Want to see Brian drop from the top of the i360?

I'm abseiling down the i360 tower to raise cash for the brilliant Martlets Hospice, as part of the Shaun The Sheep events. It's 450 ft. Gulp! I'm a little bit nervous about this (massive understatement), so if you donate and hand over any…
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Big rises in Living and Minimum wages

Big increases in minimum pay levels kick in this April and the extra costs are almost £2,000 extra per year for each full-time employee aged 23 at least. From April 2023 employers have to pay a legal minimum of £10.42 an hour for any employees…
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Why spend any time on employment contracts? Money, for a start

When you change jobs, you might notice your new employment contract is different to the last one. Apart from different logos and fonts, it's worth checking for any significant differences quickly – maybe more or less holiday than you’ve…
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When social media turns ugly

Want to moan on Facebook about your workplace? First step: unfriend your work colleagues. If you don’t do that, then you cannot complain when you go into work and find out that people are not happy with you – and you might be facing a telling…
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Disciplinary: steps to follow & things to consider

So you have a problem with an employee and you’re thinking about what to do. One option might be to take disciplinary action. There’s some guidance about thinking things through here. Now let’s go through the steps you need to use. The…
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When a row at work turns into a grievance

What’s a grievance? Dictionaries define it as a complaint resulting from a cause of distress or annoyance. In the workplace, any employee has a legal right to raise a grievance which is a formal complaint about a work issue. In practice,…
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Empty chairs and no candidates?

Trying to hire is a gamble at the best of times, but lately it’s been a little bit of a nightmare. It’s a combination of various things, including the obvious (the B word) and that so many people are just treading water while we continue…
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Work & Christmas: a survival guide

Ho ho ho! ‘Tis the season of goodwill, when people smile more and sing along to festive favourite tunes while hanging tinsel and baubles over anything they can. So here are 7 things to consider as you eat your own weight in mince pies and…
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6 tips for your Christmas party

On the 12th day of Christmas my true love gave to me: 12 drunken staff, 11 promised pay rises, 10 crates of beer bought, 9 passed out workers, 8 leering managers, 7 punches thrown, 6 cupboard lovers, 5 bullied workers, 4 broken bones, 3 drunk…
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Rows at work - ideas to change things

Friction in working relationships can be a part of your working life at times, although hopefully not in a bad way. People have different priorities and viewpoints. But sometimes you can find yourself in a situation where the dispute goes…
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Working with friends and family

Can you manage your friend and say when she or he is causing problems? Can you do this to your partner and then share a bed later? We work with many firms where friends either got together to launch the endeavours or partners came in to work…
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Change, develop and improve

  If you see or hear the words “developing people” – you probably don’t react well. If you’re a manager, it probably feels like a duty or, at worst, a pointless exercise. Ticking a box in an appraisal process. But here’s…

Don't panic ... not yet anyway

UPDATE: We will have a new Prime Minister, Liz Truss, and she takes over the role on 6th September. It's being reported that she will quickly announce plans that may include freezing energy bills, although that's only speculation and there are…
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Thinking about a disciplinary?

If telling people off at work was easy, then anyone could do it. In reality, managers find it hard sometimes. You work closely with people and nobody enjoys sitting with someone who’s feeling angry or sad because you’ve just told them off…

Enjoy the long weekend!

Hope you have a wonderful 4-day weekend - if you get the whole bank holiday break off work. Have fun whether you're enjoying Jubilee street parties, seeing your loved ones or just relaxing. After all, it's 3 months until the next bank ho…
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Employ full-timers only? You're missing out

As the economy picks up and your business is expanding, it may be worth considering employing new staff on a part-time basis. Maybe you need more help but cannot justify the costs of a full-time worker? If you are replacing staff, do you really…
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White powders and workplaces

Working with all kinds of people, we spot issues and trends as they rise and fall. One thing we’ve seen increase is conversations about people using cocaine. The clichéd views are that it’s everywhere, it’s becoming more and more acceptable…
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Big change to employee sick rules

How long can you stay off sick before you have to get a doctor’s note? Will you get paid? Are you sure you know the answers? The answer to the first question was 7 days: you can self-certify that you’ve been ill for that long, before…