Last month the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills launched a consultation on the use of zero hours contracts following much media attention and parliamentary concern surrounding the negative impact that such contractual arrangements can have.
It is currently estimated that a million UK workers are employed on zero hours contracts. Loosely defined, a zero hours contract is a contractual arrangement whereby the employer does not guarantee the individual any minimum working hours and the individual is not obliged to accept any work offered. While zero hours contracts can be a useful tool to businesses providing flexibility and retention of skills, as well as offering individuals the opportunity to work around other commitments they may have, the concern is that these contracts are being abused. A particular issue, and one which the consultation considers, is the use of exclusivity clauses in such contracts. These restrictions tie individuals to one employer, preventing them from working for another employer, even where their own employer offers no guarantee of work.
Howes Percival’s employment law experts Nicola Butterworth and Harriet Howes will be discussing the use of zero hours contracts as part of a wider discussion on flexible and atypical working, at the forthcoming Norfolk Chamber of Commerce HR Forum on 5 March 2014 at Dunston Hall Hotel, Norwich. The session will also look at managing an ageing workforce, in particular dealing with performance management, sickness absence and potential disability issues. In addition, Nicola and Harriet will look at further reforms to employment law that are currently in the pipeline for 2014, and how these will impact on local businesses.
These days there’s an award for almost every area of business – from best social media campaign to the most innovative company. Whatever the accolade, scooping the top spot can bring you a lot of positives – it’s a superb reputation-booster, but which categories could deliver the most value back for your area of work?
The Cambridge Evening News Business Excellence Awards is a fantastic example of a prestigious ceremony that celebrates achievements of local industry. And there’s a category attracting a lot of attention- Employer of the Year. Last year’s winners, Cambridge Consultants, used the award to attract specialist staff as part of a wider recruitment strategy.
In fact, there are lots of ways you can use such recognition as a great employer to benefit your firm. Here are a few ideas…
1. Use it to engage with staff
You’ve won a ‘best employer’ award! Why not invest it back into your employee engagement strategy and develop this area of business even further? If the award involved an employee survey or interviews, then your staff have helped you win. Make the achievement meaningful and personal – thank everyone for their part in the victory. An open show of gratitude can be an amazing morale booster and can help give people a real feeling of pride. Also, employees who feel valued and recognised for their commitment are more likely to stay with you for the long term.
2. Tell the press
Many newspapers such as the Cambridge Evening News run regional awards, so it’s likely that you’re going to get coverage if you win. But if it’s not a media-related event, get a press release drafted the day before the ceremony. If you win, the hot-off-the-press announcement will be ready to send out to your key newspapers, magazines and websites. This is a rare opportunity to make a big splash, so go for it! And don’t forget the all-important photo with a punchy caption.
3. Mention it in job ads
Take a lesson from Cambridge Consultants’ approach to recruitment; tell job seekers that they’d be working for an award-winning employer. Smart job seekers want to know about a firm’s ethics: how they support the local community and how it treats it workers. So when advertising your vacancies, make you sure you attract savvy candidates by mentioning the award in the copy or use an awards logo.
4. Celebrate with key stakeholders
Another way to involve your employees is to mark the award with a celebration of some kind. It can be in the office get together or a big picnic. It can also be a brilliant excuse to invite investors (show them how well you’re doing) and any other stakeholders you want to engage with. And why not invite partners and kids, making it a family affair?
5. Show it off to clients
Customers increasingly want to know they’re doing business with ethical companies. The recession has caused people to look out for issues such as mismanagement – they want to know that they’re giving their money to firms with an honest approach to all areas of work. It also demonstrates that you have the edge over your competitors. All of this can have a positive impact on the bottom line.
There’s no doubt that an accolade, which rubber-stamps your status as a good employer, can help propel your business forward. So, why not give the Cambridge Evening News Business Excellence Awards a bash this year? Sponsored by Pure, Employer of the Year could attract invaluable PR, as well as the best talent, enthusiastic investors and loyal customers.
Also, watch this space for news on how you can get your hands on another award; the 2014 Best Employer, Eastern Region (BEER) employee survey and awards is due to launch soon!
Website design agency, Bigfork, have designed a new website for Newmarket House, an eating disorders clinic. The new website involved a revamp of the navigation system and content with new high quality photography. With the growth in tablets and smartphones the new website was designed to be mobile friendly and also has a SilverStripe content management system for the Newmarket House team to manage the content inhouse. You can see the new website here
Prior to 2013 TrueTraders was mainly associated as an online retailer with the great intent to develop our customer audience and create easier and more conveniant means of shopping for our existing and future customers
Since then 2013 was a big year for us in which we moved to a larger premises which is situated in the busy town of Great Yarmouth. We have a larger warehouse and now have the ability to offer our customers a walk in shop to view our great range of quality products, first-hand.
Recently we’ve expanded the company in different direction and have already welcomed two new faces to the marketing and accounts departmentants. We’ve furthered our impression on the public by branching into many social networking sites and have many plans to make TrueTraders more interactive and uptodate with the ever-changing world of technology. We already have lots of plans under-way to make 2014 our best year yet.
Howes Percival’s Senior Partner Andrew Barnes is to address a major Anglo-China conference at the University of East Anglia on Monday 27 January.
The China Business Forum will also be addressed by Andy Wood OBE, Chair of the New Anglia LEP and Chris Cotton, Director of the China Britain Business Council. The event will be used to launch the 2014 China-UK Entrepreneurship Competition.
The China-UK Entrepreneurship Competition, now in its 7th year, is an internationally successful initiative which encourages new business ventures between China and the UK. It is widely supported by universities, governments, and businesses in both China and UK and enables UK businesses to make significant connections with a large number of Chinese provincial regions.
It will be the first time the event, which is also supported by the Chinese embassy in London, has been held in the East of England. It aims to bring together existing businesses and new student-led start-ups that are looking to develop commercial relationships and exploit market opportunities offered by collaborations between the two countries.
Mr Barnes, who took part in a UK Trade and Investment trade mission to China in November 2012 and has developed strong links with Chinese business representatives in the UK since, will address the conference on ‘East Anglia’s view on China business’ and the importance of working with China in the future.
Mr Barnes commented; “It is fantastic to see such a prestigious event in our region and I’m honoured to be invited to speak. We’ve been working hard to develop direct and meaningful links between East Anglia and Chinese businesses and this gives us another opportunity not only to collaborate but also to promote the importance of closer working.”
“There is no doubt in my mind that by working with influential organisations and representative bodies such as the UEA, the New Anglia LEP and EEEGR, and with the skills and expertise we have in our region, we can play an important part in Anglo-Chinese business relations.”
The China-UK Entrepreneurship Competition is part of the PMI2 (Prime Minister Initiative II) Connect project, supported by British Council and the Confucius Institute programme funded by Hanban. Teams will be selected for the chance to win a £5,000 cash prize, and an investment opportunity of £250,000 for the best business plans.
The Organizers of the competition are: University of East Anglia, Lancaster University, University College London, University of Edinburgh, China Innovation and Development Association UK, Tianjin Association for Science and Technology and Chongqing National Science Park
To see the launch program please download the file attached:
Loddon based consultancy Risk & Policy Analysts (RPA) have kicked off the new year with the announcement of the opening of a satellite office in Central London, which comes as part of their 2014 expansion drive.
The office, which is adjacent to Hatton Garden in Kirby Street, Farringdon, is ideally placed to bring the company closer to its clients based in the London area and further south, as well as provide a convenient base from which to reach major clients on the Continent, including several Directorate Generals at the European Commission in Brussels and Luxembourg, the International Manganese Institute in Paris and the European Chemicals Association in Helsinki.
Director, Meg Postle commented:
“Not only will this help us retain our high quality staff who want to move to London for personal reasons, but it also reflects our positive outlook for the company RPA in terms of growth. We feel fortunate to have established our head office in the stunning Norfolk countryside, but we’re also proud to show that the County’s businesses are well-equipped to compete in the fast-paced heart of the capital”.
The recent drive has also seen expansion in the Economics department, with the recruitment of local Economist, Shaun Da Costa, who joins the team straight from a placement with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation in Vienna, Austria.
RPA is an independent consultancy based in Norfolk, providing expert advice to both public and private sector clients around the world, assisting decision makers with the development and implementation of sustainable policies. As well as the aforementioned organisations, the team’s main clients include UK Government bodies (such as the Environment Agency, Natural England and Defra) and major EU industries.
Since its formation, RPA have been commissioned to work on more than 800 projects, covering a broad range of policy areas, including flooding and coastal erosion, chemicals and REACH compliance, impact assessment and evaluation, environmental economics, managing water, ecosystem services, and consumer policy.
The Collective Redundancies and Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) (Amendment) Regulations 2014 have been laid before Parliament and will come into force on 31 January 2014. Professional support lawyer Elizabeth Stevens summarises the changes.
Last year the Government consulted on its proposed changes to the existing TUPE Regulations and collective consultation requirements under the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (TULRCA). The TUPE Regulations have been criticised by the business sector in the past as being ‘gold-plated’, going beyond what is strictly necessary under the European Acquired Rights Directive (2001/23/EC). See our previous briefingon the Government’s response to the consultation.
The final amending Regulations have now been published and laid before Parliament, to come into force on 31 January 2014. The Explanatory Memorandum to accompany the amending Regulations states that the intention behind the amendments is to reduce the risk that they are interpreted more restrictively than is required by the 2001 Directive.
The key changes resulting from the amended Regulations are as follows:
• The express provisions covering ‘service provision changes’ (outsourcing) will remain, but are clarified to provide that the activities carried out after the change in service provider must be “fundamentally or essentially the same” as those carried on by the previous service provider;
• The requirement for transferors to provide employee liability information increases from a minimum of 14 days to 28 days before the transfer, for transfers taking effect on or after 1 May 2014;
• Terms derived from collective agreements will transfer and remain ‘static’ post-transfer (ie if any changes are subsequently collectively agreed without the transferee’s involvement). Transferee employers will be able to change any such terms one year after the transfer, provided the changes are no less favourable to the employee overall;
• Minor changes to the wording of existing provisions relating to dismissal because of a transfer, and a new provision that changes in the workplace location following a transfer are expressly included within the scope of an ‘economic, technical or organisational reason’ entailing changes in the workforce (meaning that a ‘place of work’ redundancy resulting from a transfer is no longer automatically unfair);
• Minor changes to the wording of existing provisions and restricting the variation of terms post-transfer, and now permitting variations that are either for an ‘economic, technical or organisational reason’ and are agreed by the employee, or if the terms of the contract permit the employer to make the variation;
• Amendments to TULRCA will clarify that consultation that begins prior to the transfer can count for the purposes of the collective redundancy consultation requirements, provided both the transferor and transferee agree and that the transferee carries out meaningful consultation;
• Micro-businesses (10 or fewer employees) will not be required to hold an election and will be permitted, from 31 July 2014, to consult directly with affected employees about the transfer if there is no recognised union or existing representatives.
The amending Regulations are available here. The Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) has also published new guidance on TUPE, to reflect the amendments.
Comment
In practical terms, the changes to TUPE are unlikely to have a significant impact on the majority of transfers. Many of the amendments only serve to ensure that the revised TUPE Regulations reflect the current interpretation of TUPE resulting from existing caselaw, both domestic and European.
Interestingly, the Government’s Impact Assessment, published alongside the new Regulations, suggests that the number of employment tribunal claims arising from TUPE will be reduced by 50% as a result of the amendments, providing an annual reduction in costs to businesses of an estimated £6.5m annually. This contributes to an estimated overall annual net benefit of £8.7m resulting from the reforms to TUPE.
Whilst the amendments may go some way in clarifying and simplifying the TUPE process for employers, it seems rather optimistic that TUPE-related claims will be reduced by such a large percentage. There will no doubt be future litigation concerning the scope and effect of the amended provisions, and it is too early to speculate to what extent, if at all, the number of claims will be reduced as a result.
For further advice on any employment law issue, please contact Steeles Law’s employment team on 01603 598000 or employment@steeleslaw.co.uk
Norse Commercial Services subsidiary GYB Services’ Building and Engineering team have been commissioned by Great Yarmouth Borough Council to carry out extensive refurbishment works to the Victorian pedestrian bridge over the Ravine at Gorleston seafront.
The £150k project will include complete removal existing decking, which will be sorted and reused where possible; replacement of structural steel beams and painting to a high marine grade specification with a 15 year guarantee . The existing timber balustrades will also be replaced with black ornate posts with galvanised steel insert railings and the new bridge deck will have a sanded finish with a non slip coating.
“This project is one of the largest undertaken by the Building and Engineering Team and is a real opportunity to show our expertise and high level of craftsmanship,” commented George Jarvis, GYB Services’ Building & Engineering Manager.
The finished bridge design will reflect the recently refurbished shelters along the seafront putting a modern spin on the engineers’ original design, which became known as ‘concrete Cockerill’. The finished bridge steel work will be black and grey with the bridge abutments also painted grey, which Jarvis says, “will give the bridge a solid and modern engineered style.”
GYBS are acting as principal contractor for the project, monitoring and instructing any works carried out by subcontractors.
Due to the scale of the project, it is notifiable to the Health and Safety Executive under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations, “which brings additional challenges to the Job,” Jarvis said.
“The main area of the ravine pedestrian route has been closed, and when the job is underway a full encapsulating roofed scaffold will be erected. The scaffold structure itself will be very visible and, when removed at the end of the project in time for Easter 2014, will reveal the finished bridge. “
I am delighted to annonce that 5 of my cooking video clip have been authorised on the Food Channel Network and will be available to view very soon.
I would like to share some cooking tips once a month with you. Please feel free to give me some feedbacks as it’s the only way to progress……and maybe send me some tips too !!
NORWICH, Monday 20th January 2014 – Need help planning your 2014 getaway? Norwich International Airport invites you to attend their annual Travel Show on Saturday 25th January 10am-3pm in the airport terminal building. The Travel Show is open to everyone with free entry and free parking for all visitors in the short stay car park. Come along for some holiday inspiration and chat with the experts. There will be over 20 tour operator, airline and local business representatives offering first hand destination and product advice on their departures from Norwich International throughout 2014. Historically this day has always been a huge success with people eager to book and this year any holidays booked on the day will receive free holiday parking at Norwich International plus receive a booking discount of up to 5%. Don’t miss your chance to win one of the fabulous prizes on offer in the prize draw which will take place at 3pm. Prizes include; return flight tickets, Helicopter pleasure flight, flying lessons and much more. Additional free to enter competitions will be taking place on individual stands throughout the day with many more great prizes to be won. We look forward to seeing you there!
Work place pensions law has changed affecting all employers, from the largest firms to those with just one employee.
Insight Financial Associates Limited and Howes Percival LLP have joined forces to co-host a free seminar providing an overview of the pension reforms and the new responsibilities facing local businesses.
Our experts will provide a practical insight on how to comply with the new auto-enrolment obligations, as well as providing top tips on avoiding the pitfalls and how to formulate an action plan. Key topics will include: • What do the auto enrolment changes mean for businesses? • Which workers will this affect? • What type of pension scheme has to be offered? • Do employment contracts have to be re-written? • How should the responsibilities be managed? • What happens if businesses ignore it? • What support is available?
Delegates will also have an opportunity to participate in a group question and answer session with our expert panel and to share their views and personal experiences.
Date: Thursday, 23 January 2014 Venue: Norwich City College Skills Academy Address: St Andrews House, St Andrews Street, Norwich, NR2 4TP Time: 7.45 am – 10.00 am RSVP: by 17 January 2014
LP has recently welcomed a new member of staff with the recruitment of Trainee Solicitor, Richard Turner. Richard obtained his law degree from the University of Edinburgh in 2006 and after graduating, he worked for the British Transport Police and Transport for London as a Criminal Intelligence Analyst. Richard completed his Graduate Diploma in Law and Legal Practice Course on a part-time basis at BPP University where he achieved a distinction. Richard is a keen sportsman with particular interests in athletics, cycling and football. Richard joins the Dispute Resolution team, working alongside Managing Partner, Mike Barlow.