Covid-19 news with a HR Twist
June 2015
Former Employee Awarded €58k for Unfair Dismissal
On the basis of a decline in sales within an exhaust business the Finance Director decided that a redundancy was required. There were 4 employees who generated sales for the company. The Finance Director believed the company only required 3 people to perform the sales roles.
The 4 individuals were informed that their positions were at risk and they were given a copy of the selection matrix that was used to determine who would be made redundant. The 4 employees all agreed that the matrix (after a slight amendment suggested by one of the employees concerned) was a fair and equitable way of assessing them. The sales director scored the matrices. The employee who scored the lowest was informed that he was to be made redundant.
The employee who was made redundant contended that the selection process had not been fairly operated. The Finance Director had not raised the issue of the exhaust centre’s declining profitability with him before deciding to make someone redundant. He was not told his sales were down.
The employee who was made redundant was at a disadvantage because the 3 other employees had a closer affinity with one another than with him and therefore he scored lower on team work.
While the employee who was made redundant did not object to the selection matrix – he did, however, feel as though it had not been scored fairly. His extensive product knowledge was not taken into account. Also not taken into account was his City & Guilds qualification.
After his redundancy the employee learned that the company had a new operation in Cork. A former employee was recruited to manage the new operation. The claimant was not told about the new operation or asked to apply for any of the jobs there.
The claimant established loss for the Tribunal.
The Tribunal carefully considered all evidence in the case. It was clear that management did not speak to the employee when they determined that his position was not profitable.
When it came to the process of selecting an employee for redundancy, the method chosen put the employee at a distinct disadvantage.
The Tribunal found that the selection process was unfair and therefore the dismissal of the claimant was unfair. The claim under the Unfair Dismissals Acts 1977 to 2007 succeeded and the claimant was awarded the sum of €58,000.00 in addition to any payment he had already received.
Update on Employers Deducting Local Property Tax (LPT) at source
Some companies have recently received correspondence threatening legal proceedings if they deduct Local Property Tax (LPT) from employees’ salaries. The Revenue Commissioners, however, have confirmed that any legal proceedings will be strenuously contested by the State.
Section 65 of the Finance (Local Property Tax) Act, 2012, states that employers are statutorily obliged to comply with any direction that may be issued to them to deduct tax in accordance with the below statutory provision.
“Where a liable person is in receipt of emoluments ... the Revenue Commissioners may direct an employer to deduct, in a period specified in the direction, local property tax payable by the liable person from the net emoluments payable to the liable person by the employer”
Further clarification of what Employers need to know regarding LPT:
Any employee who has not yet paid, or started to pay, their applicable Local Property Tax (LPT) will have mandatory deduction at source from salary or pension imposed. Those who failed to submit their LPT return on time or failed to meet the relevant payment obligations by 1st July 2013 are under scrutiny.
Employers and occupational pension providers alike are obliged to ensure deduction at source. Revenue should have notified the employers/ pension providers of the outstanding sums via the P2Cs (The P2C is the employer copy of the tax credit certificate in respect of the individual employee).
The relevant sum is to be deducted from the employee’s net pay.
The employer is to commence deducting the LPT after receipt of the relevant P2C (after July 1st 2013). The relevant P2Cs should have been issued to most employers by mid June 2013. The LPT to be deducted is illustrated at the bottom of the P2C. The deductions must be made on a consistent basis over the 6 month period between July and December 2013. If the employee is paid weekly then the LPT deduction should be made weekly and if the employee is paid monthly then the deduction should be applied monthly.
For example if the LPT to be deducted is €300 then an employee who is paid weekly will see €300/26=€11.538 deducted from their weekly net salary (Any rounding should be in favour of the employee) - If an employee owing €300 is paid monthly then he or she is due to pay €300/6=€50 on a monthly basis.
Any refunds of LPT will be dealt with by Revenue – Employers are not to make any refunds of this kind.
If the employer receives the P2C detailing LPT after the July payroll has run then the total LPT should be deducted from August through December - the remaining 5 month period.
Employers are obliged to keep a record of the applicable LPT that they deduct for Revenue and are required to account for the figures on the Forms P30 and P35 in respect of the employees concerned. The employer is also responsible for recording the appropriate LPT data for employees on their payslips as well as P60’s and P45s.
Where there is a Court Order on file prior to the issuance of the P2C this must take precedence over the LPT deduction. However, if the P2C is issued prior to a Court Order being made then the LPT deduction will preside. Where the Court Order and P2C are issued or made effective from the same date the Court Order takes precedence. The LPT payment, however, takes precedence over all non-statutory deductions like Health Insurance.
The Employer/Pension provider cannot take an instruction from the employee to stop deducting LPT from his or her salary – the employer is obliged to deduct the applicable LPT until the P2C shows that no further payment is due. If an employee would like to pay the relevant tax via a different method he or she should contact the LPT Branch and make these arrangements – then the employer will be issued with an updated P2C telling them to stop the deduction from pay/pension. Similarly if the employee feels as though there is a discrepancy in the amount of LPT they are being charged he or she should discuss this with the LPT Branch not the employer. If an adjustment needs to be made to the P2C then a revised directive will be issued to the employer – until such a directive is received the employer should continue to deduct the original LPT figure.
According to Revenue “Where there are shortfalls due to insufficient net salary in a particular pay period(s) the employer should adjust the amount of LPT to be deducted per pay period (for the remaining pay periods in the year) to ensure the full amount of LPT is collected by the end of the year. Once this is done, the employer will not be required to notify Revenue about the shortfall. However, employers must notify Revenue in writing (e.g. by Secure Email to employersLPT@revenue.ie) where there will be insufficient income to satisfy the employee’s full LPT liability for the year, based on the expected income for the employee.”
Revenue has established a helpline for employers and pension providers alike to assist with their queries on how this LPT deduction at source will operate.
The Employer Helpline is 1890 25 45 65.
Asking to be fired – Why an employer must not adhere to this request
An employee recently requested that his employer dismiss him. When asked why he wanted to be let go the employee explained that he wished to spend more time at home helping his sick wife with the children and assisting with the domestic duties. The employer was considering doing as the employee asked as he felt that the motives behind the request were practical.
The employer, however, took a few moments to think about the request. He concluded that the employee had been a diligent worker and so was reluctant to see the employee leave his role. In the hopes that it might encourage the employee to consider changing his mind the employer decided to offer the employee a small pay rise and to be more flexible with him in terms of his working hours. After the employer made the offer the employee became frustrated and again asked the employer to fire him.
The employer was confused as to why the employee was so adamant that he wanted to be fired as he had always seemed quite satisfied in his role. The employer also wondered why the employee didn’t simply resign if he wanted to go so badly. The employer decided to seek some advice on the situation prior to making his final decision. After some research the employer realised that this request was a common one and that motives behind this type of request were typically financially-based ones.
If an employee leaves employment voluntarily and without a reasonable cause then he or she may be disqualified from getting Jobseeker's Benefit for 9 weeks, however, if the employee is dismissed from employment then he would be entitled to claim benefits earlier.
Social Welfare Fraud is a serious offense.
The employee became extremely angry when the employer refused to dismiss him. Had the employer satisfied the request and fired the employee the individual could have lodged a case for unfair dismissal. The employer was fortunate that he sought advice after receiving the request from the employee. Due to the fact that the employee had not done anything to warrant his dismissal it is likely that a claim would have succeeded in an Employment Appeals Tribunal scenario – Unfair Dismissal can lead to an award of up to 2 years’ salary.
Employers receiving requests along these lines should seek advice from Irish Employment Legislation specialists prior to taking any action.
Compensation and Benefits Management in Ireland
In a competitive job market like this compensation and benefits take on an added level of significance. The management of benefits and compensation can also take on an added level of complexity..... they can cause added stress for an already pressurised environment.
The HR Company removes any complexity from the scenario. We take the guess-work out of decision making by surveying the marketplace and keeping you informed of everything you need to be aware of.
On top of salary compensation and benefits can include items such as a company car, bonuses, sales incentives like commission, extra paid time off, medical insurance, stock options and much more. It can be very difficult to stay on top of this HR function.
We take the headache out of the administration of compensation and benefits for you by providing you with a variety of specialised back-office services. These include everything from processing pension and medical plans to managing and organising your company’s Organisational Health Index.
Here is a list of some of the services we offer to assist companies with their compensation and benefits management:
•Pension/medical membership processing
•Salary survey, planning & administration
•Salary/Bonus/Stock system processing
•Company Car policy management
•Mortgage application processing
•Maternity/Parental Leave benefits
•Flexible benefits
•Advise on, manage and organise annual Benefits and Expo & Health Awareness Programme
•Manage & organise company OHI
•Manage Outplacement Programme
•Tailored generation of reports & statistics
Our goal is to ensure your HR functions run as smoothly as possible so that you can focus on the ensuring the other aspects of your business are running as smoothly as possible.
If you need guidance or support with benefit and compensation administration then look no further than The HR Company.
Protections for Whistleblowers in Ireland
The Protected Disclosure Bill 2013 was published on July 3rd 2013 by Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin, T.D. The Bill is to establish a comprehensive legislative framework protecting whistleblowers in all industries in Ireland.
The purpose of the legislation is to protect workers who raise concerns regarding wrongdoing (or potential wrongdoing) that they have become aware of in the workplace. The Bill will offer significant employment and other protections to whistleblowers if they suffer any penalties at the hands of their employer for coming forward with information of wrongdoing in the workplace.
The legislation, which is due to be enacted in the autumn, closely reflects best practices in whistleblowing protection in developed nations around the world.
According to Minister Howlin the Bill “should instil all workers with confidence that should they ever need to take that decisive step and speak-up on concerns that they have about possible misconduct in the workplace, they will find that society values their actions as entirely legitimate, appropriate and in the public interest”.
Some key elements included in the Bill are as follows:
Compensation of up to a maximum of five years remuneration can be awarded in the case of an unfair dismissal that came about as a result of making a protected disclosure. This would be a massive step forward in Ireland’s attempt to match the standards set by other established nations.
It is important to note that limitations relating to the length of service that usually apply in the case of Unfair Dismissals are set aside in the case of protected disclosures.
As a result of this Bill whistleblowers will benefit from civil immunity from actions for damages and a qualified privilege under defamation law.
The legislation provides a number of disclosure channels for potential whistleblowers and stresses that the disclosure, rather than the whistleblower, should be the focus of the attention.
Protections for the whistleblower remain in place even where the information disclosed does not reveal any wrongdoing when examined. Deliberate false reporting, however, will not be protected.
These measures, when enacted, should encourage more people to come forward, and feel comfortable doing so, when they become aware of (or suspect) any criminal activity, misconduct or wrongdoing in the workplace.
JobsPlus – More Jobs at a Lower Cost
On 1st July 2013 the Department of Social Protection launched a new Scheme which offers employers rewards for recruiting individuals who have been unemployed for a considerable period of time. The JobsPlus incentive encourages companies to employ the long-term unemployed and in return offers substantial cash grants to the employer.
JobsPlus replaces the existing Revenue Job Assist Schemes as well as the Employer Job PRSI exemption.
The list of individuals who have experienced long-term unemployment has grown significantly in recent years and the objective of this incentive is to motivate employers to recruit from this grouping first.
The cash grant will be payable monthly (in arrears) via Electronic Fund Transfer over a period of two years. This payment will only continue to be made if the recruit in respect of whom the grant is being paid remains in the same employment.
There are two different levels of grant – the higher rate will only be paid in respect of those who have been out of employment for more than 2 full years.
The figure being paid in respect of those who have been unemployed for 12-24 months is a total of €7,500 per person.
The grant in respect of those who have been out of the workforce for more than 2 years is €10,000 per person.
The critical eligibility criteria for JobsPlus are:
- The roles offered must be “Full Time” employments – offering more than 30 hours per week (and spanning at least 4 days per week).
- The employers concerned must be fully compliant with Irish tax and employment laws.
- The roles given to the long-term unemployed must not displace current employees – however, the grant is available to employers who are filling new vacancies as a result of natural turnover.
- The period of unemployment must be continuous (and a minimum of 12 months) in order for the recruit to be eligible.
Employers are not limited in terms of the numbers that they can employ from the long-term unemployment register.
As mentioned JobsPlus replaces the existing Revenue Job Assist Schemes as well as the Employer Job PRSI exemption – Beneficiaries of these schemes will, however, continue to receive the tax and Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI) exemption privileges for as long as they are entitled by the terms and conditions of these schemes to do so.
Employers are able to register for the JobsPlus Incentive by filling out a form on www.jobsplus.ie.
Employers will also be able to instruct prospective employees to fill out an online application to confirm that they are eligible for the JobsPlus Scheme.
Should fathers be able to share in maternity leave entitlements?
Under Irish Legislation mothers are currently entitled to 26 weeks paid maternity leave. They can also avail of a further 16 weeks (unpaid) if they wish to.
There is no obligation on mothers to avail of the full 26 weeks, however, a minimum of 2 weeks must be taken before the end of the week of the baby's expected birth and at least 4 weeks must be taken after the birth.
On 10th July 2013 Senator Mary White published a Bill which proposes that fathers be given the opportunity to share in the maternity leave afforded to mothers.
The Legislation, entitled the ‘Parental Leave Bill 2013’, recommends that the current maternity leave system is revised to enable a woman, if she wishes, to transfer a portion of her 26 weeks leave (and associated benefits) to the father of the child.
Senator Mary White believes that “The greatest challenge facing the country is to create employment to offer hope and a potential living to the 300,000 unemployed and the young people in our schools and colleges. The only way we can create jobs is to encourage new enterprise.”
The aim of the Bill is to inspire female entrepreneurship in order to assist in the creation of jobs in Ireland – 50% of the population in Ireland is women and yet the number of Irish male early-stage entrepreneurs is approximately 2.5 times that of the female equivalent.
Senator White explained that women currently face more obstacles than men when becoming entrepreneurs and developing businesses. She hopes to minimise these obstacles in order to make the most of this untapped resource.
Typically, in this nation, women tend to be tasked with raising young children - Senator White wants to modify this by giving fathers the opportunity to share in the associated responsibilities. Allowing fathers to share in the maternity leave entitlements currently offered to women may begin to change the trend of the male-dominated entrepreneurial world going forward.
The Senator said “This flexibility in the maternal leave scheme would allow women entrepreneurs to devote more time to their enterprises.”
It appears as though the “Parental Leave Bill 2013” is just one of a number of new initiatives that is contained in the forthcoming policy paper promoting women in entrepreneurship.
Labour Court’s recommendation in Workers v Timber Company Case
The Workers at a timber company brought a case against their Employer to the Labour Court and the Recommendation was very interesting. The Workers, who were represented by Services Industrial Professional Technical Union(SIPTU), wanted a 5% pay increase. However, the Company didn’t feel as though it should be paying such an increase. The National Wage Agreement ceased in 2008 and the Workers in the Company have not received a pay increase since then. The dispute between the Employees and the Company could not be resolved at local level and became the subject of a Conciliation Conference under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission (LRC). Agreement was not reached here and so, in November 2013, in accordance with Section 26(1) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1990, the dispute was referred to the Labour Court. In March of this year a Labour Court Hearing took place. The Union argued that the Workers at the timber company have had to endure the austerity measures introduced in successive budgets over the last number of years. They have also experienced a significant increase in taxation which, combined with the difficult budgets, has resulted in a reduction in the take home pay for the Workers. SIPTU also argued that the increase sought was a modest one and that it would not adversely impact the Company. The Company, on the other hand, argued that it was forced to take certain steps to remain viable and maintain levels of employment in the very competitive recent market conditions. The timber firm also stated that it had always met its commitments under the National Wage Agreements; however, any increase in pay at this stage would inevitably challenge the security of employment within the Company. Mr. Hayes (Chairman), Mr. Murphy (Employer Member) and Mr. Shanahan (Worker Member) considered the Employee and Company arguments and made a decision based on all of the submissions.
In the end, the Court met in the middle and Recommended that the Company increase the pay of the workers concerned by 2% for twelve months, effective 1st August 2014.
What to do to avoid Harassment and Workplace Bullying
Employers - Did you know that you can be held accountable for bullying or harassment in the workplace?…Not being aware of it does not get you off the hook!
Here is an overview of the basics:
Bullying defined…
Bullying in the workplace is any recurring inappropriate conduct that undermines a person’s right to dignity at work. Bullying can be carried out by one person or several people - it is aimed at an individual or a group where the objective is to make them feel inferior or victimized. Bullying can come in the form of a verbal or physical assault and can also take place over the internet – this is known as cyber bullying and can be performed via many methods - Mobile phones, social networking sites, emails and texts are all common vehicles for cyber bullying. Cyber bullying is becoming more and more prevalent in society.
Keep in mind that harassment based on civil status, family status, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, race or membership of the Traveller community is considered discrimination.
Bullying isn’t always obvious – in fact it can come in many shapes and forms – some examples are:
- Social exclusion or isolation
- Damaging someone’s reputation through gossip or rumour
- Any form of intimidation
- Aggressive or obscene language or behaviour
- Repeated requests for unreasonable tasks to be carried out
Employers Beware:
Under current Irish employment legislation (The Employment Equality Acts 1998-2011) companies are accountable when it comes to bullying and harassment in the workplace or workplace disputes. It is vital for employers to be mindful of the legislation as companies are answerable for the actions of employees, suppliers and customers even in cases where the company is not aware that bullying or harassment is taking place.
To defend itself a company must illustrate how it did everything reasonably practicable to prevent bullying and / or harassment from taking place in the workplace. The company must also show that when an instance of bullying or harassment occurred the company took immediate, fair and decisive action.
There is a huge risk of exposure if companies do not adhere to the strict Regulations. Those found in violation of the Act may be liable for fines and in severe circumstances imprisonment on summary conviction.
Bullying creates a very hostile work environment and can negatively affect employee performance – it can also cause a company to lose key members of staff. Bullying can affect both the safety and the health of employees – this violates the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.
It is abundantly clear that it is in the best interest of all stakeholders to prevent bullying in the workplace.
In order to avoid bullying and harassment an employer should include harassment-related policies and procedures in the Employee Handbook. This will clarify what is expected of employees and what the protocol is if bullying takes place.
For advice on what to do refer to the Labour Relations Commission’s Code of Practice detailing Procedures for Addressing Bullying in the Workplace:
http://www.lrc.ie/documents/publications/codes/codeonbullying_.pdf
For further employment legislation and HR advice or to arrange a complimentary consultation/audit with a HR expert at your premises contact us at The HR Company.
Parental Leave Entitlements under Irish Employment Legislation
Employers – did you know that as of Friday 8th March 2013 parental leave has been increased from 14 to 18 weeks?
Here is a breakdown of the points that employers should take note of:
Any employees who have a current or future entitlement to Parental Leave will increase from the current 14 week allowance to 18 weeks going forward.
The directive affords a parent returning to work the right to ask for a change in work pattern for a set period thereafter – the employer is only obliged to consider the request not to adhere to it.
An employee seeking a change in work pattern should make the request as soon as is reasonably possible (no later than 6 weeks before the proposed commencement).
Where the employer refuses the request, the employer must within 4 weeks of receiving the request, inform the employee in writing that the request has been refused.
There is no obligation on the employer to explain why the request was denied.
Where the changes are granted the employee should be asked to sign an agreement specifying the changes to the employee’s working hours or patterns of work and the duration of same.
Additional Important information:
Parental leave is available for each child.
Unless the employer agrees to a longer period where an employee has more than one child, parental leave is constrained to 18 weeks in a 12 month period. There is no obligation on the employer to conform to such a request.
Bear in mind that parents of twins or triplets can take more than 18 weeks of parental leave in a year.
The 18 weeks per child may be taken in one continuous block or, alternatively, in 2 separate periods of a minimum of 6 weeks each. There must be a gap of at least 10 weeks between the 2 periods of parental leave per child.
Separating the parental leave entitlements in to shorter periods of days or even hours can be agreed on an individual basis – this is at the discretion of the employer and is based on the operational needs of the business - there is absolutely no obligation on the employer to agree to shorter periods. The employer should maintain detailed reports of all parental leave as it is used.
It is important to note that both parents have an equal, separate entitlement to parental leave.
It is not possible to transfer leave between parents unless they both work for the same employer and the employer agrees to this set-up.
Any employees that are currently entitled to parental leave are covered by this extension from 14 to 18 weeks.
It is permissible to avail of parental leave in respect of a child up to 8 years of age.
There are special allowances for children that were adopted between the ages of 6 and 8 – leave in this instance may be taken up to 2 years after the date of the adoption order.
Similarly, in the case of a child with a disability leave may be taken up to 16 years of age.
Where illness or other incapacity prevented the employee taking the leave within the normal period exceptional allowances may be made.
Employees must have 12 months continuous service to avail of parental leave; however, a percentage of the leave is available to employees with shorter service in certain circumstances.
Parental Leave remains as being an unpaid leave from employment. However, employers should be aware that employees retain their right to accumulate annual leave while on parental leave and also employees retain their entitlements for Public Holiday’s while on Parental Leave.
The company may postpone the parental leave on the basis that the leave would have a substantial, adverse effect on the operation of the business or due to the number of employee’s taking leave at one time.
For more information on the Council Directive 2010/18/EU on parental leave visit:
http://www.justice.ie/en/JELR/Pages/PR13000093
For guidance on all your HR related questions and for Employment Law expertise visit The HR Company and we will arrange a complimentary consultation to assess your exposure with respect to employment legislation, contracts of employment and much more.
Dealing with lateness in work – what should you do as an employer?
Employers should include clear codes of practice regarding tardiness in the workplace in the employee handbook and this should be given to each employee on commencement of their employment.
Timekeeping is very important, particularly when it comes to punctuality and reliability in work related activities.
The employee’s working hours should be specified prior to the start of the employment relationship and he or she should ensure to be ready to start work (not just arrive) at the appointed time.
Employers should attach great importance to consistent punctuality as clients and other key stakeholders rely on the availability of the employees at particular times.
If an employee is going to be late for work he or she should contact their manager immediately giving the reason and their approximate time of arrival. Notification should be made personally. Notification by text message or email is not professional and should be discouraged.
Employers should not hesitate to take disciplinary action against those that are late to work – in fact, rather than ignore it or “let it go”, the best thing to do is to raise the topic with the employee to make them conscious that you are aware of the punctuality issues and to show your dissatisfaction with the behaviour – this will usually nip it in the bud before it becomes a habit that is difficult to shake.
One way to deal with lateness is to withhold payment for the period that the employee was not present and available to work. A disciplinary procedure can also be initiated, up to and including dismissal, if there is constant lateness or non-attendance as this is a serious offense that disturbs other colleagues, management and clients.
If the tardiness is recurring employers should reach out to the employee, particularly if this behaviour is out of character. There may be an issue that the employer should be made aware of. If the employee is experiencing personal problems he or she should be encouraged to utilise the services of the employee assistance program, should this be available in the company.
If there is a need to adjust the required hours of work of an employee due to changing market and business requirements as much notice as possible should be given to the employee.
For guidance on the best approach to grievance issues visit connect with The HR Company.
The HR Company provides an abundance of human resources expertise at a very affordable price and will manage all work associated with reducing working hours/redundancy steps and everything in between.
The HR Company interprets all employment legislation and delivers all disciplinary recommendations - even writing the disciplinary letters for you. (These will be customised; no samples or templates).
Did you know that NERA inspectors are currently carrying out investigations to ensure that businesses are compliant with employment legislation and that labour inspectorates have the right to request access to employment records such as, Hours of Work, Public Holiday Benefits, Annual Leave, Wage Sheets and Legally Compliant Contracts?
The HR Company ensures companies are NERA compliant to avoid fines and damaging repercussions.
The experienced HR professionals will issue all customised contracts of employment for your employees and will prepare an employee handbook specific to your company.
Your dedicated account manager will manage any conflict in the organisation including bullying & harassment in the workplace as well as giving recommendations in response to performance issues.
The HR Company will keep you up to date with all changes in employment legislation.
Uniforms, General Workwear and Dress Code Queries Answered
Employees in many companies are required by management to wear a uniform or expressed work attire while carrying out their work responsibilities or while present in the workplace. There are many reasons why employees are obliged to wear a uniform -
- A uniform is important in some industries from a Health and Safety perspective
- Wearing a uniform can create a sense of pride/comfort/unity among employees
- Uniforms maintain the company’s corporate image and are a branding opportunity
- Uniforms assist in the efficient identification of employees which is helpful to customers, other employees, suppliers and stakeholders in general.
The “uniform” requirements may be a simple guide – for instance “All employees must wear black while carrying out their duties” or employees may simply have a name tag attached to their own clothing.
In many workplaces a specific uniform is not mandatory; however, compliance with the company’s dress code may be compulsory and will be enforced by the employer or management.
Employees will often come into contact with clients and suppliers and consequently it is in the best interest of the company that they present themselves in a professional manner with regards to appearance and standards of dress. It is essential that overall hygiene and grooming are maintained.
Where uniforms are not provided or required, employees should wear clothes appropriate to the job responsibilities - Naturally a mechanic will wear a different form of clothing than an office worker.
Where possible work attire should be kept clean and tidy at all times.
Some employers will restrict employees in terms of what jewellery is allowed as well as items like tattoos – If a company has guidelines in relation to matters such as work attire the relevant policies should be included in the employee handbook and this should be made available to all employees on the commencement of their employment.
Some employers will provide uniforms for employees when they commence employment. In some instances the cost of the uniform will be deducted from the employees pay. Rules in terms of the maintenance of the uniform vary from company to company.
Some companies will request that employees launder their own uniforms at their own expense or at the expense of the company. Medical professionals, for instance, must always have sanitized work attire.
It is important that employers do not request that their employees wear inappropriate uniforms or uniforms that are not comfortable or practical for the work that is being completed.
Suitable footwear and clothing that is warm enough for the working conditions is essential.
According to health and safety guidelines an employer must communicate any risks to the employee that would require them to wear protective equipment. The employer should provide the relevant protective equipment such as protective hard hats, metal topped shoes, eyewear and gloves etc. Where necessary the employer should also provide training on how to use the protective gear.
It is the duty of the employee to take reasonable care for his/her own safety and to use any protective equipment supplied. Radiologists should wear lead coated aprons, for instance, to avoid unnecessary amounts of radiation penetrating their bodies during x-rays.
The protective equipment should be provided free of charge to employees if it is intended for use at the workplace only. Where possible, the employee should be provided with their own personal equipment rather than having to share this with other employees.
For assistance in creating contracts of employment or employee handbooks containing policies and procedures about dress code/uniforms and much more and to ensure you are compliant with all employment legislation visit The HR Company and subscribe to have 24/7 access to your own personal expert HR department.
An Employer’s Guide to Setting a Probation Period.
Employment references for prospective employees should always be thoroughly vetted – however, for various reasons, they may not always give a true and present reflection of the candidate or they may reflect what the employee’s capabilities were at a different time which may not necessarily match their current skills. For this reason it is advisable for employers to employ new members based on multiple evaluations to protect themselves and to ensure not to waste any time or resources on someone who isn’t adequately equipped for the role.
An applicant’s Curriculum Vitae and the resulting interview can tell an employer a lot about the potential new employee - it is not uncommon, however, to ask shortlisted candidates to perform competency-based assessments or aptitude tests so that the employer can acquire a full picture of the candidate and determine whether or not he or she is the right fit for the vacancy. In certain instances it is advisable for employers to hire new members on a probationary period of 3 or 6 months or something along those lines – this is becoming more and more prevalent.
This probationary period does not prejudice the company’s right to dismiss in accordance with the notice provisions contained in the employee’s individual statement of main terms of employment, or without notice for reasons of gross misconduct, should this be necessary.
This period should be used by the employer to fully assess the employee’s work performance and suitability and if the work performance is not up to the required standard or the employee is considered to be unsuitable the employer should either take swift remedial action or terminate the employment, without recourse to the disciplinary procedure.
At the end of the probationary period the employee should again be reassessed. If he or she has not reached the required standard the employer should, at their discretion, either extend the probationary period in order that remedial action can be taken or terminate the contract of employment.
The probationary period should not in any case exceed eleven months in total. The employee should receive notice of the company’s intention to extend the probationary period before or at the end of the initial 6 month probationary period.
A clause should allow that any continuous period of absence of four weeks or more would suspend the probationary period until the employee’s return to work.
To avoid any risk of discrimination a policy, like the probationary period outlined above, should be fair and consistent and should apply to all new employees throughout the company. In disciplinary proceedings, when dealing with employees on probationary periods, progressive steps can be skipped but it is a common misconception that fair procedures and natural justice need not be adhered to during the probationary period.
The Unfair Dismissals Acts 1997-2007 will not apply to the dismissal of an employee during a period at the beginning of employment when he/she is on probation or undergoing training provided that:
- the contract of employment is in writing
- the duration of probation or training is one year or less and is specified in the contract
It is important to bear in mind that this exclusion from the Acts will not apply if the dismissal results from trade union membership or activity, pregnancy related matters, or entitlements under the maternity protection, parental leave, adoptive leave and carer's leave legislation.
For assistance in creating contracts of employment or employee handbooks containing policies and procedures and to ensure you are compliant with all employment legislation visit The HR Company and subscribe to have 24/7 access to your own personal HR department - all your HR needs could be at your finger tips.
Internet Usage Policy at Work – What is appropriate in the office?
Whether it is through office computers, laptops or mobile devices, a lot of work environments have easy access to resources like the Internet these days. It is important for employers to lay down ground rules when it comes to the use of the Internet at work. Internet access is typically provided by employers for the purpose of assisting employees with their work related activities.
Employers should instruct employees not to use the Internet for non-work related undertakings – except in extraordinary circumstances or on the specific instruction of the manager.
An employer should reserve the right to restrict and monitor the use of Internet resources.
If observing inward and/or outward Internet traffic it is important to make employees aware of this and to let them know that the sites they visit will be recorded by management and may be used at the discretion of The Company. Employers should reserve the right to monitor by means of electronic scanning, for instance, for source and destination addresses and should scrutinise the distribution of any information through the Internet.
Here are some rules that employers should put in place in the employee handbook:
DO- Use the Internet only as needed for work or limited personal use when essential
- Understand that The Company may be liable for what the employee does from The Company network - whether The Company is aware or not
- Help The Company to maintain compliance with software licensing – if in doubt, the employee should ask the management team
- Download software, games or screensavers to your computer or to The Company network
- Distribute Company Logins or Passwords to those who are not authorised to use them
- Download video files such as MPEG files unless directly related to work assigned to you
- Engage in any form of online gambling or betting
- Use passwords or encryption keys unknown to Management
- Obtain malicious access to Internet sites by cracking or hacking
- Retrieve material from the Internet using Company resources which:
- is racist, sexist or which may otherwise cause offence or be construed as harassment
- infringes someone else’s legal rights, including copyright, patent or trademark rights of any other person or organisation
- is defamatory or attacks or denigrates any person, group or organisation
- would cause offence on the grounds of race, colour, religion, political beliefs, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, gender, age, disability, nationality, marital status, membership of the traveller community or intending to, undergoing or having undergone treatment to change sex, or
- is otherwise unlawful or could constitute a criminal offence or which could damage the reputation of The Company
In order to protect The Company employers should establish policies regarding employees’ personal websites – for instance:
While an employee is entitled to create and operate a personal or commercial website employers generally prevent employees from creating one that would violate Company policies or that would compete with The Company - The employee should notify The Company of his or her external commercial activities and the existence of resources such as a personal website and these should be approved by management to ensure there is no conflict.
Employers should restrict the use of Company resources/property in the development or operation of a personal website. A policy should be put in place to prevent work on a personal website being carried out on The Company premises or on Company time as the employee is expected to devote their full working time and loyalty to The Company.
For assistance in creating contracts of employment or employee handbooks containing policies and procedures about internet use or to help eliminate problems in the workplace while ensuring you are compliant with all employment legislation visit The HR Company and subscribe to have 24/7 access to your own personal expert HR department.
