Here at Pharos, we are really looking forward to the Jubilee festivities this coming weekend and we cannot believe that there are only 56 days to go the Olympics! However, being employment lawyers, we are naturally drawn to question seriously the impact of both events on the output of our clients’ businesses. Having discussed this with some of them, it is a very real concern. As a result, we consider below how best to manage your workforce over the Olympic period.

We have also been watching the impact of the unveiling of the Beecroft report with interest. Take a look here.

Quite separate to the Beecroft report recommendations employers have to get to grips with the new Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill which was laid before parliament last week. For more information please see here.

Given that business owners are still seriously concerned by the prospect of paying significant (and generally unrecoverable) sums in legal fees in order to defend a tribunal claim, they probably won’t be overwhelmed with joy at the prospect of a tribunal being able to impose a penalty on employers of up to 50% of any financial award made…

There is also plenty of interesting case law to update you on; we cover the key aspects of several recent cases below.

Finally, following the resounding success and fantastic feedback from our seminar in March, we are delighted to be teaming up once again with Linked2Success to deliver an interactive session over breakfast focussing on how your business can use and benefit from (but not be abused by) social media.

We have had lots of interest so far so please get in touch if you are interested in joining us on 20 June or take a look here. Wishing you all a very enjoyable Jubilee weekend!

The Olympics - how to stay ahead of the Game(s)

There are some very specific issues for businesses which operate out of London where specialist advice is required, e.g. business disruption due to an upheaval in commuting patterns.

That doesn’t mean that regional businesses will be unaffected though. The key ways to make the period of the Games a success story for your business and to ensure that your employees still maintain a high level of productivity involve forward planning and adopting a common sense and practical approach.

When major sporting events take place, commonly so do increased sickness and unauthorised absences. By embracing some of the steps set out below, you will hopefully be able to minimise this risk. However, should you be faced with it, always ensure that you closely follow your own sickness absence or disciplinary procedure (where applicable) and apply it consistently.

You may wish to consider the following steps:-

• Careful management of your holiday booking system to ensure the correct level of cover is maintained. Try not to grant last minute leave which may feel very unfair to team members who have been organised and played by the rules.
• Embrace other methods to avoid staff considering booking leave in order to watch the Olympics (especially if you have reached your maximum level of absence for one day or one period) by allowing staff to watch specific key events, if possible, around a communal TV at work e.g. the 100m final. If you decide to allow this then communicate it in advance, providing dates and times and making it clear that it is for those events only.
• Ensure that all staff are aware that watching any events outside of their contractual breaks is generally not permitted (except where authorised, as above). If you decide to allow computer users to watch events in their breaks or lunch hour then you should send out a consistent message about not disturbing other staff, maintaining respectful volume levels etc..
• Decide on your approach to dress code. You may want to allow your staff to embrace the patriotic atmosphere on the day of the opening and closing ceremony, for example, and allow a dress down day with the ability for those working late to watch the opening ceremony, business needs permitting.

Finally...2 very interesting recent Supreme Courst decisions regarding age discrimination:-

The Supreme Court has held (in the case of Seldon -v- Clarkson Wright and Jakes) that the test for justifying direct age discrimination is different and narrower than the general test for justifying indirect discrimination.

The scope of indirect age discrimination has also been clarified – in Homer -v- Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police regarding the scope of indirect discrimination on the ground of age. In this case the Supreme Court came to a conclusion which, on the face of it, appears obvious; namely that retirement and age are inextricably linked…