Author: Nikki Petken

Many employers may believe that they have the recruitment process down to a fine art, however it would seem that is not the case. A recent poll of 1256 employers* revealed the following top five deciding factors in selecting the best candidate for a job;

1. Ability to do the job.
2. Qualifications.
3. Social skills.
4. Physical appearance.
5. Hygiene.

The worrying statistic is that 67% of employers admitted to being inclined to give a more attractive person the job if up against a candidate with equal strengths. This may be consciously or unconsciously but nonetheless it is a risky subjective criteria to rely upon.

From an employment law perspective, it can easily lead to potential discrimination on grounds such as sex, race or disability. Applicants do have protection from discrimination and they are entitled to bring claims in Tribunals. As examples, a facial disfigurement is actually deemed as a disability; whilst a factor like obesity need only have a substantial adverse affect on day to day activities and be long term to qualify as a disability.

The risk is that the use of one subjective criteria can easily lead to other preferences being factored into a decision. Before you know it you would have lost the transparency and objectiveness of your decision.

The lesson to learn from this research is that an investment of both time and money in your recruitment process cannot be underestimated;

• Ensure you select your interview panel carefully and consider whether they are capable of handling the recruitment process.
• Do not be afraid to consider training anyone involved in the recruitment process.
• The interview panel should prepare their questions beforehand ensuring they are objective and non-discriminatory.
• Prepare a job description and person specification. Ensure that the panel are familiar with this and utilise these in making their decision.
• Keep records of the interviews notes for at least 6 months. Candidates often request feed-back and this is where the majority of employers slip up and claims arise.

If you have done the prep work and steps above, then recruitment should be easy. The benefits are that you are more likely to recruit the candidate that fits the role and save costs on management and further recruitment in the long term.

*Research conducted by HireScores.com

Author: Nikki Petken

You may recall SA Law’s blog on 25 September 2009, in which we confirmed that the High Court had ruled it was legal for employers to force workers to retire at the age of 65. The government has now made a dramatic u-turn and proposed that the current default retirement age of 65 is scrapped in the UK from October 2011.

The implications are that employers would no longer be able to dismiss staff because they had reached the age of 65.

The current position is that an employer can meet with an employee 6 to 12 months before their 65th birthday and notify them of their intention to retire them at that date. An employee is entitled to put forward their case not to be retired but the only obligation on an employer is to consider this. It is the employer’s discretion as to whether or not to terminate employment.

Groups that have long campaigned for the default retirement age to be scrapped have welcomed the decision. Marion Birch, Chief Executive of Age UK Hertfordshire has told SA Law, “Older people are one group of society that are not protected from discrimination by legislation so we are delighted that people over the age of 65 will have full employment rights for the first time. Age UK Hertfordshire is pleased that the Government is finally sweeping away this discrimination against older people and will be allowing individuals the dignity of choosing when to retire.  Enabling people to work and contribute their skills for longer not only keeps them active, it also makes economic sense as our population ages.”

Given the length of notice required to notify an employee of their intended retirement, it is likely that these measures will come into force from 6 April 2011.
The main concern appears to be the length of time in which employers will need to come up to speed with the new law. Really they have only just got to grips with the retirement process and employers will need to deal with their new workforce at that time in particular;

•    reviewing policies and practices such as benefits to ensure these are not discriminatory to employees over the age of 65 years;
•    consider alternatives to forcing retirement such as adjustments to role, variation of terms or flexible working.

If you have any questions about the new retirement plans, do not hesitate to call Nikki Petken on 01727 798023

Author Chris Cook

When I think of the world cup I think of 3 things: Gazza’s tears, penalty shoot out disappointments and…unexplained work place absence!

There is simply no getting away from the fact that some fans are so passionate about the team they support that they might be tempted to ‘pull a sickie’ to watch critical matches.

Here are my tip tips for managing “World Cup Fever”

1. Flexible hours  - allow employees to take the time off to watch the games provided that they make up the hours at a different time
2. Shift swaps - allow employees to swap shifts in order for them to be able to watch the games as long as an appropriate level of cover is organised
3. Unpaid leave - allow employees to take unpaid leave provided that this does not interfere with business operations
4. Annual leave - remind employees that they will need to book annual leave in advance if they wish to watch the games, with approval of such request based on maintaining adequate staffing levels.
5. TV/radio in the background - allow employees to have the TV or radio on in the background so that they can keep track of the games as they work or having special screenings of the games on the premises.  Remember if you are planning to show the matches at work make sure you have a TV licence and you have paid your PRS licence
6. Not everyone is a football fan - employees should be treated fairly and equally at all times. You could therefore consider offering an incentive to anyone who agrees to work through the matches when they are being screened in the office

In summary when managing your employees’ during the world cup ……..

“You’ve got to hold and give , But do it at the right time , You can be slow or fast , But you must get to the line , They’ll always hit you and hurt you , Defend and attack , There’s only one way to beat them
Get round the back”  New order  “World in Motion”  1990

Come on England!!!!