Sarena Harwood, Author at Ward Williams HR Advisers

22Oct

Job Support Scheme Amendment

Sarena HarwoodCoronavirus, Payroll Services

Updated 22nd October 2020

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced today a further amendment to the Job Support Scheme, which is due to begin on 1 November 2020.

When originally announced, the JSS required employees to work a minimum of 33% of their normal hours. This has now been reduced to 20%, meaning that employees working as little as one day a week are now eligible for the scheme.

Additionally, the employer contribution to the ‘unworked’ hours has been significantly reduced from 33% to just 5%. This could have a huge impact on businesses and enable more employees to be kept in work.

For Example: “If someone was being paid £587 for their unworked hours, the government would be contributing £543 and their employer only £44.”

Employers will continue to receive the £1,000 Job Retention Bonus.

No changes have been made to the JSS for those businesses legally required to close.

If you require any further help or assistance with the new changes. Then please get in contact with a member of the Ward Williams HR on 01932 830664 or email sally.phillips@wardwilliams.co.uk.

09Oct

Jobs Support Scheme Extended

Sarena HarwoodCoronavirus, Payroll Services

Updated 9th October 2020

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced an extension to the Jobs Support Scheme, which is due to begin on 1 November 2020.

The government recently announced how the Jobs Support Scheme would contribute 1/3rd of the shortfall of wages (capped at £697.72pm) for employees who were working reduced hours, but working at least 33% of their normal (pre-furlough) hours. The employer would contribute a further 1/3rd of the shortfall, and the employee would forego the final third.

The extension applies to any businesses required to close their premises due to local or national coronavirus restrictions. In that situation, the government will pay two thirds of their employees’ salaries, up to a maximum of £2,100 per month. Under the scheme, employers will not be required to contribute towards wages and will only be asked to cover NICS and pension contributions.

Businesses will only be eligible to claim the grant while they are subject to restrictions and employees must be off work for a minimum of seven consecutive days.

The scheme will begin on 1 November and will be available for six months, with a review point in January. In line with the rest of the JSS, payments to businesses will be made in arrears, via a HMRC claims service that will be available from early December. Employees of firms that have been legally closed in the period before 1 November are eligible for the CJRS.

If you would like more information on this. Please get in touch with Sally Phillips on 01932 830664 or email sally.phillips@wardwilliams.co.uk

28Sep

Important: New Coronavirus Regulations

Sarena HarwoodCoronavirus

New Regulations have been made, which came into force on 28^th September 2020 (in England only).

The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (Self-Isolation) (England) Regulations 2020 are complex. They set out mandatory periods for self-isolation, and a duty to notify the Secretary of State of the names of people in the same household of anyone who has tested positive for Covid-19.

Changes for employers:

It is now an offence for an employer to knowingly permit a worker (including an agency worker) to attend any place other than where the individual is self-isolating.
This includes individuals who are required to self-isolate because they live with someone who has tested positive.

So if an employer knows a worker has tested positive (or lives with someone who has tested positive), it is now responsible for stopping the worker from working (unless they can work from home). Any employer who fails to do so will face a fine, starting at £1,000 (reg 7).

Changes for employees:

There is also an obligation on the worker to tell their employer that they are self-isolating (reg 8). Any individual who breaches self-isolation will, normally, commit a separate criminal offence (reg 11).

24Sep

New Jobs Support Scheme

Sarena HarwoodCoronavirus, Payroll Services

Updated 24^th September 2020

The Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, has set out the government’s new job retention measures in a statement to the House of Commons today.

The furlough scheme will come to an end, as planned, on 31 October 2020.

The new Jobs Support Scheme involves the government supporting the wages of people in work, giving employers the option to keep people in work on shorter hours, rather than make them redundant.

Employees will have to work at least one-third of their normal hours, and be paid for that by the employer. The Government, together with employers, will then increase those people’s wages covering two-thirds of the pay they have lost by reducing their working hours, and the employee will keep their job. This means an employee working 33% of their hours will earn at least 77% of their usual pay – 55% paid for by their employer, 22% by the Government. The Government will pay a maximum of £697.92/mth.

Who is eligible?

All SMEs are elgibile, and larger businesses will be eligible if, their turnover has fallen through the Covid crisis.
The new scheme is open to all employers, even if they were not previously used the furlough scheme.

The scheme will run for six months from November. Employers retaining furloughed staff on shorter hours can be part of the scheme and still get the job retention bonus he announced earlier this summer.

The self-employed grant is being extended on similar terms and conditions to the new Jobs Support Scheme, However not much detail has been provided yet.

Other announcements include a new “Pay as you Grow” scheme which will allow firms to repay Bounce Back Loans gradually over a period of up to 10 years, and a commitment to keep VAT at 5% for hospitality and tourism until 31 March 2021.

If you have concerns or questions, please contact us on 01932 830664. As further details are announced, we will keep you informed.

24Sep

Coronavirus return to work u-turn.

Sarena HarwoodCoronavirus

The UK government is now advising office workers to work from home again where possible following a rise in the number of coronavirus cases seen across the country.

As many workplaces have continued to allow staff the option to work from home, the new rules mean that things are unlikely to physically change for many workplaces. However the adjustments employers make to ensure the health and safety of their staff will be more important than before.

The new guidance could mean that employees have a stronger case for refusing to return to the workplace if they have the reasonable belief that there is serious or imminent danger to their health due to the heightened risk of contracting the virus. Dismissing employees who refuse to return to work citing such concerns would potentially be unfair, leading to uncapped compensation.

If you have any questions on the new guidance, then please get in touch with Sally on 01932 830664 or email sally.phillips@wardwilliams.co.uk.

03Sep

HMRC guidance on the Kickstart Scheme

Sarena HarwoodCoronavirus, Recruitment and Selection

The Kickstart Scheme provides funding to employers to create job placements for 16 to 24 year olds.

The government has introduced a new Kickstart Scheme in Great Britain, a £2 billion fund to create hundreds of thousands of high quality 6-month work placements aimed at those aged 16 to 24 who are on Universal Credit and are deemed to be at risk of long term unemployment.

Funding available for each job will cover 100% of the relevant National Minimum Wage for 25 hours a week, plus the associated employer National Insurance contributions and employer minimum automatic enrolment contributions.

Guidance about the Kickstart Scheme for employers

Check if you can apply for a grant through the Kickstart Scheme

Check if you can apply for a grant as a representative of a group of employers through the Kickstart Scheme

Apply for a grant through the Kickstart Scheme

If you have concerns or questions, please contact us on 01932 830664 or email: sally.phillips@wardwilliams.co.uk. As further details are announced, we will keep you informed.

29Jul

8 Tips for Managing Employees Remotely

Sarena HarwoodPeople Management Training

Being in charge of managing remote employees for the first time can be a daunting prospect. Managers need to be aware of how remote working can create feelings of isolation among team members. To ensure employees are productive, engaged and thriving, follow our eight tips below:

1. Set expectations early and often. This will help employees maintain a healthy work/life balance as well as providing clarity on priorities, milestones, performance goals and more. Outline each team member’s availability and ensure you can reach them when needed.

2. Be organized and flexible. When it comes to working with remote teams, the key is to allow flexible hours to maintain consistency. Whether your employees choose to put in their hours in the morning or evening, as long as the work gets completed and is of high quality.

3. Adapt the length of your meetings. What works in the office may not work remotely. Instead of lengthy meetings, have short virtual get-togethers.

4. Emphasize communication. It’s crucial that managers communicate with their remote staff because it keeps workers apprised of deadlines, available resources, work-related challenges and managers’ expectations.

5. Remember to listen. The most successful managers are good listeners, communicate trust and respect, enquire about workload and progress without micromanaging,

6. Build connections and be available to your team. Many workers can feel isolated and disoriented while working from home, that’s why it’s important to build connections with employees.

7. Provide a way to collaborate. Providing a shared document that tracks work activities is one way managers can stay apprised of what their teams are doing.

8. Celebrate success. Managers should also look for opportunities to celebrate the same work milestones that would be celebrated in the office.

Similar Blogs

**The five steps to on boarding employees remotely**

If you would like to know more about managing your employees remotely then please get in touch with the office: sally.phillips@wardwilliams.co.uk or call 01932 830664.

28Jul

On boarding employees remotely

Sarena HarwoodHR and Employment documentation production, Recruitment and Selection

Employee on boarding and induction sets the tone for an employee’s experience with your company. On boarding remote employees isn’t something we are necessarily used to, but we need to make sure they have the best experience possible, no matter where they are.

Over the coming weeks and months many employers will find themselves in this fairly unique position of on boarding a member of staff remotely rather than in person. Here are five clear steps to on boarding a new employee remotely:

1. Start early

The process of on boarding actually begins with the recruitment process, particularly when it comes to remote workers. Set out clear expectations of the role, hours of work, any boundaries around routine and how you would expect to be updated. Ensure perspective employees are aware of what is expected from them.

2. Get employees online

With the pre-boarding phase complete, make sure that your new employee is set up to work remotely. Are you going to provide them with a work laptop and phone or will they need to source this themselves? It’s important to be clear on details like this from the outset. Start orientation with IT set up early on to get your new team members their passwords and access right from the off.

3. Create a sense of belonging

It is common for new remote employees to feel isolated and unsure of where to turn to for feedback, questions, and checking in. Assigning a colleague to them, who they can go to with any questions can help a new employee settle in quickly.

4. Provide a personalised remote on boarding plan with video check-ins

It is always good practice to check in with a new starter regularly, but this is even more important when on boarding someone remotely. Remote employees look forward to concrete goals and an opportunity for one-on-one face time with their manager. It is important to strike a balance between creating clear lines of open communication and making someone feel like they are being micro-managed, even from a distance. For the first week or so, a check-in once a day is a must but this can be reduced over the following weeks, particularly as your new employee gets to know their colleagues and opens up further lines of communication over projects and priorities. It is also important that induction training is varied.

5. Feedback on performance

The probation process still performs the same function in terms of allowing both sides to decide whether the role is a good fit and that the new starter is meeting expectations. However, clearly you may need to adjust some expectations or make allowances around certain elements of the role given the unusual remote set up and the fact that training or shadowing can be made more difficult through being remote. It is also a good idea to get feedback on the on boarding programme overall from your new recruit. You can then put any feedback back into the process when you on board your next new starter remotely.

Similar Blogs:

If you would like to know more about on boarding employees remotely then please get in touch with the office: sally.phillips@wardwilliams.co.uk or call 01932 830664.

09Jul

Summer Economic Update

Sarena HarwoodCoronavirus

Our summary of the Chancellor’s Summer Economic Update is now available. Download

Chancellor Rishi Sunak presented the Summer Economic Update against a backdrop of economic uncertainty caused by coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown.

Our summary of the Summer Economic Update provides an overview of the key announcements arising from the Chancellor’s speech. Measures include a new Job Retention Bonus to support the phasing out of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), a VAT reduction for businesses in the hospitality and tourism sector and a temporary increase to the nil-rate band of residential Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT).

Additionally, throughout the Summary you will find informative comments to help you assess the effect that the proposed changes may have.

If you would like more detailed, one-to-one advice on any of the issues raised in the Chancellor’s speech, please do get in touch.

30Jun

HR Ad-hoc employer support packages.

Sarena HarwoodCoronavirus, HR and Employment documentation production

Returning to work HR Ad-Hoc packages for employers:

Ward Williams HR has been working closely with SMEs through the COVID-19 pandemic to provide urgent support to many businesses through this unprecedented time of change. As the timing and nature of any relaxation of restrictions is uncertain, it would be sensible for businesses to consider all the options and have the capability to move quickly from one scenario to another.

Helping your business to return to work

With our wealth of experience working with a wide range of SMEs, helping them to adapt to the new and very real challenges they face beyond lockdown, we have devised a bespoke ad-hoc HR package to directly address and resolve common employer concerns. Ensuring that SME employers have everything they need, in place, to effectively and compliantly bring employees back to work when the time comes.

Our bespoke HR package will provide:

Initial call consultation to establish a return to work plan appropriate to your business.
A draft plan from Ward Williams HR from the initial consultation.
Support and advice on the management of employees returning to work interviews and team integration.
Templates and documentation (consent letter, risk assessments, policies & procedures).
Redundancy and fair process.
Flexible working requests support & advice.
Unlimited HR and employment law advice via email, phone or video call for an agreed period.

If you have any HR queries, which are not included in this list, please do let us know. In addition to our monthly packages covering broad range of HR services, we can also offer help for ad-hoc standalone support. Our local and bespoke service means that we can be flexible offering to find the perfect solution to fit your business.

To find out more about what happens beyond lockdown for your business, contact Ward Williams HR for your free call consultation today.

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