The Employment Law & HR Podcast
The right to be accompanied: Episode 20

An employee's right to be accompanied at a disciplinary and grievance meeting

In this episode of the podcast I tell you about a recent change to the ACAS code of practice on disciplinary and grievances which has been brought about by a decision of the employment appeal tribunal on the question of whether or not an employer can refuse to allow the employee's particular choice of companion.

In this episode you will learn

  • What the Employment Appeal Tribunal said about the legal right to be accompanied
  • What changes this made to the ACAS Code of Practice
  • What it could cost an employer who refuses to allow an employee to be accompanied
  • Who the employee can be accompanied by
  • What an employer's options are with exercising their discretion over who can accompany an employee
  • When it may be a reasonable adjustment to allow an employee to be accompanied by someone other than required by law
  • When you should seek advice

HR Best Practice Tip

The HR tip of the week is about checking your employee or staff handbook to ensure any terms which are 'contractual' are clear and not likely to cause difficulty in the event that a dispute arises in the future.

Direct download: Episode_20.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:39am EDT

Changes to Employment Contracts: Episode 19

Can an employer make changes to employment contracts without consent?

In this episode of the podcast I bring you a recent case dealing with changes to employment contracts as well as an overview of an employer's options if an employee refuses to agree to the changes.

In this episode you will learn

  • When changes can be made without risk of breach of contract
  • What the options are if an employee refuses changes to employment contracts
  • Why the Employment Tribunals are reluctant to give employers wide discretion to make changes
  • Why you should have a general variation clause in your employment contracts
  • When to have a specific variation clause

HR Best Practice Tip

The HR tip of the week is about a service that I can provide to you to make your life much easier.

Direct download: Episode_19.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:33am EDT

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