DWP – 19/10/2009 The results of a DWP test for racial discrimination in recruitment practice have been published. The test involved submitting duplicate “matched” job applications from white and ethnic minority applicants to each of 987 vacancies advertised between October 2008 and May 2009. The test was conducted in Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Glasgow, Leeds, London and Manchester, all being centres with major mixed populations. Ethnic identity was conveyed in the applications using names found to be [...]

Copyright BBC News – 27/10/2009 This BBC article says that the Communication Workers Union plans to go to the High Court to stop Royal Mail using agency staff to clear the post backlog caused by the strikes. It also says that “The law states that firms cannot recruit workers to do the job of employees called out on a legitimate strike”. Well, up to a point Lord Copper. Presumably the law to which the BBC [...]

EHRC – Copyright acknowledged The Equality and Human Rights Commission has published a report, Working Better - Fathers, family and work, which has found that many fathers are afraid to request flexible working. In what appears to be a classic instance of entitlement in theory and practice in real life being two entirely different things, the Report concludes that nearly half of all new fathers fail to take the full two weeks’ paternity leave for which they [...]

DWP Copyright acknowledged The Department for Work and Pensions has published the findings of research to test the extent of racial discrimination in the recruitment process in different areas of the British labour market. In line with techniques used in several countries, the test involved submitting matched job applications from white and ethnic minority applicants to each of 987 vacancies advertised between October 2008 and May 2009. Ethnic identity was conveyed in the applications using names [...]

Copyright DWP – 13/10/2009 The Department for Work and Pensions has published the figures for the Work Capability Assessment, which examines whether someone is fit for work or should go onto Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). Under this system, 36% of applicants were found to be fit for work, compared with 17% under the old Incapacity Benefit system. The DWP also announced the launch of the Fit for Work pilot scheme. This is designed to bring together [...]

Copyright BBC News – 15/10/2009 The CWU has announced that two 24 hour nationwide postal strikes will begin on Thursday 22 October 2009. On the first day, mail centre staff and drivers will strike, whereas on the next day it will be delivery and collection staff. Royal Mail, which is reported as having rejected a peace deal offered by the union, has apparently condemned the strikes as “an appalling and unjustified attack on customers”; for the Communication [...]

Adverse (to the employee) changes in existing terms of employment are usually made in one of three ways:- by agreement with the employee(s), possibly with a cash “sweetener”; by unilateral variation of contract terms (or of works rules applied by the contracts); or by giving required notice to terminate existing contracts and offering new contracts on new terms Choices open to an employee are:- go along with the employer’s proposals; reject them and quit, perhaps [...]

Following the final changes regards the Companies Act 2006, Net Lawman have released the newly edited Memorandum and Articles of Association for all new private companies in England and Wales. Other company documents have been edited too – staying up to date is easy. You may be interested in related documents:     Memorandum and Articles £24.00     Memorandum of Association £19.00     Subscribe To Site: Full Post Feed | Summary Feed | [...]

Changes to VAT rules for trade within the EU will be introduced from 1 January 2010, including: changes to the place- and time-of-supply rules for the cross-border supplies of services the requirement to complete quarterly EC Sales Lists for those businesses who supply goods and/or services to business customers in other European Union countries where the place of supply of those services is the customer’s country a new electronic VAT-refund procedure for cross-border supplies of [...]

BIS – 30/09/2009 New rules prohibiting the use of tips to make up the National Minimum Wage have come into effect from 1 October 2009. Business Secretary Lord Mandelson said: “When I leave a tip I don’t expect it to be used to make up the minimum wage. I want it to go to the person who has served me as a thank you for their service. This is a basic issue of fairness. Tips are [...]