Policy & procedures design or review, management & strategy, specialist project support, onsite & offsite HR
Policy design, reviews & audits, site inspection, accident investigation, mitigating risk, IOSH training
Enhancing capabilities, cultivating high-performing teams, transforming team effectiveness
Strategy development, culture & change, employee engagement, succession planning, DEI
Management development, coaching, workshops & online learning academy
Confidential calls & reporting, secure case management, policy best practice & compliance
Expert tax, audit & advisory services
Financial planning, cash flow modelling, retirement planning
Read about AAB People
Meet the specialists
Join the AAB People team
Latest news from across AAB People
Our latest industry insights
Explore insightful client stories
Managing remote teams, remote onboarding, virtual onboarding
AAB People / Sectors / Food & Drink
Today the food sector is one of the largest and most important areas of economic productivity in almost every country in the world. With expanding consumer demand, businesses can naturally be exposed to unsafe and illegal practices across their service industry.
Such practices have seen an increase in food recalls triggered by greater consumer awareness and increased regulation about the safety of foods. This has resulted in many businesses and food service providers introducing measures to protect their businesses and enhance their food safety programmes.
To combat unethical practice, many businesses have instructed their suppliers to provide them with assurances by obtaining a standard in global food safety such as the BRC global standard. The BRC Global Standard for safety is a certification standard for compliance to industry best practices.
As recently documented in version 8 of the BRC Global Standards, a vital component in these standards is the assurance that businesses introduce –
A robust whistleblowing solution is one of the most effective means to deter wrongdoing in an organisation. These standards provide a much-needed steer for Directors and Senior Management across the food service industry to move food safety and the fight against unethical practices up their corporate agenda.
It is vital to the success of any whistleblowing programme that staff are aware of their protections under relevant whistleblowing legislation and feel comfortable to come forward and speak up.
In the UK, The Public Interest Disclosure Act protects whistleblowers from detrimental treatment if they expose wrongdoing. The UK Food Standards Agency applies the same level of protection to personnel who disclose a qualifying disclosure such as a criminal offence, a breach of a legal obligation or a danger to the health and safety of any individual.
Here are our tips for implementing a whistleblowing system in a workplace:
AAB People provides a global whistleblowing service. If you would like more information on how we can help your business please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Proud to support a diverse range of clients
Start-ups. SMEs. Large organisations. Business owners and directors. Charities.
Building line management capability. Planning and managing talent support an organisation. Improving HR functions. Employee relations management. Employment law compliance. Optimising HR processes. HR framework implementation. Pre-employment checks. Salary Benchmarking & Reports. Recruitment and onboarding. Investigations, Panel and Appeals in disciplinary and grievances. Restructure and redundancies.
Family Business. Not for Profit. Construction & Property. Business Services. Food & Drink. Leisure, Retail & Hospitality. Technology. Public Sector.
Katie Armstrong is an HR Consultant within AAB People – a role in which she takes ownership of projects and looks after all employee relations and employment matters such as disciplinaries, investigations, restructures and various matters in the employment life cycle.
Working with clients’ internal teams, Katie’s areas of responsibility cover a vast range of matters. She provides expert advice to clients on all employee relations matters, from small issues to large and complex cases regarding legal compliance.
“In my opinion, the ideal relationship with a client would be one that is professional, and where they know they can come to me at any time. It’s important for the relationship to remain honest, whether things are getting tough or when things are going well. I like clients to be very clear with me about what exactly it is they want, and I ensure that I’m very clear with them how we do it and how we do it right. Honesty and transparency are probably the most important things to me when it comes to an ideal client relationship.
I also want my relationships with clients to be friendly! I have really positive relationships with clients; we get on really well. Often, there’s a personal relationship that goes along with our professional relationship.”
“Clients expect a friendly face from me, but they also expect me to be honest with them, and realistic about what is achievable. They also know I’ll always get back to them within a good time frame, particularly if it’s regarding a stressful situation. Ultimately, my role is to understand and acknowledge their situation and find the right solution for them.”
“I really appreciate the varied nature of my work, as well as the relationships I build with clients. Each of my clients are different, with different needs. I enjoy getting to know my clients and working with them to find out what’s best for them. A lot of my clients are family-run businesses, where the impact on them when things don’t go to plan is considerable, so it’s very satisfying to be able to help fix their problems and take away that stress as much as I can.”
“In terms of working with colleagues, we’re very close! Everyone on the team is very friendly and supportive, so I know I can go to them about anything, and vice versa. We always pick up the phone to each other, and we always share our expertise which helps everyone to develop their professional knowledge.”
“I appreciate the virtual methods of communication for their speed and efficiency, and for allowing me some time to process whatever information is being shared. But the social side of client relationships is important too, which face-to-face meetings help with. So, I like a blend of different kinds of communication if possible, but it depends on how the client prefers to operate.”
“One of the main challenges in my field of work is that it can be difficult to handle complex situations sometimes. For example, disciplinaries and grievances are very time-consuming, complex, and can be very emotionally draining situations for the people involved and the client. I know that these situations can be challenging and sometimes quite damaging for people on all sides of the issue.
So, in terms of how I respond, it’s about being as professional and commercial as possible. It’s not always possible to make everyone happy in these complex processes, but I aim to be calm, realistic, and communicate in the most thoughtful way possible. I will always try do the right thing and try to make sure that everybody sees the different sides and the benefits of the situation. It’s usually best to try and handle things commercially, and get the situation wrapped up quickly, to avoid it becoming prolonged and painful.”
“One of the great things about AAB People is that there’s opportunities – and a really clear pathway – for growth. Working at AAB People offers plenty of exposure to different aspects of the role, and a wide range of experience to help develop knowledge and expertise.”
Following the general election and the appointment of a new Labour Government, we can expect upcoming changes in employment law. A “New Deal for Working People” was a key element of Labour’s campaign, committed to giving voices to workers, improving their terms and conditions, and ensuring protections at work.
Labour has pledged to implement this new deal within the first 100 days of being in power, setting a deadline of October. However, the comprehensive details of the plan have not been released yet, and further development is needed over the coming months. We view this as an evolving situation and believe it is unlikely the entire plan will be fully operational within this ambitious timeline due to the need for further clarity and consultation on procedural requirements. Within the new deal, Labour outlined significant changes to be implemented and we have set out a brief summary of some of these below. However, it’s important to remember that it would be premature to make structural changes to your organisation as the evolving situation is exactly that, evolving. With no certainty in this area, our advice is for everyone to keep calm, don’t panic but keep yourself appraised of the situation. That’s why we’ve pulled together some key highlights of what’s been shared so far.
Employees will have increased rights from day one, eliminating qualifying periods for unfair dismissal, flexible working, sick pay, and parental leave.
Currently, there is a three-day waiting period before employees are entitled to statutory sick pay, but the Government plans to make this a day-one right, which could be implemented quickly given that similar measures were temporarily introduced during the pandemic.
Although no more qualifying periods for unfair dismissal is proposed, we do not see this being an easy thing to implement quickly and Government will need further clarity, and consultation on the procedural requirements before it can be brought into force. If implemented, it is important to note that this will not prevent fair dismissal, organisations will still be able to operate probationary periods and the aim of this change will be to ensure that new employees are not dismissed without reason and will help to drive standards within workplaces.
Labour has proposed to move towards a single status of ‘worker’ instead of employees, workers and self-employed having different levels of employment rights and protection. This will mean that all workers will have equal employment rights and we believe this could be difficult to implement due to the complexity of determining the employment rights each category of worker currently has, and therefore, we would expect this to fall outside of the 100 days that Labour has committed to.
The Labour Government proposes to make the National Minimum Wage (NMW) reflect the real Living Wage and will remove the age bandings attached to NMW which they believe to be discriminatory to ensure every worker is entitled to the same living wage. If implemented, this could mean organisations being required to give pay rises to their workers. It is likely that this will not be put into action until 2025 as NMW rates are annually reviewed and typically released in April each year. Any proposed changes or new implementations we would expect to align with this timeline.
Labour proposes to make significant changes to the zero-hour contracts, they aim to ban exploitative zero-hour contracts to ensure all jobs have a baseline level of security and predictability and that workers have the right to a contract that properly reflects their regular hours of work. It is important to know that this change will not prevent organisations from offering fixed-term contracts which are important in industries that offer seasonal work.
Labour has proposed to end ‘fire-and-rehire’ so that workers can properly negotiate their terms and conditions with their employers.
It will become mandatory to report on disability and ethnicity pay gaps to tackle workplace inequalities. Many larger organisations are already reporting on this, and it will only be mandatory for organisations of 250 employees or more, suggesting that this change may not significantly impact workplaces.
Even though the reporting requirement for disability and ethnicity pay gaps is mandatory for organisations with 250 employees or more, smaller organisations should also be vigilant and ensure they are compliant. By adhering to these standards, even smaller organisations can contribute to combating discrimination in the workplace and promoting equality. This proactive approach not only aligns with legal obligations but also fosters an inclusive and fair work environment for all employees, regardless of the organisation’s size.
Labour has proposed to strengthen trade union rights. They plan to implement new rights designed to empower unions in their efforts to recruit, organise, and secure improved conditions for their members. These measures include streamlining the process for unions to gain official recognition, ensuring a fair right of entry for union activities within workplaces, and enhancing protections for union representatives and officials.
Given the significant impact of these changes, trade unions will naturally want to be actively involved in the development and implementation of these changes. Their participation is crucial to ensure that the measures are effective and truly beneficial for their members. Therefore, this collaborative process is likely to extend the timeline for these changes to come into action, as it will require thorough discussions, negotiations, and potential adjustments based on union feedback.
As we adapt to a new Labour Government, it is crucial for us to stay updated on the latest developments and understand their implications for our clients. We are dedicated to ensuring our clients remain well-informed and supported during these transitions in employment law. Our commitment is to provide guidance and assistance in navigating any forthcoming changes, ensuring that our clients are equipped to manage them effectively.
In the meantime if you have any questions or need further information, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with James Richardson, or your usual AAB People contact.
Leaders within organisations.
Supporting leaders to improve and build their own capabilities. Problem-solving. Advising clients on problems and opportunities. Fine tuning what clients really need and working alongside them to deliver results.
All sectors.
Based in Belfast, Emer Hinphey is a Partner in AAB People. Emer was the CEO and Co-Founder of Think People Consulting, which has become part of AAB People. Emer’s approach is the same as AAB People’s: practical and pragmatic; bespoke to the size, culture, and objectives of each unique organisation. Emer works with the team to develop and implement business-propelling people and culture solutions and sustaining lasting partnerships with clients, many of whom Emer has worked with for years, even decades!
“I have a history of building strong, honest relationships with clients, some of which I can now call friends. It’s hugely rewarding to help a client either individually or for the sake of the business, to bounce off ideas and develop approaches that optimise opportunities for them in the short and long term. I really thrive in client facing work and have enjoyed the opportunity to work across industry sectors and with scaling business to global PLCs. It can be challenging at times to juggle the differing demands, I really enjoy the range of work involved – it suits my personality and certainly never gets boring!”
“We’re a people-centred business but tech is certainly where a lot of the future opportunities lie. We’re benefitting greatly from a tech-enabled approach that sees us delivering leadership programmes around the world.
We also work on global face to face projects. One of our high-profile global clients recently commented on an event we ran for 120 of their leaders coming together from around the world: “this is the best quality event we have run for many years.” We can be perceived as small being based on the island of Ireland, but I’m proud that the knowledge and skills we have as team and AAB Group are world class!”
“Having co-founded a business myself, I bring an entrepreneurial mindset to the job and can relate to the feelings and situations that a lot of my clients experience. Being a leader requires a level of assertiveness, bravery, and an ability to make sure your voice is heard in a way that people respect and hear you. I believe the success of our client base is a testament to the level of new thinking we bring to an organisation and individual, no matter where they are in their journey.”
“It’s important that HR people see themselves as businesspeople and build the expertise required to deliver genuinely differentiating commercial and strategic solutions for the organisation. The industry is improving but there’s still a long way to go – if we can learn anything from the past few years, it’s that people and culture need to be seen as a strategic component, not just firefighting!”
Any private or public sector organisation.
Whistleblowing Service. Fraud Prevention and Investigation.
Food & Drink. Retail. Healthcare Not for Profit.
Louise Cheyne is a Whistleblowing Assistant Manager. Her role is to implement confidential whistleblowing arrangements for our clients to enhance their corporate governance and ethical framework.
Based in Aberdeen, Louise works with clients from various industries to provide their employees, subcontractors’, and third-party members with a safe confidential space to report any concerns they have of unethical behaviours that are occurring in their workplace. Alongside the team she helps clients to identify, prevent and deter unethical behaviour, assist them with promoting a culture of honesty and transparency across their organisation by providing their employees with a safe and supportive environment for them to raise concerns.
“We mainly work with our clients HR departments to support them with delivering a robust whistleblowing arrangement for their organisation, but we also work with compliance officers, health and safety officers and finance managers who are responsible for investigating reports received through our services. The type of service we provide means that these clients expect us to deliver their services with minimal input from them. As our services are focussed on their employees, they expect us to support their staff when they contact us but also ensure that we gather all the relevant information to enable a thorough investigation into the allegations of wrongdoing.
“An ideal relationship with a client is one where both parties work together to deliver the services that benefit their employees whilst also enhancing the organisations corporate governance. This is what I always strive for.”
“The services we provide our clients is always virtual. We provide our clients employees with hotline numbers and online web forms that their employees can use to make a confidential disclosure. This can be a challenge, in that we need to ensure that our services are known to our clients’ employees. We respond to this challenge by providing a suite of marketing materials to allow employers to promote the services across their workplace locations.
The aspect I find most satisfying about working with our clients is that the services we provide help our clients to improve the culture in the workplace. Whistleblowing is often viewed in a negative light when it should be considered a positive. Blowing the whistle enables employers to know what is going on in their business and allow them to put in place the appropriate corrective measures.”
“The greatest compliment that a client has paid me came from a whistleblower who stated that without our services they would not have felt empowered to raise their concern with their employer. I believe that my ability to listen and understand our clients’ frustrations and deliver a solution that helps their business is one of my greatest strengths. I have a genuine passion for my role and helping my clients and am excited to continue to learn more about my industry to allow us to continue to deliver exceptional service to our clients and their employees.”
Any Private or Public Sector Organisation.
Government. Leisure. Hospitality & Retail. Financial Services. Industrial. Food and Drink. Healthcare. Public & Third Sector.
Sean McAuley is the Senior Manager of our specialist Whistleblowing team. The service gives clients a comprehensive set of safe and secure reporting channels that their employees can access should they have any concerns about unethical behaviour which may be occurring in their organisation. Employees can speak to a trained call handler in confidence, 24/7, 365 days a year.
Sean’s role is to forge and manage relationships with clients who use the service around the UK and worldwide. He also plays a central role in shaping and growing the business, looking for innovations in its service delivery and ensuring clients receive the services in accordance with their unique service needs. Based in Aberdeen, Sean also heads up the firm’s Fraud Prevention and Investigative Service where he advises on policies and procedures and undertakes comprehensive fraud risk assessments to organisations. Sean is a member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.
“I worked in local government for more than two decades investigating widespread fraud before AAB asked me to join them and manage the whistleblowing services. I’m an organised, innovative individual with extensive experience both as a counter-fraud manager and in project management. I’m a certified Fraud Investigations Manager and a member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) so AAB knew I had all the experience they needed to do a great job for them. Now with the fantastic support of AAB and my team, we have grown the business to the essential service that it is today.”
“I think I’m quite a dogmatic person. If there’s something I want to do, I will persevere until I get there. But on the other side of the coin, I’m also very approachable and a good communicator. So when I’m dealing with people, I think they warm to me and find me easy to get on with.
I would also say that I’m loyal – something that I believe is incredibly important in any organisation. Clients need to know that you’re invested. That you’ll still be there when they need you. And they want someone they can trust. It’s all about giving them confidence really.”
“Although I have extensive experience in fraud and whistleblowing, this is my first role where business development is a fundamental and key area in delivering services. This is why building relationships with our clients is important. I’m open, transparent and ensure that I’m always there for them. And when someone shows an interest in my service, I want to be reactive and give our clients as much useful information as I can to ensure that their services are provided in accordance with their unique service needs. I think in doing that we offer a service that’s discreet, sensitive, professional and really important. And I’m proud of that.”
“Trust, impartiality, and protection are the three key areas that both define, and are embedded in, our whistleblowing services. We build trust by supporting whistle-blowers with empathy and understanding throughout their journey. Listening to employees without bias and taking no sides in the raising of whistleblowing reports is key to building trust and reflecting our independence and confidentiality. This is why putting time into these key crucial areas ensure we continually improve our services for our clients now and into the future. Having the right resources in place with the right expertise and experience embodied with the right technology will continue to allow us to grow and thrive, while allowing it to become one of the most valued whistleblowing service providers across the globe.”
Lauren Farrell
HR Consultant
Belfast
Business Owners & Directors. SMEs. Medium-Sized Companies. Large Organisations.
Outsourced HR Function. HR Strategy. Building Line Management Capability. Team Well-Being. Employee Relations Management. Employment Law Compliance. Optimising HR Processes. Early Conciliation, Mediation & Conflict Resolution.
Leisure, Retail & Hospitality. Food & Drink. Construction & Property. Family Business. Public Sector.
As an HR Consultant, Lauren Farrell’s role is a varied one, and she is responsible for a wide range of her clients’ HR needs.
Sometimes these are of a routine or day-to-day nature, where a client is part of our retained group. Sometimes these are more on an ad hoc basis where a client engages the team for specific projects that are perhaps a little complex, and the client is seeking professional and expert guidance to ensure compliance and best practice. These can be anything from grievances and disciplinaries to redundancies and sickness absences. Lauren helps her clients navigate these issues, and manages the processes from beginning to end.
Her main responsibilities include supporting as a secondary consultant for a number of our retained clients to help with recruitment, employee conduct, and capability issues. She also reviews and advises on policies and procedures. Lauren specialises in ‘right to work’ queries including visa and sponsorship queries, fair employment monitoring and sickness absence.
“For me, the most important thing in a relationship with a client is that they trust me. Building that trust can take time and sometimes it can be challenging, purely through the fact that we may not see them or interact every day. But it really is so important that they feel they can trust us and the advice that we give them – that they know it’ll be objective, well thought through, and informed by knowledge and experience.”
“We’ll always give our clients all the options that are available to them and offer our opinion on which would be the best course of action. Of course, they do not have to take our advice – our role is certainly not telling them what to do – but hopefully they know that we always try to be objective, and that we’re there to answer any queries or questions on anything at all. I’m here to advise, and work collaboratively with my clients. So, it’s always nice when a client values us and our advisory capacities, and it really helps foster a positive relationship.”
“Clients expect legally compliant and objective advice, as well as someone they can approach no matter what the issue. It goes without saying that our advice has to be based on correct information, and it is. We have a great team to sense check things from if we’re not sure and I think it’s also important to be able to be honest if we’re not 100% sure on something, especially as things can change so quickly in our area – there’s always someone in the team that will have the answer! It’s great when clients understand this – that we would always want to make sure that the advice we’re giving is as informed and comprehensive as possible. We would never simply pretend we’re immediately sure on something if we aren’t. Our client’s trust, giving quality advice, and honesty and transparency… these are too important to us to do that. So, if we do have to go away to double check something, it’s because we want to ensure we’re delivering the absolute best for our client.”
“We have a collaborative mindset for everything we do – our work would not be the same without it. The nature of being a consultant can be quite independent because I’ll be looking after a client who won’t be being looked after by anyone else, but we are a team! We have a whole team of consultants behind us who all have their own expertise and experience that we can all draw from and benefit from. And that’s how we all continue to learn and develop even greater understanding on various topics and situations.
Everyone is always so willing to jump on a call and help you with something – and if someone wants to get experience on a particular subject or project, we can introduce them to a client as a team member who will be assisting with it. We’re always willing to help each other, however we each might need.”
“On a personal level, I love when I feel like I’m truly making a difference to a person’s life – like being able to reduce their stress and worries, or solve a problem for them that’s been keeping them up at night.
It’s fantastic to see the tangible contribution that we’re make to companies, and see how the changes they’ve implemented with our support have benefited them over time and helped them to move in a positive direction with their staff and strategic goals.”
Onboarding is a part of the recruitment process that can often be forgotten and underutilised. Relationships at work are so important and the onboarding process is often the first introduction new starts will have with your team. Therefore, the integration opportunity here cannot be denied.
In this article, we’ll be diving into onboarding so you can ensure new starts have the best start to life in your organisation. We’ll be covering:
Employee onboarding is a process that encompasses everything required when a new team member joins your organisation. Through this process, the individual will receive training, information resources and more to help them establish themselves in their role.
Typically, this process is kicked off when a candidate accepts their first offer and ends after the induction period is over.
Starting a new role can be overwhelming and daunting for candidates. An onboarding plan can help them to acclimatise to your organisation, their role and help them to get an understanding and feel for the company culture.
Onboarding isn’t just beneficial for the new team member- it can be a game changer for the rest of the team too. When you take the time to properly onboard someone, you’re not only helping them get up to speed on your organisation but also setting the tone for their success. By providing clear expectations, resources, and support from their very first day you create a strong foundation for a team that can work together to achieve amazing things. The team involved will benefit as they’ll be able to provide training, reflect on processes, improve communication, and strengthen bonds. It’s a great chance for them to also learn and share knowledge.
Think about it like this- your new start might have had a 3 month notice period before joining your team. If you have a slick and smooth onboarding process you can spend that 3 months getting to know your employee and having regular touch points before they join. However, without one you leave your employee semi-in-the-dark until they start their first day.
First impressions, as they say, are everything. So, you want this really important step in the employee lifecycle to get off to the best start possible. We always recommend communication with candidates before their start date- you can achieve this by staying in contact through email or by phone until their first day. Having their line manager reach out and introduce themselves is essential if they’ve not already met through the hiring process.
The onboarding process is crucial to the new start as it provides an insight into the company culture before their first day, builds relationships and reduces stress for the individual, allowing them to feel comfortable and confident in their new role.
As well as being beneficial to the new start, the onboarding process is important for the organisation as a whole. It can improve employee retention rates through the new start feeling supported, engaged and connected at the beginning of their working relationship, they are more likely to stay with the company longer-term. As a result, this can reduce turnover costs. Additionally, providing the candidates with contracts, policies and procedures reduces organisational risk to legal / regulatory issues and ensures a compliant work environment from day one.
There are no set requirements for an onboarding process. The most important thing is that your process is unique to your organisation and doesn’t feel disjointed or disingenuous to who you are and what you stand for. To ensure you have it all covered we recommend that you follow the 5 c’s of onboarding.
Onboarding should not be a forgotten task or even one that has less importance in the new starter journey. It can be a key to success when utilised properly. When you focus on the 5 Cs of onboarding, you’ll be able to create a seamless onboarding journey that ensures your new team members are set up for success.
Our team of specialists can help you create a bespoke onboarding journey that integrates your new starts seamlessly into your team. Creating a positive work culture and workplace that your people are proud to work within.
If you have any queries about how to create a successful onboarding process please do not hesitate to get in contact with Rhona Macleod, or your usual AAB People contact.
The prospect of a UK General Election in 2024 means we may see new items on the agenda which businesses will need to navigate this year, in addition to any legislative updates already on the calendar.
Employee wellbeing is high on the agenda for political parties, and we can look to other countries for inspiration on what could be done here in the UK. One topical change we’ve seen is around the theme of the “Right to Disconnect.”
The increase in flexibility at work with more and more employees working from home has blurred the lines between personal and work life. It can be difficult to separate work and life when you’re working from home which brings a consideration for the ‘right to disconnect’.
It seeks to protect workers health and wellbeing from things like burnout and mental health problems caused by stress by putting in place strong policies and legislation for organisations to follow. Employees are given ‘permission’, to disengage from work outside of their normal working hours. As a result, once employees are off the clock they should not receive or be required to answer any work-related calls, messages, or emails. Effectively allowing employees to revert back to a time, where when you left the office you did not have access to your emails again until the next morning.
With ever increasing countries moving closer to giving their workforce the ability to outright refuse to take on any more work once their workday has ended, similar laws are already in place with our European neighbours (France, Italy, and Belgium) and Australia is looking to be the next country in line to pass a bill in Government.
The Australian Prime Minister recently said referencing their recent proposed bill:-
“We are simply saying someone who is not paid 24 hours a day, shouldn’t be penalised if they’re not online and available 24 hours a day.”
The right to disconnect aims to create a new shared approach to work communication that will not hinder flexible working. At the same time, it allows people to switch off to their workday outside of their working hours.
Work-life balance is a phrase we often hear. People want to work to live and not live to work, which is perfectly understandable. The right supports employees to have a better work-life balance which allows for everyone in an organisation to truly excel. Enabling employees to bring their best and most productive self to work each day is something employers should strive to achieve.
It isn’t just about enacting policies or regulations; it’s about fostering a cultural shift that prioritises work-life balance and mental well-being. Without a cultural change, simply mandating time away from work devices may not effectively address the underlying issues of overwork and burnout. Embracing the RTD means acknowledging that employees are more productive and healthier when they have time to recharge outside of work hours.
Encouraging a healthy work/life balance can help to boost your organisations reputation. A positive reputation can help you to attract and retain top talent. We know it’s becoming increasingly more difficult for employers to attract and retain, not forgetting the costs to recruit, both monetarily and time invested in training new employees.
While Australia is looking to implement this now it is not a novel concept. In fact, France was the first country to implement the right to disconnect in 2017. It is something that has been implemented in multiple countries such as Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Canada. In each country, the law is slightly different.
The UK Labour party previously stated that they would like to legislate a right to disconnect policy. It’s likely that their manifesto for the general election this year will be largely focused on employees and the workplace, knowing that it’s something current workforces regard as highly important.
The case for the right to be implemented is not too dissimilar to the case for a 4-day working week. While there’s pros and cons to both it does raise the question, are we missing an opportunity to revolutionise and redesign our approach to the way we work, whilst building a culture of employee wellbeing? With more countries implementing these laws it shows that there has been a shift, and more importance is being placed on employee wellbeing.
The UK implementing the right to disconnect will not fix wellbeing. Why? Because wellbeing cannot be fixed by one singular action, it needs continued effort, and to be weaved through the framework of every organisation. It would however be a continued step in the right direction.
If you have any queries about how to create a work life balance for your team or implementing a 4 day working week, please do not hesitate to get in contact with Michael Black, or your usual AAB People contact.
Workplace wellbeing encompasses activities, programs, policies and strategies that aim to promote both positive physical and psychological health at work. However, many also overlap with personal wellbeing outside of work because, let’s face it, employees can’t maintain good wellbeing at home but not at work and vice versa.
Workplace wellbeing has become increasingly important within many organisations in recent years with the rise of hybrid working and the knowledge of research that shows 34% of people say work is the biggest cause of stress in their lives.
The last few years have seen many businesses, either collapse or make mass redundancies, often without notice. This news can establish uncertainty in people that may have been a loyal employee for many years, let alone relatively new employees or people working in start-up businesses.
Since the pandemic, both job and financial security have become big worries for millions of people. Whilst no company can be completely sure that they won’t ever have to make redundancies, they can put backup plans and strategies in place to support employees through these difficult times. This can be as simple as ensuring that a reasonable notice period is given to employees to find new jobs and fair redundancy settlements are provided.
As many organisations are currently feeling the pinch on their finances, it can make it harder to fairly compensate employees and stay afloat. Some tips employers can follow to make sure employees are fairly compensated can include: benchmarking job salaries against national or regional averages for the same positions, analysing your gender and ethnicity pay gaps as well as the diversity of your workforce across the organisational structure, implementing career progression and skills development strategies for everyone so that they can increase their career and earning potential, and investing in an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) that is rich and diverse in benefits and perks that employees can make use of.
Support covers so many aspects of workplace wellbeing. Ensuring professional support to help employees develop and improve skills or further their career, or emotional or physical support in times of need (for example, financial difficulty, experiencing problematic behaviour, ill-health or simply giving any sort of advice). Support is something that not only senior leaders must be ready to provide but one that all employees can work on.
The bottom line is, if employees don’t feel supported, they are more likely to leave or suffer in silence, which could result in higher levels of absenteeism and presenteeism and lower levels of productivity.
A good work-life balance can mean something completely different to each person, making this almost impossible for organisations to get right when they look to make adjustments in the workplace. However, sometimes simply giving people open options such as the choice to work completely remotely and discussing individual needs like certain days or times off for childcare is one of the best ways to try and cater to a range of different needs.
Both physical and mental health of people has taken a front seat in the last few years. Enhanced sick leave policies that also integrate the need for people to take time off for mental health reasons, EAPs that provide benefits such as private healthcare, access to online GPs, free sight and hearing tests, and general compassion and understanding for those with health issues or who are carers, are all gradually more standard and sought after requirements for employees. However, currently only 25% of UK companies have an employee well-being programme in place.
Stress is one of the biggest causes of long-term sickness, every year millions of working days in the UK are lost due to work related stress. Absence is very expensive for employers due to the loss of productivity and the associated costs of paying sick pay to the absent employee and paying for temporary cover for the employee’s work, whether by employing additional staff or paying existing staff overtime. Where employees experience stress this is likely to have other serious consequences for the workplace. Stress can result in poor performance, low morale, accidents, costly tribunals, and civil claims against the employer.
With all this in mind – What can you do as leaders to prevent workplace stress?
It is good practice to take steps to reduce the risk that stress may occur within your organisation, even where you do not consider that any of your employees are currently experiencing stress related symptoms. You could take the following steps to help to prevent stress:
Health is a key area many employees find they encounter the most troubles with when it comes to disputes with their employers. To tackle these, employers must make sure that they have a better understanding of different disabilities or health issues, what constitutes discrimination based on them and how they can prevent mental health problems or support those with them, especially if they are as a result of workplace bullying, discrimination or harassment. How are employers tackling the cause of the problems as well as the consequences?
Another effective strategy is the implementation of wellbeing awareness training and workshops which address specific concerns, such as burnout, stress management, and the unique challenges posed by women’s health issues such as menopause. These sessions offer practical, sustainable solutions and foster a sense of community and support among employees. Unlike digital tools, they require active participation, which can lead to longer lasting impacts on health and wellbeing. Over and above empowering the workforce, providing employees with knowledge and specific tools to manage their health proactively, they create a culture of inclusion, fostering confidence and helping employees feel truly valued.
If you have any queries about workplace wellbeing please do not hesitate to get in contact with Donna Wrigglesworth, or your usual AAB People contact.
