Month: March 2019

All employers! Be sure that you have made relevant changes, in line with the statutory payment increases effective April 2019.

From 7^thApril the following statutory rates apply:

Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP)	90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings for the first 6 weeks, followed by £148.68 per week (or 90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings if this figure is less than the statutory rate).
Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP)	£148.68 per week (or 90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings if this figure is less than the statutory rate).
Statutory Adoption Pay (SAP)	90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings for the first 6 weeks, followed by £148.68 per week (or 90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings if this figure is less than the statutory rate).
Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP)	£148.68 per week (or 90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings if this figure is less than the statutory rate).
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)	£94.25 per week.

 

To be eligible for these statutory payments, the employee’s average earnings must be equal to or more than the lower earnings limit (LEL). Effective April 2019, the LEL will increase from £116 to £118.

For further advice and support on the above, please contact us.

 

Reminder!!

National Living Wage to increase almost 5% from 1^stApril 2019.

From the 1^stApril 2019 the National Living Wage (statutory national minimum wage for over 25 years of age) will increase from £7.83 to £8.21 – a 4.9% increase.

With the increase in effect, it is estimated that approximately 2.4 million workers will benefit; with a full-time worker gaining a £690 annual increase. It is thought that next year’s increase will be a higher percentage rise again.

Good news for workers, but potential difficulties for smaller businesses….

National Living Wage (NLW) and National Minimum Wage (NMW) rates below:

Year	25 and over	21 to 24	18 to 20	Under 18	Apprentice
April 2018 (current rate)	£7.83	£7.38	£5.90	£4.20	£3.70
April 2019	£8.21	£7.70	£6.15	£4.35	£3.90

 

For more info visit https://www.gov.uk/national-minimum-wage-rates

It has been recently publicised that sadly, the Love Island 2017 contestant, Mike Thalassitis took his own life in the park he used to play in as a child, in London on Saturday morning, according to a police report. There are many people reaching out to him and his family on social media and it made me think; could he have been helped? What were the signs? Did people pick up on it but believe he was coping with things in his own way? Did people feel too embarrassed to ask him if he needed help? There really is no way to tell.

It goes to show, that, unfortunately, we do not know what people are going through in their lives and we definitely don’t know what is happening behind closed doors, let alone what is going on in their minds. So how does this translate into the workplace?

If you work in an office with the same people day in, day out, it is probable that you may spend more time with them than you do with your loved ones. But how much do you know them? Probably better than you think. Even if you don’t speak to all of your colleagues daily, their attitudes and demeanour is hard to ignore. If you notice any changes in your colleagues’ behaviours, don’t be embarrassed to ask them if they are okay.

But whatever you do, don’t ignore it.

If you feel that you aren’t equipped to speak with your colleagues about how they are doing, speak with your HR team or line manager about having a team-member trained on dealing with mental health in the workplace.

Mental health is a serious subject and shouldn’t be swept under the carpet just because it may make people feel uncomfortable. We need to erase the perceptions of mental health equalling weakness and instead, replace it with awareness, education and openness.

It is just such a shame that it takes this extreme for it to be publicised and spoken about in the media. Let’s help stop the stigma.

The 29^thMarch is looming – are you and your business prepared for Brexit?? Of course not; is anyone? I mean REALLY prepared!? The answer is almost definitely no. Why? Well it is difficult to be prepared when there are still no real answers.

Change is coming and employers will need to deal with the consequences of Brexit and what it may mean for their workforce.

One thing that is clear, is that the free movement for UK and European Economic Area (EEA) nationals in the UK will be a thing of the past after 29^thMarch 2019. To be able to make informed workplace planning decisions employers will need to understand how this will affect their EEA nationals in the UK and what those individuals will need to do to protect their right to stay. Employers should ensure that they communicate with those affected employees and ensure that where applications for status are required, they are made in good time.

Under the withdrawal agreement all EU nationals (except Irish nationals) exercising a Treaty right in the UK will need to apply for settled or pre-settled status under the EU settlement scheme before the end of the transitional period (31 December 2020); including those individuals who already hold a registration certificate or permanent residence card.

The deadline for applications is 30 June 2021, providing that there is a deal.

With a no-deal scenario still on the cards, employers should plan for this also. In the event of a no-deal scenario the transitional period will not apply and so the settlement scheme will only be available to EU nationals already as resident in the UK by 29^thMarch 2019 and all EU nationals arriving after this date will not qualify for settled status.

It is important to start planning today to protect you and your employees.

 

Contact Harwood for advice and guidance.

Do you hear business jargon thrown around the office daily and wonder if it really is necessary to take note of what it truly means? This might be because your colleagues are trying to make themselves feel important by baffling everyone with bull**** or it might just be that its more entertaining to say the initials of a phrase and watch the blank faces stare back at you around the room. Regardless, jargon seems to be an important factor of working life.

Ready for some more jargon? The psychological contract. What is it? Where did it come from? Who invented more jargon? Do we need to write a jargon dictionary to keep track of it all? It isn’t always on the top of the list when it comes to things to consider in the workplace, this may be due to its intangibility or the fact that people don’t know what this particularly refers to.

The psychological contract involves everyone… even you. Yes, you.

You might know it as something else, like an unspoken agreement between you and your team or even between you and your line management. It lies in the culture and work ethic of every organisation and within its people. It is the expectation you have of your team and their expectation of you.

It sounds simple but this is where it gets tricky.

Having a solid, understood psychological contract can be difficult to attain for many reasons. A sound psychological contract will be an agreement that aligns the needs of the business and of the individual. Easy right? Not really. The psychological contract is ever changing. It is all of the extra bits and bobs that employees are expected to do at work but that aren’t in the employee contract. For example, you work overtime as it’s an expectation of your line manager? Psychological contract. You expect your team to come in early when there’s a big project due? Psychological contract. If your employees feel their side of the bargain is looking a little slim; they could feel they have been taken advantage of and this leads to low morale and high turnover.

How do you manage this?

In simple terms, have regular meetings with your team to let them know your expectations and asking their expectations in return is best practice, this way, there is never any misalignment between what you and your employees think. And if you want to be a great manager… reward your team for going above and beyond in their work so their side of the psychological contract is more than accounted for.

All in all…

Reward + good morale + employee voice = high productivity!

Happy Friday!!!!