Employees with less than two years’ service cannot generally claim unfair dismissal, so it is relatively straightforward to dismiss. What consideration do you need to have in mind for dismissing a short- serving employee and how should you go about it. Under the Employment Rights Act 1996, you don’t need to prove one of the five potential fair reasons for … Read More
Non-Destructive Testing fraud safety alert
Non-Destructive Testing is used to check for defects in plant, e.g. pressure equipment, that may have been introduced by the manufacturing process or deterioration caused by the operation of the plant. The HSE has issued a safety alert following the discovery of a fraud involving the issue of Personnel Certification in Non-Destructive Testing (PCN) to people carrying out this work. … Read More
Unfairly dismissed: the right to appeal
Asda has lost a case for unfair dismissal because it made one fatal procedural error. Where did it go wrong and what steps must you never overlook when disciplinary action is taken against an employee? Like most larger employers, Asda almost certainly had the in-house HR expertise. With all this knowledge at its fingertips, you wouldn’t expect Asda to make … Read More
Dependents’ leave during school holiday
During the school holidays, many working parents struggle with childcare arrangements, especially during the summer months. At what point does an issue relating to child care entitle an employee to exercise their rights to take Dependents’ Leave? Remember, dependents’ leave is available to everyone regardless of their length of service, however, an employee has no right to be paid whilst … Read More
Droning on and on about safety
Unmanned aircraft, more commonly known as drones, are becoming increasingly popular as their commercial opportunities are explored, whether these are in media and broadcasting, agriculture, delivery or monitoring and inspection applications. Used correctly drones can have benefits for health and safety for example by removing the need for people to work at height, carrying out inspections of hard to reach … Read More
Deaths in the workplace rise
Provisional figures released by the HSE show that 144 workers died as result of work related injuries between April 2017 and March 2018 (a rate of 0.45 per 100,000 workers) an increase from the 135 workers fatally injured the previous year. Despite this increase the figure has remained broadly level over the last five years and is lower than the … Read More
Feeling the heat: too hot to work?
With the current heatwave set to continue and the summer holidays not yet begun temperature in the workplace can be a hot topic. In the UK there is no set maximum temperature for a workplace, however regulations do require that temperature should be reasonable, exactly what is reasonable will depend on the type of workplace. Irrespective of whether the heat … Read More
Metal working fluids inspection campaign
In a recent article we reported on new guidance issued by the HSE and the UK Lubricants Association Metalworking Fluid Product Stewardship Group and how exposure to the fluids used in cooling and lubricating metalworking processes can result in dermatitis and irritation of the skin from direct contact with the fluid or breathing problems such as occupational asthma and irritation … Read More
Stuart Upton on Information Security
Stick with me on this because I want to introduce you to Claire. Claire is going through a tough time, she has a disability and is having difficulty getting benefits. Now before you panic I’m not expecting you to sponsor me or to see how many likes this post can get, I’m only going to tell you what you need … Read More
Lemonade and Business Continuity Planning – a view from Stuart Upton, PIB Risk Management
How are lemons, lemonade and business continuity planning connected? Our System and Process Director, Stuart Upton shares his views. “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade”, it’s a proverbial phrase to encourage us to think positively in the face of adversity. In other words, if something negative happens (the lemons representing sourness or something difficult) and you do something about … Read More