Tuesday 28 April 2009

Bored of reading about the new ACAS changes watch this useful vid from Personnel Today!

http://www.personneltoday.com/articles/2009/03/10/49694/acas-code-of-practice-on-disciplinary-and-grievance-what-the-changes-mean-for-hr.html

Wednesday 22 April 2009


Amidst the gloom Alastair Darling, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, has announced that the maximum of a week's pay for statutory redundancy payment purposes will increase from £350 to £380.

Accordingly, the maximum statutory redundancy payment will rise from £10,500 to £11,400. no mention of when this will happen however!

Thursday 16 April 2009

Apparent Differences Between New ACAS Procedure on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures

Briefly, the folowing seem to be the main differences with the new ACAS Code:

Failure to comply 25% adjustment only

Failure to raise grievance will not prevent claim being submitted

No extension of primary limitation period by raising grievance

Issuing of warnings must be handled in the same way as dismissals

New requirement that the employer must set out what action they will undertake as a result of the grievance procedure.

Employees must be informed of the right to be accompanied during disciplinary hearings.

Friday 10 April 2009

A clever way to obtain more in a settlement for the Claimant

It was suggested to me recently that a great way to squeeze more out of a Respondent when negotiating on behalf of a Claimant is to get the Respondent to agree to pay the legal fees of the Claimant directly plus VAT divorced from the actual compensation figure.

The fees are payable directly to the Claimant's solicitors whilst the compensation is payable to the Claimant. Accordingly, the Respondent Company can then claim back the VAT back on the fees saving the Claimant being burdened by the VAT payment he would have to pay his solicitor on the fees. I have not checked out the legalities of this but a tax accountant friend said that seemed a legitimate way of doing things.