A leading Shropshire HR Consultancy is advising business owners and managers across the county to ensure they are fully coherent with employment legislation and best practice when dealing with work-related stress. 

Here at Triangle HR we are advising business owners and managers across the region of the importance when handling sickness and stress-related absence in the workplace promptly, and to ensure that they manage staff correctly in accordance with employment legislation.

According to the Health and Safety Executive, as many as 40% of employees suffered from work-related stress in 2011/12 across the UK, with one in five of the total visits to a GP last year relating to depression and anxiety, highlighting the growing prevalence of the issue amongst the country’s workforce.

Justine Vaughan, Founder and Director of Triangle HR, said: “Pressures at work can often give an employee motivation to work hard and succeed, but excessive pressure can, in some cases, lead to work-related stress. And, with this type of illness often being ‘invisible’ to the eye, it can be difficult for managers and senior personnel to not only identify an issue, but do so in a timely manner.”

According to Justine, some of the main causes of work-related stress include lack of managerial support or clarity of role and responsibilities, bullying in the workplace from colleagues, or even individuals with personal issues that impact them daily, all of which can add immense pressure to the rest of the workforce having to cover employee absence.

“We have seen a considerable increase in stress and anxiety-related absences during the past 12 months, which can also be triggered by managers taking action to address other issues with a staff member, such as their performance issues. Therefore, the need to really understand how best to manage and deal with employee absence is key to ensuring action is taken without delay, to avoid an absence matter becoming longer term and therefore extremely time consuming and costly for the business.

“An informal meeting with the member of staff should happen to help understand their reasons and to agree any support that you as the employer can provide to help encourage them back to work. Also, take action to tackle the causes of stress by improving the working environment, being flexible about family commitments as well as involving the team. It’s also hugely important to regularly communicate with your employees, and consider ways that might help you deal with such issues in the future”.

Return to work interviews are a must and Justine encourages employers to focus on the health and wellbeing of the employee along with the needs and priorities for the business, and following appropriate processes and procedures will enable businesses to manage appropriately.

“Illnesses are a fact of life, and taking the right action is important, so I’d urge anyone interested in finding out how they can manage sickness absence amongst employees, and also to learn skills and techniques on how to deal with this matter, to phone 01743 444007, visit www.trianglehr.co.uk or email me on justine@trianglehr.co.uk.”

We offer a full consultancy service in all areas of Human Resources and People Management and provide a professional, cost-effective solution for businesses across the region. For further information please call 01743 444007, 07801 500462 or email Justine on justine@trianglehr.co.uk

Triangle Management Training got off to a flying start earlier this year with many workshops fully booked. Feedback has been excellent and we’re delighted to announce dates for forthcoming workshops in May, June and July. These are in the areas of Managing Sickness Absence, Managing Stress, Effective Appraisals & Performance Reviews, Leadership Skills for Managers to name a few. Read on to find out more and book your place…

Our experienced trainers, all experts in their particular field, will give you all the theoretical knowledge managers need as well as the practical know-how required to implement these skills in their day-to-day role. To reserve your place call Triangle Management Training on 01743 444007 or email info@trianglehr.co.uk

May 2013

• Thursday 9th May - How to Manage Stress & Pressure in the Workplace.
• Friday 10th May - How to manage Sickness Absence (Short and Long Term).
• Thursday 16th May - You’re Hired – Effective Recruitment Tools and Techniques.
• Friday 17th May - Effective Appraisals & Performance Review Meetings.
• Wednesday 22nd May - Managing Disciplinary & Grievance Issues in the Workplace.
• Thursday 23rd May - Leadership Skills for Managers.
• Thursday 30th May - Leadership Skills for Managers.

June 2013

• Thursday 6th June - Managing Redundancies & Team Re-organisation.
• Tuesday 11th June - How to Manage Stress & Pressure in the Workplace.
• Friday 14th June - Effective Recruitment Tools and Techniques.
• Wednesday 19th June - How to Improve Poor Performance.
• Thursday 20th June - How to Manage Sickness Absence (Short and Long Term).
• Wednesday 26th June - Leadership Skills for Managers.
• Friday 28th June - Managing Disciplinary & Grievance Issues in the Workplace.

July 2013

• Thursday 4th July - Managing Stress & Pressure in the Workplace.
• Monday 8th July - Effective Recruitment Tools and Techniques.
• Thursday 11th July - Leadership Skills for Managers.
• Friday 12th July - Managing Sickness Absence (Short and Long Term).
• Tuesday 16th July - How to improve Poor Performance.
• Thursday 18th July - Effective Appraisals & Performance Review Meetings.
• Wednesday 24th July - Managing Disciplinary & Grievance Issues in the Workplace.

To reserve your place call Triangle Management Training on 01743 444007 or email info@trianglehr.co.uk

We’ve launched a low cost, easy access HR document service to help business owners and managers deal with a range of staff-related issues. A comprehensive range of up-to-date, legally compliant suite of template documents are available to order – from only £2.95 per document. These will help you manage your Human Resources in areas such as recruitment and selection, disciplinary and grievance, sickness absence and performance and capability, to name a few.

Available to all – you don’t have to be a Triangle HR client to use this service.

Though our retainer clients use a log-in facility to access them on a complementary basis we recognise the importance of providing advice and guidance to businesses requiring administrative support only, therefore for a small fee all of this is available to any business.

There are more than 200 templates available including policies and procedures, letters, forms and checklists which organisations can introduce within their own businesses as required. These template documents are priced from £2.95 each and have been designed specifically to help business owners and managers meet their legal responsibilities, whilst also helping to save valuable time and resources.

Documents are available in the following categories:

• Policies - A comprehensive resource of recommended employment policies
• Recruitment and Selection - Recommended documents to help you during the recruitment process
• New Starter - Supporting you throughout the journey of a new starter
• Personnel File - Supporting continued employment, including changes to terms and conditions, salary reviews, promotion, reference requests etc.
• Sickness Absence - Supporting the management of both Short and Long Term Sickness Absence
• Maternity and Adoption - Supporting the management of pregnancy in the workplace, maternity leave, adoption leave and related pay
• Family Friendly - Helping you manage parental leave, paternity leave and flexible working arrangements
• Grievance - Supporting you throughout the grievance process
• Disciplinary - Supporting you throughout the disciplinary process
• Redundancy - Supporting you throughout the redundancy process
• Termination of Employment - Supporting the termination of employment in relation to misconduct, ill-health, resignation, redundancy & more
• Other Leave and Absence - Helping you manage other absence including annual leave, time off in lieu, medical appointments etc.
• Health and Safety - Recommended (HSE) Health and Safety documents

For more information about this new service, or to order the specific documents you require please contact a member of the team either on 01743 444007, or by emailing info@trianglehr.co.uk 

There are a considerable number of changes in employment legislation that have taken place already in 2013. Details of those which are particularly relevant to employers are set out below.

February 2013

• For dismissals which took after 1st February, the cap on the level of weekly pay that applies to certain statutory payments, such as the basic award for unfair dismissal and statutory redundancy pay increased from £430 per week to £450.
• The cap on the compensatory award that applies in most cases of unfair dismissal  increased from £72,300 to £74,200.

March 2013

• Unpaid parental leave is available from the child’s birth and for new adoptive parents, plus others who have, or expect to have parental responsibility for a child, to be exercised within 5 years of the child’s birth or adoption, or by the time the child reaches 18 if he or she is entitled to disability living allowance. This entitlement, which is currently 13 weeks,  increased to 18 weeks with effect from 8th March.
• Universal CRB checks introduced. Following the simplification of the CRB system earlier this year, CRB checks will go online, making them portable from one job to another. Employers will be able to confirm that no new information has been added since the check was originally made, meaning an employee will not have to obtain a new check each time he or she starts a new job.

April 2013

• From 6th April, the 90 day collective consultation requirement for redundancy involving 100 or more employees within a 90 day period reduced to 45 days; and employees whose fixed-term contracts are due to expire shall be excluded from consultation requirements. The latter change builds on recent case law to the effect that employees whose fixed term contracts expire shall be excluded, unless their contracts would have been extended but for the relevant redundancy exercise.
• Also from the 6th April, statutory sick pay increased from £85.85 to £86.70, and the weekly threshold to qualify rose from £107 to £109.
• From 7th April, the standard rates of statutory maternity, paternity and adoption pay increased from £135.45 to £136.78 and the weekly earnings threshold for these payments rose from £107 to £109. Further, maternity allowance increased from £135.45 to £136.78, with the earnings threshold remaining at £30.

Watch this space…

There are a number of other employment law developments in the pipeline, but have no confirmed date as yet, however proposals are expected to progress in 2013.

• The Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill (“ERRB”), spearheaded by business secretary Vince Cable, is expected to receive Royal Assent. The EERB will implement various reforms to the employment tribunal system; permits employers to have a “protected conversation” with an employee with a view to terminating his or her employment under a settlement agreement; and allows the secretary of state to change the limit on the unfair dismissal compensatory award.
• The summer will also see clarification on whistleblowing legislation. In that the Government intends to change the law so that workers will no longer be able to bring a whistle-blowing claim relating to a breach of their own contract that is not in the public interest. There will also be a reform of the TUPE regulations, which is scheduled for October 2013.

For further advice and clarification please contact the Triangle HR team on 01743 444007.

Triangle Management Training’s carefully chosen team of highly experienced and professional trainers are all experts in their particular field, giving you all the theoretical knowledge managers need as well as the practical know-how required to implement these skills in their day-to-day role.

Click here for details of our management training workshop dates, prices and early bird booking offer

Justine Vaughan MCIPD | Founder and Director

Justine Vaughan has nearly 20 years experience in the employment field, specialising in human resource management. She offers businesses support and advice across Shropshire and the West-Midlands in her capacity as Founder and Director of Shropshire-based consultancy Triangle HR.

A Member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (MCIPD), and appointed to the committee of the Mid Wales and Shropshire CIPD group, Justine has a proven track record of managing multi-site teams and projects across a broad range of industries, from retail, manufacturing, transport services and hospitality, to pharmaceuticals, waste management, financial and legal services. As well as gaining an MA in Human Resource Management from De Montfort University, Leicester in 2004, she also holds the CIPD’s Diploma in Personnel Management and a Certificate in Personnel Practice (CPP).

Since founding Triangle HR in 2008, the company has gone from strength to strength receiving several coveted awards and expanding the services on offer, which now encompasses Human Resources, Health and Safety, Employment Law and Payroll Services.

“…Justine and her team at Triangle HR are not only lovely people, but they’re hugely knowledgeable about all employment-related issues. Thanks to their support and advice we’ve updated all of our policies and practices, have tightened up our procedures and have even grown our team. I can’t recommend Triangle HR highly enough and genuinely think the world of the whole team there…”   PR Consultancy, Shropshire

Alison Khanna | MCIPD

With 15 years experience in the industry, Alison Khanna specialises in Operational Human Resources Training. 

Hugely passionate about helping companies – especially SMEs – develop their Human Resources and people knowledge, Alison’s training ensures staff are equipped to deal with issues that may arise in the workplace, in topics such as recruitment, selection, disciplinaries, and absence management.

Her courses are engaging, participative and fun, with delegates provided with all the relevant legislative background to the subject, and then given the encouraging environment to develop the practical skills required to adhere to the law.

With a Postgraduate Diploma in Human Resources Management, Alison has experience in working with a diverse range of industries, including manufacturing, automotive, charity and education. She is also an active Member of the Shropshire and Mid-Wales branch of the CIPD.

“…Alison delivered a comprehensive but fun and participative training course that helped meet our annual business objectives for the Company’s people strategy. The net result of her expertise was a results driven year of accomplishment through a much improved approach to our organisation’s people-management. Management became competent and accountable and Alison helped improve the integrity and credibility of the HR function.” Utilities Company, West Midlands.

“… her understanding of HR legislation is second to none. I would highly recommend Alison and would be delighted to work with her again in the future.”   Business Link, Staffordshire.

Celia Payne | CIPD, EMCC, ILM 

Celia is a highly experienced and qualified trainer and executive coach with over 20 years’ experience in enabling personal and organisational development. This is underpinned by a Diploma in Training Management and an ILM Level 7 Diploma in Leadership Mentoring and Executive Coaching.

Celia has designed and delivered a range of effective Learning and Development and OD learning interventions, including 360° degree feedback, leadership competencies, coaching/action learning groups and a senior leadership development programme, which was recognised by the National Training Awards.

Celia has worked closely with a range of partners, including Real World Group, the University of Birmingham and West Midlands Councils, in the delivery of organisational and regional programmes. As a licensed trainer for the internationally recognised Springboard Women’s Development Programme, she has also worked with over 200 women to enable them to achieve their life and career goals.

She uses a range of facilitation and coaching skills to help individuals and teams develop their self-awareness and improve their performance and relationships with others. When training, coaching or facilitating, Celia is positive and enthusiastic and provides a supportive but challenging environment for learning.

“…I have attended a number of courses facilitated by Celia and I can say confidently that at all times the course content has been useful and interesting, very well presented, well explained and above all thoroughly enjoyable. Celia is an excellent presenter and a clear, concise communicator able to manage course groups of all sizes and has a strong ability to include everyone and draw people into the training to participate, engage and enjoy it whilst not forcing anyone to contribute if they are not comfortable…”   IT Project Manager, Birmingham

Denise Chilton | CPCC, ACC

An award-winning executive coach and leadership and management trainer, Denise Chilton specialises in providing training to new line managers and teams.

A regular contributor on BBC Radio, Denise is an expert in designing and delivering programmes and courses for a wide range of organisations, including Merseyside Police, National Museums and Wirral NHS. Her work with shopping channel QVC, where she designed and delivered a ‘Managing Pressure’ workshop for key leaders, has been used an example of best practice by the Health and Safety Executive.

Denise is hugely passionate in empowering individuals to facilitate the change they want for themselves and their organisations, by making them become aware of their full potential in both their professional and personal lives. Her bubbly, infectious energy makes her training fun, and impactful, and she excels in motivating people, with her natural ability to engage and connect with people at all levels.

In the last five years, Denise has worked across the North West of England with a diverse range of SMEs providing business advice, coaching and mentoring so she truly understands the challenges businesses currently face.

“…Denise is an outstanding Coach. She is at the very top of her game and gets outstanding results. She is highly inspirational, immensely personable and has the skills and attitude to make a substantial difference to her clients. She uses a variety of tools and techniques that allow you as a candidate to be challenged in a productive and helpful way. She helped me to take my business to the next level by removing a blockage that has existed for many years. Anybody wishing to develop themselves should really take the time to speak with Denise. Highly recommended…”   Managing Director, Crestcom

Clare Hall | MCIPD, ILM

A founder of her own business aged just 20, Clare Hall is a hugely experienced organisational development consultant.

An experienced IiP practitioner and an ILM-approved trainer, Clare offers leadership and senior management advisory support and coaching, both as an external trainer or an internal learning and development professional.

Although training room-based, her courses are highly participative and interactive, incorporating tools such as group discussions, DVDs, case studies, and presentations. Delegates are given full support to ensure the content and theory studied on her courses can be applied to their own management situations and workplace.

Clare has developed enviable expertise within the construction, housing and regeneration sectors, and offers help through a variety of learning and development training activities.

“…Clare is highly effective and confident when delivering training, always ensuring that attendees get the best out of any course she leads on. She has the ability to make a real difference and can support individuals and organisations to objectively look at themselves in order to bring about positive change…”   Senior Manager, West Midlands

“…Clare particularly contributed to the development of the Lovell Staff Development Programme and this flagship leadership programme is considerably the better for her input in development and support in delivery…”   National People Development Manager

Gary Hewitt | MIIRSM, AIEMA, Dip2.OSH, CMIOSH

A Chartered Health and Safety Practitioner with more than 23 years’ experience and therefore competent in managing the implementation of Health & Safety Systems, incident investigation, auditing, testing and risk assessments, along with Health & Safety Training Solutions.

Not only is Gary competent, he is qualified to National Examination Board of Occupational Safety and Health (Nebosh) Diploma 1 & 2, has specialist knowledge and experience of health and safety in construction, engineering, manufacturing, and leisure industries and is a registered trainer and instructor for nationally recognised and accredited courses (NEBOSH, CITB Site Safety Plus, IOSH, CIEH).

What makes a good manager? Experience, of course, but effective management also relies on technical know-how. From January 2013 we will be offering a series of workshops covering HR issues from managing sickness and absence to leadership skills, delivered by a team of carefully selected, experienced trainers and facilitators. 

Previously offered on a one-to-one bespoke basis, the training courses have been developed in response to client requests and give delegates an opportunity to develop their skills and share experiences in a confidential environment.

The workshops are the practical element of Triangle HR’s three part process of empowering managers, supported by:

• Access to written guidance in our Best Practice Toolkit and
• Back-up advice from our telephone support service

The workshops are suitable for business owners, managers, team leaders and supervisors.

Triangle HR Workshops

• Appraisals and Performance Review Meetings
• Best Practice Recruitment & Selection
• Competency Based Interviews
• Conflict in the Workplace
• Domestic Abuse – Managing Within the Workplace
• Employment Law Update Leadership Skills – for new Managers
• Maternity & Family Friendly Policies
• Managing Poor Performance
• Maximising your Leadership Effectiveness
• Maximising your Management Effectiveness
• Redundancies and Reorganisations
• Recognising Discrimination in the Workplace
• Sickness Absence (short and long term)
• Terminating the Employment Contract Fairly
• TUPE – Understanding the Law

Workshops and seminars are already scheduled for January, February and March 2013, so if you would like further information such as dates, costs and content please call us on 01743 444007. We look forward to hearing from you.

The government’s new Workplace Pension Scheme means that, by 2017, all companies will be required by law to contribute to their employees’ pension pots. For larger companies, the changes come into force next year with SMEs having to comply at a later date.

However, by implementing the changes early, SMEs can reap benefits in terms of cost reductions and the ability to stand out from the crowd and attract and recruit talented employees.

The scheme means that employers will need to start to put a percentage of their employees’ salaries into a pension fund for their future retirement.

The scheme has been brought in by the government for the fundamental reason that people are now living longer, and with retirement subsequently lasting up to 20 years or more for some people, the importance of being able to fund it is crucial.

Employers who don’t have an existing company pension provision will be legally obliged to enrol all employees into the new scheme who meet the following criteria:

• are aged 22 or over
• earn more than the government’s minimum salary of £8,105.00 a year
• work within the UK.

For more information about the scheme, or how it could affect your business, get in touch with the Triangle HR team on 01743 444007 or email justine@trianglehr.co.uk

Triangle HR has welcomed plans to introduce flexible parental leave – on the proviso that the proposals don’t place an unworkable administrative burden on local businesses. Justine Vaughan, Founder and Director of Triangle HR, has backed the Coalition Government’s moves to encourage flexible working practices, but warned any shake-up must be simple for employers, especially smaller firms, to implement.

Earlier this month, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg unveiled plans for a major overhaul to the laws regarding parental leave, which from 2015 would see both parents entitled to share up to a year’s leave after the birth of a child.

At present, new mothers are able to take a full 52 weeks off, nine months of which will be at statutory pay, while fathers are entitled to two weeks of statutory paternity leave of their own. Under Mr Clegg’s proposals, which are aimed at reversing the ‘clapped out rules’ he claims act as a barrier to women getting back into the workplace, the mother will take the first two weeks off after birth, with parents then being able to divide up the remainder of the maternity leave as they see fit, even taking time off together if they wish.

“This is a very forward-thinking initiative, particularly when taking into account the increased number of female entrepreneurs who run their own business, or who are actually the main ‘bread winners’ in their family,” Justine Vaughan commented. “However, the devil will very much be in the detail, and it’s essential that such changes are introduced in a way that will be fair to both the employer and the employee.

Whereas parents will be given the right to take advantage of this greater flexibility and choice, it’s essential they are as open and honest with their employers as possible, to enable the appropriate cover to be scheduled. It’s also crucial that safeguards are put in place to prevent fathers from taking legal action seeking the same rights as mothers.”

As well as the overhaul to parental leave rights, which will also see parents who adopt children given the same legal protections as biological parents – a move that could benefit around 4,000 families – Mr Clegg also announced his intention to extend the legal right to request flexible working arrangements to all employees, not just those with children or dependents.

“Again, this is a positive move, but similar to the case of flexible parental leave, one where great thought needs to be given to the practicalities. Many employers already adopt a culture that embraces flexible working practices such as working from home, job sharing, and flexi-hours, and they see the benefits such an approach can bring, including improved staff morale, increased commitment and engagement from workers, and the ability to recruit and retain top talent. In fact, research shows that extending flexible working will actually lead to a net benefit of £222.5 million to employers through increased productivity and reduced absenteeism and sickness.

“But for firms where this attitude isn’t yet commonplace, imposing flexible working arrangements simply through legislation could lead to an administrative nightmare, especially for smaller businesses,” Justine concluded.

In addition, the Deputy Prime Minister delayed plans to extend paternity leave until 2018 at the earliest, due to the current economic climate, but signalled the government’s intention to give fathers the legal right to take unpaid leave to enable them to attend two antenatal appointments.

Triangle HR offers a full consultancy service in all areas of Human Resources and People Management and provides a professional, cost-effective solution for businesses across the region. For further information please call 01743 444007 or email Justine on justine@trianglehr.co.uk.

Following a Dragons Den style event which saw social enterprises, community groups, and registered charities bid to gain invaluable access to a package of business support services, Justine Vaughan, Founder and Director of Triangle HR, offered her support for free to four of the organisations following a rigorous selection process.

The organisations who successfully secured Justine’s support are Imagematch, Citizens Advice Bureau, Women’s Aid, and the charity Landau, all of whom will receive one-on-one guidance from Justine and her team on a diverse range of HR matters including employment law, team structure and performance reviews.

Justine  said: “I am delighted to be involved in such a wonderful initiative, and to be able to offer my advice and guidance to organisations that do so much good within the local area.”

“Whilst we are extremely proud of the work we do with a range of businesses, from multi-national corporations, to owner-operated firms, I also am very much looking forward to donating my time to these four charities and giving the support and guidance they need to help them thrive, and achieve the success they deserve.”

Triangle HR offers a full consultancy service in all areas of Human Resources and People Management and provides a professional, cost-effective solution for businesses across the region.

With businesses across all industries within the UK likely to suffer from inadequate performance from staff at some time, it is vital that managers recognise the importance of regular performance reviews amongst their workforce to tackle any arising issues before they become critical.

Justine Vaughan, Founder and Director of Shropshire-based Triangle HR, offers advice and guidance on how prioritising performance can have a huge impact on a business and how it can help ensure increased productivity and profit margins…

“With reasons for employees performing poorly ranging from a lack of recognition, a lack of communication, and an actual inability to undertake the role in hand, businesses should be encouraged to consider their current review processes and how these could be enhanced for the benefit of both management and staff.

“The popular saying that ‘a firm is only as good as its people’ is certainly true, and having the wrong people in the wrong jobs can be a real recipe for disaster, resulting in inefficiencies, internal conflict, and low morale.  While many firms are finding themselves having to spend valuable resources restructuring or recruiting, a solution to this could simply be to look at their existing workforce and making sure that the right people are in the right roles to suit the needs of the business, and that staff themselves feel motivated and supported.

“Developing and maintaining an organisation that is efficient, profitable and successful requires the specific skill sets of a workforce to match the individual roles people are in, and by evaluating and appraising staff, an employer is able to clearly identify any training or other business-related needs.

“By regularly communicating with employees, managers are able to highlight any failings or inadequacies, set clear goals and expectations, and to support the employee to improve their performance or to help resolve any concerns.   For well-performing employees, regular reviews can also hugely benefit them by providing a consistent framework for recognition and reinforcement.  It also ensures that as a manager, you are considered approachable, accessible and effective.

“Many businesses undertake performance reviews on an annual basis to tie in with salary reviews, bonuses and promotions, but this can be a long time in the life of an employee and a business.  It is a much better idea to conduct reviews much more regularly, perhaps every quarter, so that any required actions from the previous appraisal can be recognised, recorded and reviewed, and any issues tackled right there and then.”

Here at Triangle HR we offer a full consultancy service in all areas of Human Resources and People Management and provides a professional, cost-effective solution for businesses across the UK. For further information please call 01743 444007, 07801 500462 or email Justine on justine@trianglehr.co.uk.