Welcome to Employment Corner!
In each edition of Check-In we will explore the latest developments in Employment law and their importance to the Hotel, Hospitality & Leisure sector. In this edition, we will look at:
Right to work in the UK: The transition to digital checks
On 27 December 2021, the Home Office announced changes to right to work checks.
Right to work checks are a key consideration for the Hotel, Hospitality & Leisure sector. The sector is consistently identified as high-risk by enforcement agencies, due to the diversity of the workforce, and the potential sanctions for non-compliance with rules on illegal working are significant. Our article looks at the implementation and implications of these changes in further detail, to assist employers in understanding what they need to do.
Click here to read our article
The Great Resignation: Stemming the tide and retaining talent
One of the key challenges facing Hotel, Hospitality & Leisure sector employers in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit, is the need to attract and retain key talent. Media articles and boardrooms are full of talk of the “great resignation” – but why is it happening now, and what practical steps can businesses take to address it?
The trend undoubtedly impacts all parts of the economy, from healthcare to retail, and the phenomenon is connected to other related issues, for example the “Striketober” that hit businesses in the US late last year.
Our article looks at some of causes of this phenomenon, the issues employers face as a result and how they can manage them effectively.
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The HR Agenda for 2022: What is on the horizon?
The converging crises of a global pandemic and a climate emergency, coupled with the UK’s long-awaited exit from the European Union, gave rise to a multitude of new challenges for employers in 2020 and 2021.
In parallel, employee activism is on the rise, and Hotel, Hospitality & Leisure sector employers will have seen ESG matters (including diversity, equality and inclusion, and sustainability concerns) shoot up the boardroom agenda as the #MeToo and Black Lives Matter movements, and COP26 and the climate emergency, dominated headlines.
It has been a time of great upheaval, change and opportunity for businesses, and in this article, we look at what legal changes and challenges are on the HR agenda for 2022.
Click here to read our article
Duty on Employer to provide suitable PPE to be extended to workers from 6 April 2022
The Personal Protective Equipment at Work (Amendment) Regulations 2022 (SI 2022/8) (amended PPE Regulations), which come into force on 6 April 2022, will extend the duty to provide suitable PPE equipment where there is a health and safety risk to workers, in addition to employees. Businesses are also forbidden from charging workers for PPE, in addition to the existing protection for employees.
These legislative changes were made after it was found that, by not protecting workers in this way, the UK had failed to properly implement elements of the EU Health & Safety Framework Directive and the Council Directive on minimum health & safety requirements for PPE for workers.
Legal Updates
23 and over | 21 to 24 | 18 to 20 | Under 18 | Apprentice | |
April 2021 (current hourly rate) | £8.91 | £8.36 | £6.56 | £4.62 | £4.30 |
April 2022 (new hourly rate) | £9.50 | £9.18 | £6.83 | £4.81 | £4.81 |
Case Law
We have had a number of recent decisions in the employment courts which should be of interest to employers in the Hotel, Hospitality & Leisure sector.
Launch of Bird & Bird's Employment Law Zone App 2.0
We have recently re-launched our Employment Law Zone app. The app is a one-stop source of essential employment law information in the 19 countries around the globe where Bird & Bird offers employment law advice. It will be useful for HR professionals and in-house legal counsel in international Hotel, Hospitality & Leisure businesses, who often need to understand the legal landscape in many countries and sets out to create a quick reference guide, which is easily accessible anywhere from your mobile phone. The Q&A function provides quick and easy answers and includes 55 topics and 19 countries, with topics including parental leave, working hours, discrimination to trade unions to vacation, salary, background checks and much more. The app also includes a resources section which contains links to our key publications such as “Horizon scanning”, “Remote working guide”, “Global restructuring projects” and more.
The App is online and available to download on both Apple and Android.