As we transition into Autumn, many businesses will be looking ahead and trying to anticipate some of the HR challenges they may need to tackle. To help you prepare, we look at three common matters that may make an appearance on your to-do list.
- Fixed-term / temporary employees coming to the end of their contracts
- Flexible working requests as the new school term gets underway
- Managing new apprentices
Fixed-term / temporary employees coming to the end of their contracts
If your business has taken on fixed-term or temporary employees, perhaps to cover a busy summer season, these contracts may be due to end soon. If this is the case and you are not looking to keep these employees on, it’s important to get in touch with us in a timely manner before the contract is expected to end. This is because the non-renewal of a fixed-term / temporary contract is considered to be a dismissal in law – even though such contracts stipulate an end date/event. As such, it’s important to protect your business and make sure the situation is handled appropriately. In many cases, this will be straightforward but it’s important to make sure you have the fact-specific advice you need.
Opposite situation? Sometimes businesses find that they will need a temporary employee for longer than expected, if you are looking to renew or extend a fixed-term/temporary contract please get in touch. We can support your business with employment documents and advice on your situation.
Flexible working requests as the new school term gets underway
Some businesses may experience an uptick in flexible working requests as children start or return to school or some childcare arrangements may change. If you haven’t dealt with a statutory flexible working request in your business recently, don’t forget that changes to the law regarding flexible working were brought in earlier this year.
In particular, bear in mind that employees now have the right to make a statutory flexible working request from day one of their employment, they can make two statutory flexible working requests in any 12 month period, and you now usually only have two months to completely deal with a statutory flexible working request. This makes it particularly important to quickly identify any that are received and to deal with them promptly.
If your business receives a flexible working request, please get in touch for advice before acting. We can guide you through the process, provide you with the information you need to help you make decisions for your business and assist with correspondence and documents that will be required.
Managing new apprentices
If you have an apprentice starting with your business, you will be looking to set you both up for success. For businesses in England and Wales, two of the key things you can do is to make sure you employ your apprentice on the right contract (they should be employed on an apprentice agreement not an ordinary contract of employment). It’s also important to be prepared to monitor and support your new apprentice. This can help them to gain the skills and confidence they need to succeed and allow you to identify and appropriately tackle any issues that arise.
If you’d like help with a HR issue, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.