HR News August 2010

Welcome to HR News, our monthly round up of the latest news in the industry. In this months issue we look at the new Equality Act, which will still come into effect in October as planned. It was muted that with a change in government the Act may not be implemented. We also look at how chatting at work could cost your company thousands and how absenteeism in the workplace is decreasing, could this be linked to organisations adopting absent management policies?

New Government confirms that the Equality Act will come into effect in October as planned

The Equality Act brings together nine separate pieces of legislation into one single Act, simplifying the law and making it easier for businesses to comply with discrimination law.

The first wave of implementation of the Equality Act will go ahead to the planned October timetable following the publication of the first commencement order in Parliament next week. This will pave the way for the implementation of landmark provisions to protect disabled people from discrimination and tackle the gender pay gap.

It is hoped that by making the law easier to understand, the Equality Act will help businesses treat staff fairly and meet the needs of their customer base. The law will be easier to understand and better able to protect people from discrimination.

The Equality Act should in many respects make things clearer and simpler for employers. Bringing nine separate pieces of legislation together in one place should give employers more confidence in addressing diversity in the workplace.

Chatting at works costs the economy £2 billion per year!

It is estimated that employers are losing out on a staggering £2 billion every year due to staff chatting at work, new research has shown

Research from HireScores.com surveyed 1,546 members of the British public to see how much time was being spent by employees talking about unrelated issues.

The poll found of those surveyed, more than half, 52%, admitted to talking about the previous night's TV during office chats, whilst a third, 34%, said that their love life was the main topic of conversation.

With the average UK salary at £23,472 per year, or £489 per week, an average hourly wage is £13.04. Based on this figure, and the fact that the average amount of time spent chatting with collegues at work is 67 minutes according to the study, the average British employee will cost their company £14.56 each day! With currently 28.79m employed people in the UK that means that over £2bn is lost each year due to office chatter!

Staff absence levels drop to lowest in three years

Staff sickness absence has reached its lowest level in three years. According to a sickness absence study released today by EEF,  the manufacturers' organisation. From 2007 to 2009 there has been a steady fall in sickness absence, with the average employee taking 5.6 days sickness in 2009 compared to 6.8 days in 2007 - a gain for employers of on average one extra day of work per employee during 2009.

According to the report, 41% of companies saw a decrease in short-term sickness absence in 2009, a climb of 9% from 2008, while nearly a third (32%) of companies saw a decrease in long-term sickness absence over the past two years, up from 26% the year before. On average, 44% of employees did not take a single day off work sick during 2009, continuing an improving trend since 2007; and this happened despite the swine flu pandemic.

It is believed that the reduction in employee sickness absence may be linked to the global recession and the slow economic recovery in the UK.

It is possible that the recession, with its accompanying redundancies, has made employees more aware of the time they are taking off.

Long-term sickness absence, where an employee has been off work for more than a month, has a substantial effect on UK industry as well as for the social welfare of the population. The cost of this is potentially much higher than short-term absence, due to the expense of replacement staff, agency fees and many other indirect costs associated with absence - all a major headache for employers.

The research reveals the top causes of short-term sickness absence as: 'minor illness', 'back pain and other joint / muscular problems, which is the same as for the past three years.

For cases of long-term sickness absence, the main causes are surgery or medical investigations and tests, back problems, cancer and mental ill health, excluding stress; the same as for the past three years.

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Absence management policies - A must for any business

Businesses are being urged to implement an effective absence management policy. Having clear policies in place can help ensure high employee attendance rates.

The majority of larger organisations in the UK are now taking steps to reduce absenteeism and its associated costs, however some smaller organisations are falling behind and still do not have clear policies in place.

By conducting return-to-work interviews after every unauthorised day off, and collecting and analysing attendance data, organisations are creating a culture, which does not tolerate casual absence. With this, HR and employee line managers should also be trained to manage the attendance of the general workforce more effectively. They should go hand in hand.

Some absenteeism can be a way of expressing dissatisfaction with one's job, but for most cases absence from work is for genuine reasons. It is the picking up on the dissatisfaction with work situation that could potentially save the business money by 'nipping in the bud' the problem at an early stage.

Non-genuine absence due to domestic responsibilities or problems should be tackled by flexible working arrangements, by allowing carers, such as the parents of young children to work from home, subject to the nature of their role. By allowing this attendance, higher productivity rates should be seen.

Other options include alternative starting and finishing times and the option of flexi-time.

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