Q. I have paid £5250 for some training for an employee who is now leaving, can I get that money back? If you pay for training, you may be interested in safely deducting training fees from employees who leave your business. Before offering training that you intend to...

Q. My employee has been sick while off on holiday. They requested their annual leave be added to their entitlement. Do I have to? The short answer to this question about sickness on annual leave is YES! If an employee can prove (by way of a fit note from a medical...

Employing family members It can be challenging but it can also be incredibly rewarding. The trick with employing family members is understanding that they have the same rights as any employee in your business and making sure that you start as you mean to go on.  You...

Gross misconduct... is an act which is so serious that it justifies summary dismissal, that is dismissal without notice, or pay in lieu of notice. The act or acts must be such that they destroy the relationship of trust and confidence between the employer and...

A lot of small business ask themselves - what HR documents do I need? There are so many different documents out there – some small business packages include over 100 documents! Do you REALLY need that many?! HR Documentation doesn’t need to be confusing or difficult....

Q. When is it right to suspend an employee? When considering suspension, it is important not to make any “knee jerk” reactions and demonstrate that the act of suspension and all alternatives to the suspension were given full and due consideration. Should you be in a...

Q. Is it legal to hire commission only sales people? I’ve been asked to explain the position on commission only arrangements with sales people so here goes.  I don’t want my comments to be misinterpreted so let me just say that this post is in no way intended to put...

Q. Do I have to advertise job vacancies? This is a question that has a lot of businesses and organisations scratching their heads and it’s usually posed when a vacancy comes up and there’s someone earmarked to do it.  Hopefully it’s the right person with the right...

You may find yourself wondering can we deduct money from an employee who’s leaving? The short answer is it depends, as so many things, on what it says in the contract. In fact, it depends on the terms of the contract AND where the money came from.  A few examples. Yes...

That's a question we're often asked - what type of employment contract should I be using? In a nutshell, the type of employment contract you need to use depends on the circumstances of each situation, what working pattern you want the person to have, how many hours...