impact of employment law when starting employment relationship

impact of employment law when starting employment relationship

AC 1.1 Describe the internal and external factors that impact on the employment relationship.

Internal Factors – 150 words

1. Working conditions: These are inclusive of various factors such as proper light and ventilation, good water supply, space, and overall infrastructure. If these are proper, then it puts a positive impact on the employee working, which makes them more productive. But any discrepancy in the same may decrease the overall productivity of employees whose result can be reduced in employee relations.
2. company policies and procedures: These include information about job role concerning its title as well as primary duties & responsibilities. If they are in tune with the employee skill set, then he or she will work in a motivated manner. In the same way, if the company has allotted fixed working hours for the employee per week, then this will give them a chance to maintain a good work-life balance. All these will improve the relationship that exists between employee and employer.

External Factors: – 150 words

International legislation –To maintain a suitable employment relationship, it is significant for the management to adhere to the basic International law such as Human Rights Act, which is all about ensuring that every employee in the workplace is treated with dignity, fairness, equality.

Competitive scenario:  Every company has a set of rival firms, and hence, this makes it essential for the management that its employees are happy. For example, an employee may move to another organization if they offer an excellent salary package and other benefits. In that case, the employment relationship will be strained, and the result will be increased employee turnover.

Economic environment – If the economic environment is not right, then the employer may offer a part-time job to the employee rather than a permanent opportunity. In that case, the employment relations will be different and will be more of a formal nature.

AC 1.2 Explain the different types of employment status  – 250 words

1. Employee: This usually works for an employee on a contractual basis, which is generally written and signed by both parties. This employment status has an absence of any pre-determined time limit to work for the company. They are entitled to receive a salary and other benefits and have a full right to use all the company equipment during the office hours. These individuals work as per the hours set by the management and are not expected to deny any work.

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2. Worker: these are regarded as halfway between the employee and self-employed individuals who just like an employee work under a contract, which may or may not be in writing. They have access to fewer statutory rights than employees, which include protection from discrimination, unlawful deduction from wages, and they are also entitled to receive a national minimum wage. These individuals set there own working hours and have a right to decline the work that has been offered to them.
3. Genuinely self-employed: They are not bound to the company by any employment contract and are usually contracted on a project basis that lasts for a fixed time period. The contract for each piece of work can be written. They are not able to enjoy any statutory employment rights but are protected by discrimination law. Just like the workers, even they set there own working hours, and they can also assign the work to others.

AC 1.3 Identify and analyze the reasons why it is important to determine an individual’s employment status – 250 words

To identify rights: An employee has a wide range of employment rights, which also includes the right to claim for unfair dismissal and redundancy. But these rights are not possessed by workers and self-employed individuals. Hence the determination of employment status ensures that the company does not make any mistake while dealing with the employees, and this is very important for maintaining a positive employment relationship.

AC 2.1 Explain the importance of work life balance within the employment relationship and how it can be influenced by legislation

Importance of work life balance within the employment relationship – 300 words

Maintenance of a proper work-life balance is essential for a healthy work environment as it helps to reduce stress and burnout in the workplace. The result is increased productivity of the employee, which is critical to the creation of a good employment relationship. This concept of work life balance is deeply influenced by the legislation whose description is given below;

Legislation related to holidays:  The UK labor law provides 28 days of paid leaves to the employees in a year, and in terms of weeks, it accounts for 5.6 weeks if the individual works for five days a week. However, these holidays are not meant for part-time employees as they have a right to choose there days and hours of working.

• Legislation related to rest periods: An employee has a right to get access to specific rest periods, which are in the form of tea, coffee, or lunch break. This rest period should be of a minimum of 20 minutes if the work hours are six or more per day. Other than this, the employees are also entitled to receive a 24 hours uninterrupted break in the form of a holiday.
• Legislation related to working hours: as per this legislation, an employee cannot be made to work for more than 48 hours a week, and the time set for minors is 18 hours per week.
• Legislation related to night working: Any employee working in the night shift cannot work for more than 7 hours, and if he or she works above this limit, then it should be regarded as overtime. The law also makes sure that the employees below the age of 18 do not work in the night shift owing to the adverse impact on their health. However, this clause does not apply to the ones employed in healthcare or hotel service industry.

AC 2.2 Summarise the legal support that may be given to employees as a family member. – 300 words

The organizations in KSA need to adhere to the legal aid provided to employees as a family member. This is most needed so that they can attain the right work-life balance, which will help them to work productively.

• Legal support related to family/parent: As per the UK children and family act 2014, it is essential to protect the vulnerable children and also pay attention to their special needs. Reformative works, if any, should also be carried out. A similar law also applies to parents and family.
• Legal support related to maternity leave: In case of maternity, the females are eligible to receive 52 weeks of leave, which applies from the birth of the child or 11 weeks prior. As per the leave division, 1^st 26 weeks are counted as ordinary while the rest are additional.
• Legal support related to paternity leave: Just like the mothers, the fathers are also eligible for leave on childbirth, which as per the UK labor law, accounts for 1 to 2 weeks of paid leave. However, it should be taken within 56 days of childbirth. This leave also applies to a person when the baby has been adopted or born through surrogacy.
• Legal support related to adoption leave: UK labor law also provides leaves to employees if they have adopted a child and want to take care of him or her. Just like maternity and paternity leave, this can also go up to 52 weeks in which the employee will receive 90% of salary for the 1^st six weeks.
• Legal support related to dependants leaves: in case there is an emergency, and the employee wants to take care of dependents, then there is a clause for dependants leaves as well, which is however, of unpaid nature.

AC 2.3 Explain the reasons for treating employees fairly in relation to pay. – 150 words

1. Reason – Explanation
2. Reason – Explanation

AC 2.4 Summarise the main points of discrimination legislation-200

Under the UK Labour Law Equality act 2010, the protected characteristics are age, gender, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity and race, disability as well as marriage preference, pregnancy, and beliefs.

1. Direct discrimination – It is the case when an employee is discriminated based on his or her belonging to one of the protected groups. This is majorly based on sexual orientation, gender, age, or some disability.
2. Indirect discrimination- This occurs because of an unreasonable policy or rule, which lays an unfair impact on some people. For example, if a company lays down the minimum height requirement for a job role, which may not be relevant. Then this will discriminate those employees who have a shorter height but correct qualification.
3. Harassment – This is the term used for any threatening act made towards an employee. Harassing an individual is illegal as this harms work productivity and safety of employees at work.
4. Victimization – This is the one when an employer treats some selected employees with more respect as compared to others. This can be because of repeatedly involving oneself in complaining against discrimination and coming into everyone’s notice.

AC 2.5 Explain the excellent practice that underpins organisational policies and can contribute to the psychological contract.-150

If the organizational strategies are implemented effectively, then this helps in achieving the aims and objectives of a company. In this aspect, the psychological contract plays a significant role in assessing employment relationships at the workplace and also increases there work-related security. This is because, in most of the cases, all aspects related to the employment relationship are not mentioned in the written contract. For example, staff usually extends the lunch timings by 10 minutes, and this trend is prevalent in a company since the start. But if an employee is reprimanded for the sane, then this may result in hatred as it can be assumed that the psychological contract is not followed. To manage psychological contracts effectively, there are some good practices such as adherence to discrimination policies, clear and honest communication to employees, as well as encouraging the participation of employees in the decision making the process.

AC 3.1 Explain the differences between fair and unfair dismissals-300

Every organisation uses some fair and unfair means to dismiss an employee. Fair dismissal means to dismiss an employee by giving a valid reason and acting reasonably according to the circumstances. In other words, it is the dismissal of an employee based on a lawful purpose. Some of the reasons for a fair dismissal include misconduct, continually missing work, poor discipline, drug or alcohol abuse, theft or dishonesty, or not performing according to the set expectations of the employer. Dismissal is also considered fair if it is done when a particular job is not required anymore or when there is less work. When a company follows a systematic procedure to dismiss the contract of an employee, then it is classified as a fair dismissal. The company in which I work in Saudi Arabia adheres to fair employee dismissal, which is done when a job is not appropriately performed by an employee that leads to less productivity. Apart from this, dismissal is also considered fair when a statutory restriction prevents an employee from performing duties such as if the business moves to another location.

Dismissal is unfair when the act of dismissing an employee takes place on unreasonable grounds and without giving any valid reason. Dismissal is also unfair when an employee is dismissed on the grounds of rights of an employee, such as maternity and paternity leave, maternity, and taking leave on account of long sickness as well as for dependants. This also includes dismissing fixed and part-time employees against labor laws and without a valid reason. For example, in the Saudi Arabian company, dismissal is unfair when an employee is terminated on account of taking adoption leave or time off for dependants.

AC 3.2 Explain the importance of exit interviews – 200 words

An exit interview is a formal meeting with an employee when one is leaving a company. This includes a survey with the employee in which the human resource team takes information about the company. Exit interviews are important as they provide an employee’s view on the company’s working environment, culture, policies as well as activities and routine procedures. It helps the company to know how employees think of the company and the management. For the employer, the exit interview helps in implementing a more positive working environment for employees. It is also one of the ways to know whether employees are facing any issues with management and work, which requires immediate attention. This also provides an opportunity for the employer to improve training and development activities for the retention of employees and improving their relationship with them. This reduces risks as critical areas can be identified through exit interviews.

With the exit interview, the employee also gets a chance to leave with a positive repo and relationship with the company and give them the opportunity of accessing constructive feedback. Also, it helps the employer to know about the areas of improvement to achieve career growth in the future.

AC 3.3 Summarise the key stages to be followed when managing redundancies.  – 300 words  

Redundancy is considered a situation when the company terminates the employees as they no longer need them, and this is a situation that no firm wishes to arrive at. Here is a nine-step process to manage redundancies –

1. Knowing the reason for redundancy -Employers need to be aware of the reason of redundancy within the organization. It can be because of less work or even change in job conditions which are different from the old one
2. Alternative measures – There needs to be an implementation of alternative measures in the form of reducing working overtime and not doing recruitment to retain the motivation of employees.
3. Planning – This includes consulting with staff by conducting open meetings and having a public interaction between management and employees.
4. Consultation – This stage involves arranging for the consultative meeting of managers and employees with the HR department to identify reasons for redundancies and finding a solution for it.
5. Communication – This includes an open and two-way communication between management and employees so that it develops an understanding of risks that can arise on account of redundancy and its impact on the organization.
6. Determine the selection criteria and identification of selection pool – This stage is critical in which an overall assessment of human capital is conducted to assess skills that have become redundant in the organization. This is done based on fair selection criteria.
7. Perform a redundancy consultation – If 20 or more than 20 employees are at risk, then it is essential to conduct a collective procedure of consultative redundancy.
8. Send dismissal notice – This involves giving prior notice to employees before the company initiates a process. The length of the period can be from one week to 12 weeks.
9. Payout redundancy pay – In this, each employee has the legal right to get statutory redundancy pay, and the upper limit is £15,240, but higher payment can also be given.

• the importance of work life balance and related legislation concerning holidays, rest periods, working hours and night working