Analysis of the Office for National Statistics’ October labour market figures (2022) found that there are now almost 14.6 million economically inactive people aged 50 and over – a record level. This is an increase of 1% compared with 2021 and up 5% since 2019. A shocking increase which reverses a decades-long trend of employment growth amongst this demographic and highlights the long-term scarring of the pandemic on this portion of the workforce.

A recent ONS study found that 42% of people aged 50 to 65 not currently in work would return to employment or self-employment in future, but 67% wanted to return to part-time work. Asked about what was important to them when looking for work:

• 69% said location,
• 67% wanted flexible working opportunities,
• 21% said good pay was key,
• 13% wanted a job that fits around caring responsibilities.

Some sectors have a track record of recruiting people 50 years and older but it is an alien mindset to many UK employers — who are alert to the need to forge better career paths for women and staff from minority groups, while often neglecting the needs of older employees and overlooking older candidates when recruiting.

A November 2022 poll by UK professional body the Chartered Management Institute found that just 4 in 10 managers were open to employing those aged between 50 and 64 to a “large or moderate” extent. Some put it more bluntly. “Post-pandemic, one agency was honest enough to say they ‘would not touch someone over 60 with a barge pole’.”

This prejudice is backfiring badly. An exodus of older people from the workforce — just as UK employers lost access to the EU labour market — is a key factor in labour shortages that have been plaguing businesses in sectors ranging from logistics to hospitality, care and IT.

Employers need to revisit their attitudes. Growing numbers are doing just that with age becoming a new focus rather than an overlooked corner of the diversity and inclusion agenda. The onus is therefore placed on employers not just to become more open-minded about whom they hire, but to make jobs more appealing to older workers — by considering the following:

• more flexible about working hours, since many are juggling work with:
o caring for parents,
o looking after grandchildren, or
o managing health conditions of their own which may mean they are only able to take on part-time hours or need flexibility as to when they work;

• more supportive for those with health conditions, including those with mental health issues, and women going through menopause, who can otherwise fall out of work just as their careers are peaking;

• open to discussing training and career progression – all too often older workers are overlooked for training and promotion by line managers who assume they are no longer looking to take on new responsibilities;

• open to simply making workplaces more inclusive for those whose motivation to work is as much about social interaction as salary;

• able to blur the boundaries between full-time work and retirement — for example, by allowing employees to reduce their hours and start drawing on pension pots in a graduated way or by using former employees in consulting roles after they have retired.

Why employers may benefit from employing older workers

• Their expertise and experience can boost productivity, in part by supporting younger colleagues;

• Older employees are no more likely than younger workers to take time off for illness;

• Older workers also tend to stay in jobs for longer, reducing employee turnover and related costs;

• Work is good for physical and mental health, stress at work can be detrimental but the stress of not having work, of not having a purpose, can be worse;

• Financial health is improved by continuing to work even part time while saving into a pension rather than taking pension income early and thus having positive impacts on mental health.

Some employers have made progress in attracting, retaining and supporting older workers, but there is a long way to go. Almost two-thirds (62%) of workers aged 55 and over say they have been overlooked for promotion and suffered from a lack of training and progression opportunities, according to recent research.

The most important step

The broadest, but arguably most important step an employer can take to become more age-friendly is to instil “a culture which rejects ageism.” This starts with age-neutral recruitment as follows:

• Remove a blanket requirement for all recruits to have university degrees, as this is more likely to exclude people aged 50 and older who are less likely to have had the opportunity to attend university.

• Word recruitment campaigns and advertising using age-neutral language.

Summary

All employers will find it increasingly difficult to fill vacancies unless they can attract more older workers and it is the actions of individual employers that will make the most difference. If you are an age-friendly employer, these practices – flexibility, support for health needs, access to training – will benefit everyone.

For any further advice please contact nicola.goodridge@goodhr.co.uk or call +44 7917 878384

This week, a two-day train strike will cause more travel disruption for millions of employees across the country. With no end in sight to the strikes it means those reliant on trains for their commute are unlikely to make it into work. It will also have a huge impact on the roads as commuters take to their cars in a bid to get to work.

What if employees are unable to travel to work?

* Employers should try and accommodate all reasonable requests by employees who are making their best efforts to come into work during strikes, including allowing staff to come in late or leave early, and where necessary funding overnight accommodation.

* Don’t unreasonably discipline employees who are genuinely unable to make it to work or who are late. There are no legal requirements about what businesses must do, but thinking outside the box will be a key consideration for critical staff in certain industries.

* Have a clear policy for dealing with travel disruptions if working from home is not an option. Any policy must make it clear that employees will not be paid if they are not able to get to work and the steps that employees are required to take when faced with travel disruption.

Employers are urged to speak with staff and agree alternative arrangements as follows:

• they work longer hours in the office the day before the strike to make up for lack of working hours the following day;
• you enforce holiday for the strike days – but you must give two days’ notice to enforce one day of holiday;
• they take it as unpaid;
• they use accrued time off in lieu;
• you arrange taxis or minibuses.

It’s important to remember that, while you have no legal obligation to pay staff that can’t make it into work due to strikes, there are ways to soften the blow and keep relationships positive.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

I can’t get to work because of the rail strikes. Does my employer have to pay me?

No they do not. It is, generally, an employee’s responsibility to get to and from work and so, if this is not possible, the employer is entitled to regard such absence as unauthorised. An exception to this might be where the employer provides transport, for example, a bus service, and this is cancelled.

Some employers may consider allowing employees to request the time off as annual leave or to work from home during the days the rail strikes are due to take place.

My workplace has closed for the day because of the strike. Does my employer have to pay me?

Unless your contract has a provision allowing for unpaid lay-off, your boss will still have to pay you if your workplace is closed because of the strikes; this also cannot be marked down as a holiday.

If you are on a zero-hours contract or your employer has a contractual right to decline to offer you work at short notice, they may not have to pay you. Also, as there has been advance notice of the industrial action, the employer could give prior notice to require employees to take their holiday.

If I’m on annual leave and my employer shuts my workplace for the day, do I still have to use my annual leave for that time, even though the business is shut?

This depends on your employer’s policy and whether employees are still expected to work while the business is shut. You may be able to “claim your holiday back” if everyone else is being given a day off, but if other colleagues are expected to work from home or continue to attend appointments, then it is less likely.

For a travel disruption policy or any further advice please contact mailto:nicola.goodridge@goodhr.co.uk or call +44 7917 878384

Here are some of the key challenges that we think businesses will be facing this year and our thoughts on what employers can do to address them….

How is wellbeing shaping up?

Wellbeing became a top priority in lockdown as employers realised their responsibilities to employees who were balancing working from home with the stresses of the pandemic.

Now it’s important not to lose focus, as there are new pressures to cope with such as the financial impact of the cost of living crisis, increased workloads due to redundancies or problems with recruiting. This will all take a toll on mental health.

Employers who support financial wellbeing can make a much-valued difference to their workforce, helping to ease stress and anxiety, and it doesn’t matter if you have a limited budget. Here are some ideas:

• One way to help is introduce financial wellbeing workshops which give employees the chance to speak to someone for independent financial advice. This might cover cost of living, understanding tax relief, child benefit rules, benefits available, debt management and more.

• You could also encourage the use of Employee Assistance Programmes so that employees can use this to access support if they need it – whether that’s financial advice or counselling around work-related stress.

What benefits are you offering?

It’s an incredibly difficult time to recruit – the landscape is described as a “candidate’s market” and there’s much talk of the “great resignation” as people seek an improved work/life balance and want to feel valued following their experiences in the pandemic. Therefore, when it comes to retaining existing employees and recruiting new people, a competitive salary won’t be enough on its own.

Candidates will ask questions about:

• work/life balance,
• perks and benefits, and
• that all-important company culture and how it will work for them.

How to respond to pay rise requests?

Average pay rises are failing to keep up with the cost of living. As an employer, you may wish to increase your employees’ earnings to match price rises, but that’s not viable for every business.

In this case you need to think about what will recruit, retain and engage staff instead of salary.

The following all help towards retaining and engaging employees:

• Company culture,
• Focus on wellbeing
• Opportunity for career progression
• One off ‘cost of living’ bonus

How to respond to the rise in flexible working requests?

The debate around whether people work best from home, or the office will rage on, but you should be prepared for the number of informal and formal requests for flexible working to continue to rise.

This may present a challenge – not just in ensuring requests are treated consistently and fairly, but also when it comes to managing hybrid teams. You will need to work hard to ensure your people work well together, and that company culture can be maintained as people work in varied ways and from different locations.

You may want to introduce an employee engagement survey to understand how well hybrid arrangements are working.

Do your employees need more training?

Skills gaps : Where recruitment is currently a challenge as businesses are restructuring and cutting costs, this has led to a general skills shortage. As a result, training is likely to be a priority this year. If ready-made candidates are hard to find, apprenticeships, training schemes and retraining have an even more important role. Bite-sized training courses can help to fill skills gaps.

Management training : there is also evidence of an increase in grievances, informal complaints, and disciplinary issues, which can be linked to the inexperience of some line managers and their lack of skills in dealing with issues well, and early, before they escalate. Line managers are pivotal in delivering to a business’s ambitions and reinforcing its culture – so it’s vital to give them the training and support they need.

Any assistance do email nicola.goodridge@goodhr.co.uk or call +44 7917 878384

There are normally eight bank holidays a year in England and Wales, nine in Scotland, and 10 in Northern Ireland. The Working Time Regulations 1998 do not differentiate between bank holidays and other days and do not prevent employers from including them in the 28-day minimum annual leave entitlement.

1. King’s coronation: additional bank holiday declared

The government has confirmed that there will be an additional bank holiday on Monday 8 May 2023 to celebrate King Charles’ coronation, which takes place two days earlier. However, an employer’s workforce does not automatically have the right to take the day off work.

To some extent the contract of employment determines the right to the day off. Where the contract entitles employees to take leave on “all bank and public holidays”, the employer will be required to grant the extra day as leave.

However, if the contract entitles the employee to a certain number of days ‘plus eight bank holidays’ or ‘the usual bank holidays’ the employer is not contractually obliged to grant the extra day as leave. However, it may choose to do so as a goodwill gesture to employees, particularly given the historical significance of the event.

2. No automatic right to time off on bank holidays

There is no statutory right for employees to take bank holidays off work. Any right to time off depends on the terms of the employee’s contract of employment.

If an employee does not have the contractual right to time off on public holidays but refuses to attend work, the employer can treat this as a disciplinary issue.

If the contract provides that the employee is entitled to take bank holidays as annual leave, the employer cannot insist that the employee works. What it could do is ask them to work the bank holiday in return for a day in lieu to be taken at another time or increase the payment for the day as an incentive.

3. No statutory right to extra pay for working on bank holidays

There is no statutory right to extra pay, for example time and a half or double time, when an employee works on a bank holiday. Any right to extra pay depends on the terms of the employee’s contract of employment which should stipulate the rate of pay for working on a public holiday. If the contract is silent then there is no right to a higher rate than normal for working on a bank holiday. The only exception being if employees have been paid an enhanced rate for working bank holidays in the past, it may be that it has become a contractual entitlement.

4. Part-time employees need special bank holiday arrangements

Because most bank holidays fall on a Monday or Friday, part-time employees who do not work on these days could be entitled to proportionately fewer days off compared with full-time employees, depending on shift patterns and annual leave arrangements within the organisation.

Employers must ensure that all employees have at least the statutory minimum annual leave entitlement and that part-time employees are not treated less favourably than full-time employees. To avoid a complaint of less favourable treatment, part-time employees must be provided with a pro-rated bank holiday entitlement on top of their pro-rated holiday entitlement.

5. Look out for “20 days’ holiday, plus bank holidays” in contracts

Where the holiday year runs from 1 April to 31 March and the Easter weekend straddles March and April, this style of wording in contracts of employment can mean employees receiving more or fewer bank holidays than are required. The next time this will be an issue for contracts that use such wording will be in 2024, when Good Friday is 29 March and Easter Monday is 1 April. This means that the 2023/24 holiday year would have 10 public holidays and 2024/25 would only have seven.

ACTION: Ensure the extra bank holiday is included in your employees’ entitlement for 2023 at the start of the year!

For any advice email nicola.goodridge@goodhr.co.uk or call +44 7917 878384

With just over a month to go until Christmas and several weeks left at work to power through, many employers will be turning their attention towards the Christmas party!

The office Christmas party should provide staff with the chance to let their hair down with colleagues and build strong working relationships and most companies want to reward their staff for their hard work and dedication during the year. However, a festive combination of high spirits and unlimited alcohol can often result in a headache for those employers (or their HR managers) who are tasked with successfully navigating the minefield of workplace Christmas parties.

No-one wants to be a party pooper after all, but if you are an employer or member of your workplace’s HR department, it pays to be prepared for the festive season. Some key areas to be aware of when you start to plan your approach to the Christmas party include:

Behaviour

Some employers shy away at the thought of reiterating company codes of conduct in relation to social events, but you shouldn’t be afraid of setting out clear behaviour guidelines as to what is acceptable on the night itself. Taking the time to remind staff that the Christmas party still constitutes a work-related event and that, as such, the company will therefore be held responsible for any disruptive actions, can help to set the tone of expectations from the start.

It should be made clear that any breach of your usual standards of conduct could result in an employee facing formal disciplinary procedures, or further action depending on the nature of their behaviour.

Alcohol

Most firms are eager to repay hardworking employees with a generous or even free bar allowance at the Christmas party, but with free alcohol being named as a pivotal factor in tribunal proceedings brought against companies by their employees, it would be wise to exercise a note of caution.

If you are keen to provide a free bar, ensure that you also provide a range of soft drinks that all employees can access, and try to roughly monitor the level of alcohol consumption as the night draws on. Issuing free drinks tokens, with a set number available to each attendee, can also help you to try to keep alcohol consumption under control.

Social media

The growing prevalence of social media means that inappropriate use can be a business issue at any time, but work-related social gatherings can require stricter guidance. Successful management, as with behaviour, comes down to issuing clear guidelines to all staff – if you would rather they didn’t upload photos and videos from the evening to social media, you must explain why, and the potential impact that negative or offensive content could have on the wider business.

Another option that you could consider could be to ask that all employees’ use a specific hashtag when uploading images and footage – that way, you can sense-check what content is being shared, and politely ask that people remove anything that isn’t appropriate. Christmas party season can act as a good time to remind people of your business’s social media policy, or to consider drawing one up if you do not already have guidelines in place.

Entertainment

If you have decided to hold your event externally, or you have bought tickets for a themed Christmas party that accommodates other companies, consider the type of entertainment that will be provided on the night. Is the running order of the evening suitable for all staff? Is there something included that everyone will enjoy in some capacity?

For example, a casino-themed evening is likely to have a heavy reliance on gambling for entertainment – great if your employees are up for roulette and blackjack, but it could be seen as isolating for anyone whose religion bans the practice, or even for those who may have family members negatively affected by gambling.

Consider your audience carefully when weighing up entertainment options for your Christmas party!

Absence management

This topic rears its head every year, but absences do tend to spike during the Christmas period for many businesses. To try and avoid any unnecessary absences, some companies opt to hold their Christmas party on a Friday – often at extra cost to the business, but this can pay for itself in terms of allowing employees’ two days in which to ‘recover’ before their attendance in the office is again required.

If your party does happen to fall on a weekday, you must make all staff aware of what is expected from them the following day – could you consider a later start in the morning, or perhaps an earlier finish time? Could you consider staggering working hours across teams? Ultimately, if you lay out exactly what you expect from people regarding the following working day, you are far more likely to avoid late night and alcohol-related absences.

Top six tips to ensure a successful Christmas party:

• Provide clear guidance on the standard of behaviour expected – ensure that staff understand that the Christmas party is still a professional event

• Send reminders advising people to make arrangements for travelling home – could you prebook taxis from the venue for staff?

• Ensure that a range of refreshments, including soft drinks, are provided in order to cater to everyone.

• Reiterate guidelines around social media – make staff aware of what they can and cannot post.

• Consider inclusivity and discrimination when planning entertainment for the evening.

• Make it clear that attendance is not compulsory – respect that people may have religious beliefs or prior plans that mean they cannot commit to attending.

For any advice please email nicola.goodridge@goodhr.co.uk or call +44 7917 878384

Flexibility about employees’ desire to carry out their job while living abroad may well prove a good way of ensuring your company can retain its talent.

The UK is facing a talent drain. Recent figures from the Totaljobs Hiring Trends Index reveal that more than 4.5 million UK workers are considering moving overseas for a better quality of life. Factors such as the recent pandemic and the escalating cost of living has made more people than ever consider leaving the UK.

This is also against the background of the “great resignation” which has seen high numbers of people either leave their jobs or consider new roles since the pandemic. All of this presents a very real recruitment crisis for businesses. So in order to attract and retain talent, should you let employees work abroad?

Some jobs just aren’t suitable for workers based overseas, as they require a high volume of in-person meetings or visits. But post-pandemic, it’s likely more businesses could accommodate overseas workers. And if you fail to implement a proper policy for overseas workers, might they just go anyway?

Digital nomads

Interestingly, there has been a growing number of stories of “secret” digital nomads – people who either asked their employer if they could work abroad and the request was turned down but they moved anyway, or those who just decided to up-sticks between lockdowns and haven’t returned.

Many organisations in the UK are recognising the need to respond to this desire for a combination of overseas travel and work amongst their staff and are implementing a Working from Anywhere Policy which is being incorporated into Staff Handbooks. This may cover permanent overseas working and more temporary stints of time working abroad.

Permanent overseas working

If you are going to allow employees to work for you abroad on a permanent basis there are a few considerations to take into account:

• Tax considerations. How you calculate both PAYE tax and National Insurance contributions depends on where your employee is based and how long you expect them to be working there. Employees who spend most of their time abroad over the year may be able to obtain full UK tax relief on their earnings.

• Legal rights. Again, it is country-dependent, but an employee working abroad may or may not be subject to local employment laws, so some contractual terms need addressing. This is the case even if an employee’s contract is specifically stated to be governed by the laws of England and Wales. So for example, employers should be mindful that their employees may be entitled to more generous rights or protections in relation to paid leave, minimum wage or rights on termination depending on the jurisdiction they are working in. For example, Sweden, France and Denmark offer more paid leave than the UK’s 28 days. Taking local advice is important.

• Cyber security. With the mass switch to working from home at the beginning of the pandemic, many businesses will have already taken a magnifying glass to their cyber security to ensure any employees working from home were not inadvertently putting any of the company’s data at risk. An additional consideration is if an employee starts to work from another country and is processing personal data.

• Supporting employees and making them feel part of the team. Of course, there are myriad issues to consider when an employee moves abroad, or you recruit abroad. However, one important thing to consider is how to integrate and support these employees. Regular contact – both formal and informal – is important, as is a focus on mental health, especially when the team is so physically disparate. Creating bespoke mental health policies and having an unrelenting focus on staff wellbeing is crucial in ensuring all team members feel supported.

• Clear policy is essential. Finally, one of the most important steps you can take is to ensure your rules on working abroad are clear. The very existence of a Working from Anywhere policy signals that the employer would support a move – clear parameters contained in that policy are obviously going to be key.

Temporary overseas working

Whilst some of the above will be relevant, if the period overseas is much more of a temporary move for your employee (ie. a matter of weeks or months) then really it should be a light touch administrative process (also contained within any Working from Anywhere policy) with the following as a checklist to consider:

• This is a privilege, not a right, and so are there any performance issues? If there are you may not approve remote overseas working.

• What is the time difference in the location proposed? Might you want to specify remote working only in certain time zones or specify a number of hours during the UK working day that the employee needs to be online.

• Does their current workload allow for it? Do they have a run of client facing meetings coming up for which they will be required to be present?

• How long are they proposing to be out of the country? Do you want to set a maximum number of days to be outside the UK and does that include weekends and bank holidays and can they add on annual leave?

• Lastly what is their set up when they are remote working? Obviously camping is not going to be conducive to a day’s work – they need to confirm they are in a house, have a good wifi connection and be happy to send you a photo of their work station.

For either of the following do contact nicola.goodridge@goodhr.co.uk or call +44 7917878384:

• Working from Anywhere Policy
• Homeworking Risk Assessment

Pregnancy loss is devastating. According to the UK’s Miscarriage Association, one in four pregnancies result in miscarriage (defined in the UK as the loss of a pregnancy within the first 23 weeks and six days of pregnancy). According to the NHS, around one in 90 UK pregnancies is ectopic and one in every 200 births in England is a stillbirth (death occurring after 24 weeks of pregnancy).

Despite the statistics, pregnancy loss seems to still be very much a taboo subject and people are uncomfortable raising it with employers or colleagues. The fact that many people do not announce their pregnancy within the first 12 weeks (which is when most miscarriages occur) increases the likelihood of them being isolated when faced with pregnancy loss and feeling like they have to deal with the bereavement alone and without support.

Having a formal policy in place sends a clear message to staff that those affected by pregnancy loss should not feel shy about coming forward and that they will be met with support by their employer if they do. It enables people to ask for help without fear of being discriminated against, stigmatised, or judged. It is also a significant step towards normalising what has historically been a taboo subject.

The current legal position in the UK

Since 6 April 2020:

• employees have the right to take statutory parental bereavement leave on the death of a child under 18 years of age, including stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy.

• if stillbirth occurs after 24 weeks of pregnancy, the parents are entitled to the same statutory maternity and paternity leave and pay they would have been entitled to, had the stillbirth not occurred.

• neither of the above apply to other forms of pregnancy loss.

Where there is pregnancy loss before 24 weeks:

• there is no legal entitlement to any leave or pay in those circumstances.

• employers have the discretion to offer their staff leave under:

o their compassionate leave policy (if they have one),
o annual leave, or
o unpaid leave.

• the employee may also be signed off sick for medical reasons.

A policy for pregnancy loss

An employer could offer to all employees, regardless of their length of service or sex/gender, all or some of the following:

• ten days’ paid leave if they or their partner experience the loss of a baby through miscarriage, abortion, stillbirth, ectopic pregnancy, or neonatal pregnancy, without having to certify their absence.

• paid leave to attend medical appointments (or to accompany a partner to such appointments) that do not fall within the agreed period of leave (for example, medical examinations, scans/tests, and mental-health-related appointments).

• staff may also be entitled to additional leave under the firm’s existing sickness absence, annual leave, or compassionate leave policies.
What else can employers do?

Putting in place a formal policy is clearly one way of supporting staff affected by pregnancy loss. However, there are plenty of other things employers can do:

• raising awareness of pregnancy loss by sharing information and promoting open conversations about the matter so that it is not seen as a taboo or “no-go area”. Employees should be given comfort that they can have confidential conversations with their manager or HR in the event they are affected by pregnancy loss.

• signposting other sources of information and support, such as any employee assistance programmes offered.

• training managers in spotting the signs that an employee may be experiencing loss and how to support them by sensitively acknowledging their situation, explaining what help the employer can provide, and reassuring them that they will not be disadvantaged if they take leave.

• extending existing benefits such as compassionate leave and pay to expressly cover pregnancy loss.

• offering paid leave for employees to attend medical appointments associated with pregnancy loss (including mental-health-related appointments).

• offering unpaid leave to those who need time off for an extended period, such as those suffering from extended physical or mental effects of pregnancy loss.

• offering a phased return to work and, possibly, flexible working to those who take a period of leave following pregnancy loss.

If you are interested in discussing or adding a ‘pregnancy loss policy’ to your staff handbook do email nicola.goodridge@goodhr.co.uk or call Nicola on +44 7917 878384

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, has chosen to scrap the plans to repeal the Off-payroll IR35 Reforms, which Kwasi Kwarteng previously announced in his mini-budget on 23 September 2022 and which would have taken place in April 2023.

The Conservatives Growth plan indicated that repeal would free up time and money for businesses that engage contractors, that could be put towards other priorities, and that it would have also minimised the risk that genuinely self-employed workers are impacted by the underlying off-payroll rules. It was felt to be a sensible initiative and would have been a significant step forward for the UK’s army of self-employed people.

IR35 damages the flexibility of the UK labour market, which is key to economic growth. Many contractors left the sector after risk-averse businesses stopped engaging them. With IR35 now remaining in play, businesses must continue to prioritise compliance. The legislation is complex and navigating it can be a challenge, but with the right approach can, in fact, be managed.

For any assistance please email nicola.goodridge@goodhr.co.uk or call +44 (0)7917 878384

The 2022 Qatar World Cup is fast approaching with the showpiece tournament now just weeks away. Qatar is 3 hours ahead of GMT which means some matches will land during the working day. The tournament begins on 20 November 2022 with the final due to take place on 18 December 2022.

The World Cup should be an opportunity to generate a good feeling in the workplace and boost staff morale, wellbeing and productivity rather than focussing on how to prevent ‘sickies!’

There are 64 matches across the tournament and the first of the England games takes place in the middle of the working day. Further, fans that support different teams may of course be keen to see their own matches which may also take place during work time. In addition, England fans may want to watch other big games which may also be played during the working day.

In group stage England will come up against USA, Iran and Wales as follows:

England v Iran – 4pm local/1pm UK – Mon 22 November 2022
England v USA – 10pm local/7pm UK – Fri 25 November 2022
Wales v England – 10pm local/7pm UK – Tue 29 November 2022

The concern is that staff sick days and unscheduled absences are likely to rise on or around these days, as staff take their seats in front of the TV to watch England play live. The best employers will be those that take a proactive approach to these events as follows:

• create temporary flexible working for the duration of the tournament
• allow late starting or early finishing on match days
• stage World Cup events in the office by setting up screens to show the matches
• run a sweepstake to ensure all staff feel involved
• plan in advance how to respond to multiple and last minute holiday requests!
• allow employees to watch lunch time matches and then stay late to make up time
• allow employees to listen or watch games online on work devices
• permit the streaming of games on employees’ own mobile devices

If you have a diverse workforce, make sure any temporary flexible arrangements are also available to them to watch their own national team play in the World Cup.

Taking positive steps to manage the workplace impact of the World Cup can have a beneficial effect on employee relations. As well as allowing staff to watch matches, employers could:

• put up special decorations in the office, such as flags of the countries involved;
• relax dress codes, including allowing football shirts to be worn; and
• provide refreshments during games.

Giving staff the opportunity to watch or celebrate major events is a really great way of engaging and motivating the whole team!!

nicola.goodridge@goodhr.co.uk or +44(0)7917878384 for any further advice

Reforms to the off-payroll working rules, known as IR35, are to be scrapped from April 2023, the Treasury has announced.

IR35 reforms introduced in the public sector in 2017 and the private sector in 2021 meant that the responsibility for determining a freelancer’s worker status shifted to the organisation engaging their services. The government will repeal these reforms.

What does this mean?

From 6 April 2023, freelancers across the UK providing their services via an intermediary, such as a personal service company, will once again be responsible for determining their employment status and paying the appropriate amount of tax and NICs.

Note that freelancers providing their services in their own name, as an individual, have always been responsible for determining their employment status.

Note the rules do still exist…..

This doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the end of the IR35 story – the rules will still exist and have always existed, namely:

• if freelancers are engaged in such a way that they are in reality employees, then they should be put on payroll and taxed as employees (see below on how to determine status).

• even without the spectre of IR35 looming, HMRC takes a dim view of organisations engaging freelancers when the reality is that they are working 9-5, Monday to Friday, for an indefinite period of time…

It is just that from April 2023, the responsibility for compliance and payment of tax has flipped back to the freelancer rather than on the organisation engaging that freelancer.

Someone is likely to be an employee if they….

• can be told what work to do, as well as how, where and when to do it.
• have to do the work themself.
• can be moved from task to task.
• are contracted to work a set number of hours and get a regular wage or salary, even if there is no work available.
• get time off for sickness and holidays.
• work for a business which is not their own and in which they are not a partner.

Someone is more likely to be a freelancer if they…

• agree to do the work, but could send someone else to do the job
• have several customers at the same time
• can do the work how, where and when they like
• run a business and take responsibility for its success or failure
• provide the main items of equipment or specialist tools required to do their work

IR35 reform is a huge victory for freelancers. The changes have created havoc for hundreds of thousands of independent workers, along with the businesses that engage them.

For advice on amending existing freelancer contracts or on the status of workers you engage please email nicola.goodridge@goodhr.co.uk or call +44 7917 878384