where an employee…

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BBC cleared of equal pay discrimination

An investigation by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has found no unlawful acts of equal pay discrimination by the BBC following high-profile complaints by female presenters. The EHRC’s report, which was published on 12th November 2020, criticised the BBC’s inadequate record-keeping, communication, and complaints system. The EHRC also recommended improvements to rebuild trust…

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