Originally written by Molly Dilling on Small Business
Across the country tens of thousands of employees are being asked to return to work. But many employers are faced with a furloughed employee who refuses. The most obvious parallel is in schools, where unions, local councils, parents and teachers fundamentally disagree on how and when to reopen.
Similar stories are emerging about employers and staff, in sectors large and small, across the country. What rights do employers have in such cases, and how do you protect yourself against a detriment/dismissal claim?
Can a furloughed employee refuse to return to work?
The issue many employers are grappling with is whether a furloughed employee who refuses to return to work because of a stated fear of catching coronavirus can be dismissed.
Under the standard employment contract, the furloughed employee is obliged to follow reasonable instructions. One of those instructions contained in the employment contract will be that employees are to attend work within the hours set out.
The key issue in employment law is what is reasonable, and this depends on the precise facts of the case. As a result of the possible ambiguity an employer should carefully consider potential consequences before taking any disciplinary action for failure to
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How to stop your small business getting bad reviews on Glassdoor
by Jonathan Richards • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Jonathan Richards on Small Business
Turn over any newspaper and you won’t be surprised to see yet another corporate scandal, or an accusation that a company’s culture is “toxic”. It seems the outrage is arriving thicker and faster than ever.
Smaller businesses may feel far removed from the outrageous stories in the news, yet there’s a significant connection. Even organisations that would never dominate the national or global news agenda need to recognise that problems in their internal culture can and will surface online.
Toxic cultures no longer need to be reported by lone whistle-blowers, or even undercover journalists — the reality inside British SMEs is being openly shared on the web. Renewable energy supplier Bulb recently found this out the hard way, when the Telegraph reported on “growing signs of employee discontent” and complaints of a “toxic work culture” based on the firm’s Glassdoor score, a website where staff can anonymously review their employers.
Glassdoor is certainly influential: it gets 67m unique visitors each month and hosts 49m reviews of nearly 1m companies worldwide.
Most business owners are already aware of how much online reviews can affect their ability to recruit and retain talent. Glassdoor itself suggests that 70pc of people
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Eight steps to overcome your fear of employee grievances
by Owen Gough • • 0 Comments
Disgruntled, frustrated and even furious are feelings most employees will experience at some point in their careers. Yet, when they bring such feeling to the attention of their superiors, many managers panic for fear of falling foul of employment law or other repercussions. Often, all the employee wants is to be listened to or given
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