When organisations want to increase productivity and employee engagement within the workforce, it can be all too easy to reach for the ‘employee engagement survey’ button. As HR professionals we can do a lot more to alleviate this issue than send round a survey. Whilst surveys absolutely have their place in analysing engagement levels within…

51% of trans people have hidden their gender identity at work for fear of discrimination. This is a headline from this year’s Trans Report for Stonewall, despite the legislation in place to protect trans people in the Equality Act 2010 and The Gender Recognition Act 2004 and at a time when organisations are talking constantly…

Choosing the right witnesses for a tribunal hearing is essential. The selection can have a huge influence on the outcome; cases really are won or lost on the witness evidence. We got together with our employment law team to talk through this key step in the Tribunal process and understand how HR professionals can make…

The 18th October is World Menopause Day. Where did that come from and why is everyone suddenly talking about Menopause at work? Menopause has long been one of those ‘taboo’ subjects. With this comes a stigma, where no one talks about it and therefore there is a lot of misunderstanding, even amongst women, about the…

Continuing our series focussed on the employment tribunal process, we’re looking at how to write a good witness statement. At this stage of the employment tribunal process all the evidence has been disclosed and agreed within the Joint Bundle. We look at what’s involved in document disclosure here. What is the role of a witness…

Bullying and harassment, if you don’t hear these terms in the press on a regular basis, we’re pretty sure you will hear them around the office. In the world of HR these words amount to serious but very different allegations. You may have heard the phrase ‘all examples of harassment could also be bullying, but…

What a scorching summer it’s been! We hope everyone has enjoyed the weather and some well-deserved time off over the holiday season. It’s not been so rosy for the employment tribunals, who have been getting a little hot under the collar with ACAS reporting another huge increase in tribunal claims. Here’s a roundup of what’s…

Amongst social learning, digital learning and gamification, the next era of learning and development will need to address a pressing (and arguably less glitzy) challenge for UK employers – the ageing population. Figures from the Office of National Statistics show that for the first time ever there are more than 10 million people aged over…

When preparing for an employment tribunal case, one of the most tedious tasks can be the process of disclosing documents and pulling together the hearing bundle. At first, this may seem like an administrative task and just a ‘box to tick’ exercise. However, there is more to document disclosure than meets the eye. Tribunals can…

In the year since the abolition of employment tribunal fees, the number of claims has risen significantly, and as a result some employers may find themselves becoming accustomed to the ‘thud’ of an ET1 form on their desk. An ET1 form is not something to be taken lightly and acting quickly can benefit an employer…