A brief look ahead at some of the key employment law developments expected in 2014.
The start of another year brings a range of significant new employment law developments for employers to be aware of. The key changes expected in 2014 are as follows:
Amended TUPE Regulations come into force on 31 January 2014 (see our news item);
Various changes resulting from the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 take effect on 6 April 2014: o Mandatory pre-claim Acas conciliation introduced; o Employment judges given the discretion to impose financial penalties on employers who lose at a tribunal hearing; o Discrimination questionnaires abolished.
The right to request flexible working is due to be extended to all employees with at least 26 weeks’ service (not limited to those with caring responsibilities) on 6 April 2014 (NB latest indications are that this is likely to be delayed and will take effect later in the year);
Abolition of the current rules on Statutory Sick Pay record-keeping (6 April 2014) and the introduction of a new approach to sickness absence management is expected in spring 2014;
New Regulations expected during 2014 giving tribunals the power to order employers to carry out equal pay audits, if they are found to have discriminated in relation to contractual or non-contractual pay.
Breakfast update briefing – date for your diary
For more information on these and other recent and forthcoming employment law developments, please join us at the next employment law breakfast briefing, which will be held on Tuesday 11 March 2014, at the Barnham Broom Hotel near Norwich.
Look out for further details and information about how to book your place, which will be available very soon.
Steeles Law has recruited a Solicitor and a Conveyancing Executive to its respected residential conveyancing team.
Beth Watson, who qualified as a solicitor in 2010, joins the firm having trained and worked within a large conveyancing team at a Norwich based firm.
Anneka Daley is currently training to become a Legal Executive, having completed her law degree and gained five years’ property experience at a solicitors firm in Suffolk.
Both Beth and Anneka have a wide range of experience in residential property matters, including acting for builders, property investors and developers, companies and private individuals.
Stephen Drake, CEO , commented: “We are pleased to report a marked increase in the number of residential conveyancing enquiries we are receiving, which spells excellent news for the local property market and our partners in the industry. In order to meet this demand, we have expanded our team in order to continue to provide an excellent level of service to clients looking to purchase or sell their property.”
Abellio Greater Anglia’s finance team has given East Anglia’s Children’s hospices (EACH) a helping hand by making a donation of over £2,300. The finance team has worked hard throughout the year, organising a series of activities to help fundraise for EACH.
The team took part in a wide variety of activities including; sponsored ‘dress down’ days, a raffle, an auction of football tickets, a bingo night, a ‘guess the number of sweets in the jar’ competition and also sold Hot Cross Buns to colleagues at Easter.
The grand total raised was £2,309.47. Melissa Collett, EACH fundraiser, recently visited Greater Anglia’s Colchester-based finance team to accept the donation. Crystal Wright Greater Anglia’s Financial Controller said: “Together the Greater Anglia Finance team has worked hard over the last year fundraising for EACH. It is a charity which is close to our hearts and does a great deal to help our local community.”
EACH is a children’s hospice charity providing care and support to life-threatened children and their families across Suffolk, Norfolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire.
Melissa Collett, EACH fundraiser, said: “We’d like to thank everyone at Greater Anglia for their generous support. At EACH we rely upon voluntary donations for the majority of our income, so this donation is very welcome. The funds will help us to provide care and support to life-threatened children and their families across the region.”
For more information about East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices please visit www.each.org.uk
Becky Wilson of local recruitment consultancy firm, Pure Resourcing Solutions (Pure), has had an outstanding start to 2014 with a promotion to Managing Consultant in the Norwich team.
A graduate in Business Economics, Becky started her recruitment career in 2000, placing accountancy professionals. Specialising in the HR sector since 2005, she has developed an unrivalled knowledge of the industry in Norfolk. Becky joined the team at Pure in August 2010, bringing her expertise in placing HR professionals in Norfolk and Cambridgeshire. She prides herself in building strong relationships with her clients and candidates, and has established an excellent network of contacts with high profile clients including May Gurney and Aviva.
Gill Buchanan, Director of Pure, says: “Becky is an enthusiastic and knowledgeable team member and prides herself in building strong relationships with Pure’s clients and candidates. Her promotion is thoroughly well deserved.”
To find out more about Pure contact Anna Hill, Marketing Manager on: 01223 209888 or Anna.Hill@prs.uk.com. For current vacancies with Pure and other employers go to www.prs.uk.com.
Caterham scoops ‘Business of the Year’ at MIA Business Excellence Awards
Caterham has been honoured as ‘Business of the Year’ at the annual MIA (Motorsport Industry Association) Business Excellence Awards, held in Birmingham on the evening of Thursday 9th January 2014.
As a brand, Caterham has continued to grow, expand and diversify across each of the business arms that make up the Caterham Group – Caterham Cars, Caterham Technology & Innovation (CTI), Caterham F1 Team, Caterham Composites and the recently-launched Caterham Bikes division.
Many of the high profile activities of the group have benefited from engineering and development work that has been led by CTI, the specialist engineering services division of the Caterham Group based in Hingham, Norfolk, which has been a member of the MIA since January 2013.
The MIA was created in April 1994, and in the nearly 20 year tenure of the Association it has helped to grow member businesses substantially, remaining a positive beacon for the motorsport industry by working with UK and EU parliaments to ensure the British motorsport industry has a solid, long term role within the Economy.
The Caterham Group is one of two recipients of the Business of the Year Award, triumphing in the category for larger businesses with a turnover of over £5m.
Graham Macdonald, CEO of the Caterham Group, accepted the award and said: “Both CTI and the rest of the Caterham Group are honoured to receive this award from a body whose members are some of the finest engineering minds in the world. This really is an accolade from peers, which makes holding this trophy all the more special and satisfying because they recognise the great work that is being done across the Group.”
The Caterham Group has had a whirlwind 2013, with expansion occurring internationally, the addition of Caterham Bikes, a Moto2GP team for 2014 and a number of new Caterham models.
Some of the highlights of the past 12 months include:
Marking Caterham’s 40th anniversary year, with the Seven 160 pulling the Seven back to its original philosophy of a simple, lightweight race car for the road.
Creation of the AeroSeven Concept
Launch of 3 new Caterham Seven models, the 485, 620R and 160
Continuing work on Caterham’s flagship new sportscar as a result of the 50-50 Joint Venture with Renault
Expansion into motorcycles – including announcement of entry into the 2014 Moto GP2 championship
Caterham’s debut in the Le Mans 24 Hours
Expansion into new export markets in Asia and South America
Taking motorsport design expertise into the Aerospace & Marine sectors
Macdonald continued: “This has been one of the most challenging but successful years in Caterham’s history. We’ve shown our first new road model in 18 years in the AeroSeven, and we’ve had such positive international reviews for the new Seven 485, 620R and 160 models – but we’re proud to be staying true to our roots.
“We look forward to the future, the joint venture with Renault and the launch of our exciting new flagship sportscar in 2016, which will be a proud moment for British engineering. We have exciting plans for an expanded range of Caterham road vehicles with accessible fun at their very heart, improved manufacturing facilities, the new Caterham Bikes and Moto2 GP arms of the Group and our on-going activities with the pinnacle of motorsport – Formula 1. Being the recipient of this award reminds us we are on the right track – that is where we are determined to stay.”
Please visit https://www.caterham.com for further information on all divisions of the Caterham Group
NORWICH, Tuesday 28th January 2014 – Airport reports record visitors to annual travel show Norwich International Airport’s travel show, which is now in its fifth year, achieved record visitor numbers this weekend with 2,000 people attending, all keen to find out as much as possible about the wide range of holidays and flights available from their local airport.
The airline and tour operator exhibitors commented that the Norwich International event is one of the busiest and most successful they attend across the UK and were all delighted with the response this year.
Andrew Bell, CEO, Norwich International Airport commented “This year’s show was undoubtedly the best we have put on in the five years the event has been running, with record visitor numbers and bookings made on the day up 62% on the previous year. The show is a fantastic opportunity for people in the Airport’s catchment area to meet airline and tour operator representatives and obtain first-hand knowledge and advice on the destinations they offer from our airport”
The success of last weekend’s travel show comes as an added boost for the airport following recent announcements of additional flights for holidaymakers in 2014 to Malta, along with the news that Thomson Holidays are basing an aircraft at Norwich International for the summer season for the very first time, Loganair basing a second aircraft from the end of March to provide an increase in Edinburgh flights to three times daily and the overall popularity of the KLM services to Amsterdam, which will see the frequency increase to four times daily throughout the summer months.
Independent consultancy, Risk & Policy Analysts (RPA) has become one of the first organisations in the region to be awarded a Living Wage Employer Accreditation. The company, which is based in Loddon, Norfolk, currently employs a team of 30, including some of the top economists, environmental scientists, chemists and ecologists in the area.
RPA Director, Meg Postle commented “We value each member of our team’s input into making RPA a success, and one of the most significant ways we can demonstrate this is by making sure that everyone is paid the Living Wage”.
The Living Wage is an hourly rate which is set independently and updated annually, based on the cost of living in the UK. An independent study of the business benefits gained found that employers recognised an enhanced standard of staff output, a reduction in absentee levels and a significant impact on recruitment and retention within their organisation as a result of implementing the Living Wage policy.
Rhys Moore, Director of the Living Wage Foundation said “The benefits the Living Wage brings to staff and business are clear. I welcome the leadership shown by RPA on this important issue”.
To find out more about becoming an accredited Living Wage Employer visit www.livingwage.org.uk
RPA provides expert advice to both public and private sector clients around the world, assisting decision makers with the development and implementation of sustainable policies. The Company’s main clients include the European Commission, European Chemicals Association, UK Government bodies (such as the Environment Agency, Natural England and Defra) and major EU industries.
Last month the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills launched a consultation on the use of zero hours contracts following much media attention and parliamentary concern surrounding the negative impact that such contractual arrangements can have.
It is currently estimated that a million UK workers are employed on zero hours contracts. Loosely defined, a zero hours contract is a contractual arrangement whereby the employer does not guarantee the individual any minimum working hours and the individual is not obliged to accept any work offered. While zero hours contracts can be a useful tool to businesses providing flexibility and retention of skills, as well as offering individuals the opportunity to work around other commitments they may have, the concern is that these contracts are being abused. A particular issue, and one which the consultation considers, is the use of exclusivity clauses in such contracts. These restrictions tie individuals to one employer, preventing them from working for another employer, even where their own employer offers no guarantee of work.
Howes Percival’s employment law experts Nicola Butterworth and Harriet Howes will be discussing the use of zero hours contracts as part of a wider discussion on flexible and atypical working, at the forthcoming Norfolk Chamber of Commerce HR Forum on 5 March 2014 at Dunston Hall Hotel, Norwich. The session will also look at managing an ageing workforce, in particular dealing with performance management, sickness absence and potential disability issues. In addition, Nicola and Harriet will look at further reforms to employment law that are currently in the pipeline for 2014, and how these will impact on local businesses.
These days there’s an award for almost every area of business – from best social media campaign to the most innovative company. Whatever the accolade, scooping the top spot can bring you a lot of positives – it’s a superb reputation-booster, but which categories could deliver the most value back for your area of work?
The Cambridge Evening News Business Excellence Awards is a fantastic example of a prestigious ceremony that celebrates achievements of local industry. And there’s a category attracting a lot of attention- Employer of the Year. Last year’s winners, Cambridge Consultants, used the award to attract specialist staff as part of a wider recruitment strategy.
In fact, there are lots of ways you can use such recognition as a great employer to benefit your firm. Here are a few ideas…
1. Use it to engage with staff
You’ve won a ‘best employer’ award! Why not invest it back into your employee engagement strategy and develop this area of business even further? If the award involved an employee survey or interviews, then your staff have helped you win. Make the achievement meaningful and personal – thank everyone for their part in the victory. An open show of gratitude can be an amazing morale booster and can help give people a real feeling of pride. Also, employees who feel valued and recognised for their commitment are more likely to stay with you for the long term.
2. Tell the press
Many newspapers such as the Cambridge Evening News run regional awards, so it’s likely that you’re going to get coverage if you win. But if it’s not a media-related event, get a press release drafted the day before the ceremony. If you win, the hot-off-the-press announcement will be ready to send out to your key newspapers, magazines and websites. This is a rare opportunity to make a big splash, so go for it! And don’t forget the all-important photo with a punchy caption.
3. Mention it in job ads
Take a lesson from Cambridge Consultants’ approach to recruitment; tell job seekers that they’d be working for an award-winning employer. Smart job seekers want to know about a firm’s ethics: how they support the local community and how it treats it workers. So when advertising your vacancies, make you sure you attract savvy candidates by mentioning the award in the copy or use an awards logo.
4. Celebrate with key stakeholders
Another way to involve your employees is to mark the award with a celebration of some kind. It can be in the office get together or a big picnic. It can also be a brilliant excuse to invite investors (show them how well you’re doing) and any other stakeholders you want to engage with. And why not invite partners and kids, making it a family affair?
5. Show it off to clients
Customers increasingly want to know they’re doing business with ethical companies. The recession has caused people to look out for issues such as mismanagement – they want to know that they’re giving their money to firms with an honest approach to all areas of work. It also demonstrates that you have the edge over your competitors. All of this can have a positive impact on the bottom line.
There’s no doubt that an accolade, which rubber-stamps your status as a good employer, can help propel your business forward. So, why not give the Cambridge Evening News Business Excellence Awards a bash this year? Sponsored by Pure, Employer of the Year could attract invaluable PR, as well as the best talent, enthusiastic investors and loyal customers.
Also, watch this space for news on how you can get your hands on another award; the 2014 Best Employer, Eastern Region (BEER) employee survey and awards is due to launch soon!
Website design agency, Bigfork, have designed a new website for Newmarket House, an eating disorders clinic. The new website involved a revamp of the navigation system and content with new high quality photography. With the growth in tablets and smartphones the new website was designed to be mobile friendly and also has a SilverStripe content management system for the Newmarket House team to manage the content inhouse. You can see the new website here
Prior to 2013 TrueTraders was mainly associated as an online retailer with the great intent to develop our customer audience and create easier and more conveniant means of shopping for our existing and future customers
Since then 2013 was a big year for us in which we moved to a larger premises which is situated in the busy town of Great Yarmouth. We have a larger warehouse and now have the ability to offer our customers a walk in shop to view our great range of quality products, first-hand.
Recently we’ve expanded the company in different direction and have already welcomed two new faces to the marketing and accounts departmentants. We’ve furthered our impression on the public by branching into many social networking sites and have many plans to make TrueTraders more interactive and uptodate with the ever-changing world of technology. We already have lots of plans under-way to make 2014 our best year yet.
Howes Percival’s Senior Partner Andrew Barnes is to address a major Anglo-China conference at the University of East Anglia on Monday 27 January.
The China Business Forum will also be addressed by Andy Wood OBE, Chair of the New Anglia LEP and Chris Cotton, Director of the China Britain Business Council. The event will be used to launch the 2014 China-UK Entrepreneurship Competition.
The China-UK Entrepreneurship Competition, now in its 7th year, is an internationally successful initiative which encourages new business ventures between China and the UK. It is widely supported by universities, governments, and businesses in both China and UK and enables UK businesses to make significant connections with a large number of Chinese provincial regions.
It will be the first time the event, which is also supported by the Chinese embassy in London, has been held in the East of England. It aims to bring together existing businesses and new student-led start-ups that are looking to develop commercial relationships and exploit market opportunities offered by collaborations between the two countries.
Mr Barnes, who took part in a UK Trade and Investment trade mission to China in November 2012 and has developed strong links with Chinese business representatives in the UK since, will address the conference on ‘East Anglia’s view on China business’ and the importance of working with China in the future.
Mr Barnes commented; “It is fantastic to see such a prestigious event in our region and I’m honoured to be invited to speak. We’ve been working hard to develop direct and meaningful links between East Anglia and Chinese businesses and this gives us another opportunity not only to collaborate but also to promote the importance of closer working.”
“There is no doubt in my mind that by working with influential organisations and representative bodies such as the UEA, the New Anglia LEP and EEEGR, and with the skills and expertise we have in our region, we can play an important part in Anglo-Chinese business relations.”
The China-UK Entrepreneurship Competition is part of the PMI2 (Prime Minister Initiative II) Connect project, supported by British Council and the Confucius Institute programme funded by Hanban. Teams will be selected for the chance to win a £5,000 cash prize, and an investment opportunity of £250,000 for the best business plans.
The Organizers of the competition are: University of East Anglia, Lancaster University, University College London, University of Edinburgh, China Innovation and Development Association UK, Tianjin Association for Science and Technology and Chongqing National Science Park
To see the launch program please download the file attached: