Commercial Services

Employment tribunal award limits and other amounts payable under employment legislation, effective from 1 February 2012.

The Secretary of State has published the planned changes to the limits and amounts payable under the Employment Rights (Increase of Limits) Order 2011. The increase in limits applying to tribunal awards and other amounts payable under employment legislation come into effect on 1st February 2012.

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The Government committed to review the Vetting & Barring Scheme (VBS).  This is now complete and the proposed changes should become law early 2012.

The safeguarding regulations that were introduced in October 2009 still apply. They state that:

• A person who is barred from working with children or vulnerable adults will be breaking the law if they work or volunteer, or try to work or volunteer with those groups
• An organisation which knowingly employs someone who is barred to work with those groups will also be breaking the law
• If your organisation works with children or vulnerable adults and you dismiss a member of staff or a volunteer because they have harmed a child or vulnerable adult, or you would have done so if they had not left, you must tell the Independent Safeguarding Authority

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The replacement for the sick note, the much vaunted “Fit Note “ has had eighteen months now to convince employers and the Government that it is itself fit for purpose.

Opinions within employers groups seem on balance to indicate that there has been at least some improved dialogue between employers and employees about possible earlier returns to work. Some employers however remain to be convinced that GPs are being sufficiently clear about the return to work options that are contained within the fit notes, with the sentiment being expressed that the doctor often has insufficient knowledge of the job and the workplace to be able to make accurate recommendations in relation to lighter duties or phased returns to work

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There has been some continuing concern expressed by employers in relation to their ability to take action to prevent employees from using social network sites at work.

Also, employers appear uncertain as to the action that they can take if they are rubbished by an employee, or anyone else for that matter, on such sites.

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The Government recently published a guide for employers who wish to take on work experience staff at various levels within their business. This follows on from the 2009 guide on internship and how to make them work for both parties.

Work experience is defined within the guide as the opportunity for a young unemployed person to obtain experience of employed work by exposing the young person to a variety of tasks and experiences. This will be for a limited period of time during which individuals have an opportunity to learn directly about the working environment before they are hopefully permanently employed. The guide focuses on young unemployed individuals between the ages of 18 and 24.

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