Two thirds of companies recently studied have admitted they are asking potential employees about their health.  What is shocking about this procedure is that in two months it will be illegal for companies to ask about a potential employee%u2019s health.  It used to be companies could have a pre-employment health questionnaire, but this has changed with a passing of a new regulation under employment laws. 
In October the Equality Act was based in order to ban companies from screening potential employees regarding health.  The act states candidates are no longer going to have to declare any medical issues they may have.  This is during the recruitment state.  There is a caveat to the act.  Employees must admit to a health issue if it relates to the job role.  In other words, if an employee would be asked to lift 50 pounds and they have a medical issue which makes that impossible they would have to declare it. 
Equality campaigners argued successfully that it was discriminatory to be asked about their health issues whether mental, disability or long history of illness.  It has to a degree made it more difficult to apply for a job because people are unwilling to expose such issues.  At the moment 65 percent of employers are still asking for health issues to be declared before the job offer stage.  About 48 percent of these people have asked for a questionnaire to be filled out regarding medical conditions and illness records. 
It%u2019s true these companies still have two months before the equality act comes into play, but one would think they would start cleaning up their act to begin following the new employment law.  There will be severe penalties for companies if they fail to comply once the act is in effect.  At the very least they will have to modify the questionnaire they make potential employees fill out.  Some individuals are worried companies are hiring now in order to get employees that are asked to declare health issues before the act is in place.  After the law is enforced they can no longer find out about health issues unless it pertains to the job offer.
 

Plenty is going on with employment laws at the moment.  The coalition government has decided to review some of the employment laws to cut down on some of the red tape.  Business organisations are happy with this move as they feel it will help growth and get Britain out of the recession.  The Trade Union Congress or TUC believes it is not the review of employment laws and growth that will bring the country out of recession. 
TUC believes instead that there is a need for stronger employee rights and flexible working hours which will help provide a productive labour market.  The General Secretary of the TUC stated there are alternative methods to having laws laid out with clarity, but for a favourable collective bargaining things must change.  He cited countries like Germany where workers%u2019 groups have a stronger say in companies.  He feels if the United Kingdom had something to that effect it might encourage workers to come to work on time, to be more organised and to enjoy their jobs a bit more. 
Barber stated the trade union views for greater employment regulation have changed in the last 20 years.  There was a time where trade union membership was declining.  In fact 40 years ago it began a decline.  A lot of this decline occurred because of anti- union legislation at the time.  It made it more difficult for the union members to organise strikes, as well as have a say in how companies are run. 
There are definitely some pluses to having the union take part in the reformation of employment laws.  However, this regulation will not help certain businesses.  The small and medium sized businesses are not going to see much help, especially since they are not unionised.  Some spokes people for labour laws feel that constant change is what is needed to help both the small and large organisations.  Yet, businesses are worried about the endless changes since it can be difficult to keep within the laws.  They do not want more issues taken to the employment tribunal because of the constant changes. 
 

A charity of the United Kingdom has stated a clarification regarding employment law must be made.  This clarification is to be based on retirement age.  Michelle Mitchell lives in the UK and has plans to see the retirement age clarified.  There are new plans in the works that might affect individuals who are getting closer to the current retirement age.  Mitchell plans on stopping the phasing out of men and women in a place of business who are nearing retirement.  It could end up throwing many lives into a tailspin. 
Mitchell stated that allowing employers to force people to retire will waste the older set%u2019s skills and expertise.  It also undermines the government regarding employment laws and getting working lives extended.  Mitchell feels a clear timetable for retirement and when pensions are paid out should be provided.  Guidelines must be in place and adhered to for staff and employers to stop the confusion that has already set in. 
A study by Aviva found 31 percent of UK workers stop their employment around 61 to 65.  29 percent of people polled stated they want to work until 66 or 70.  These older individuals feel they have the stamina to work till this age, and should be allowed to do so.  Simply put, the current economic situations make it necessary for the retirement age to be older.  Older generations are running out of money because they are living longer, but losing their money in investments. 
Certain older generations who have not retired have actually lost their retirement accounts due to stock market issues.  They now have to work longer.  If employers make this difficult there will be more foreclosures, as well as struggling younger generations.  The younger generations would have to take out loans to help their aging family members due to lack of support. 
This is why Mitchell and others in charities around the UK are asking for the government to make some clear laws for employees to help the older generations keep their jobs and stop employers from terminating those who reach a certain age.  Unfortunately, the changes will probably be slow in coming.
 

A claim that UK schools are breaking employment laws has been announced.  Schools have asked teachers%u2019 assistants to cover when a teacher is absent rather than having the National Union of Teachers send a replacement. At least, that is the claim.  From September, there is evidence to show England and Wales have only used teachers to cover on rare occasions. 
The Union has found some schools use classroom assistants to fill in because it is less expensive than having the Union send a replacement.  The ministers have stated that any support staff covering a lesson need to be under the teacher%u2019s direction.  Assistants can supervise a class if they have an appropriate level of qualification.  However, the National Union of Teachers states the schools could be breaking laws if the support staff actively teaches, especially on a routine basis. 
John Bangs, the head of education at National Union of Teachers stated an assistant can do specific work, under supervision. However, these staff members cannot plan lessons, take over on their own, or run a class.  Bangs further stated the employment for qualified teachers has come to a stop.  They are being replaced by the support staff and cover supervisors.  There has been a real temptation to find cheaper labour due to the economic issues of the last few years.  The unfortunate part is a drop in standards due to inappropriate staff. 
The union has been formed to ensure standards remain high.  It may also be a breach in employment laws for the union to be bypassed, since there are laws stating the union members should be the support staff.  There are further concerns regarding standards.  Teachers%u2019 assistants are there for special education needs.  If they are busy with running a class it will cut back on their abilities to lend the proper special support required.  The Union will take their case to the schools as well as to legal council to see what can be done to make things better for all involved, especially to get education standards back where they need to be.
 

The European Union has created a new directive that will turn into an employment law in the United Kingdom.  Other countries will also have to accept the law if they are part of the EU.  EU regulations may cause a rise in the cost for self employment. Legislation agreed with a proposal regarding self employment.  The proposal or directive is meant to provide more rights to certain individuals.  Assisting spouses or life partners will be receiving more assistance when it comes to self employed persons.  Benefits can even include maternity leave. 
The United Kingdom has two years to decide how they will put the new regulations into effect as an employment law.  How it is meant to work is to give help to the self employed individual.  The person cannot have income that they earned in order to get the assistance.  The UK is tentatively calling this assisting spouses legislation.  A spouse can be married or designated a life partner in order to get the help.  The idea of the legislation is to help female entrepreneurs who have little incentive to become self employed.  It will also recognise any help the spouse or significant other provides. 
Lawspeed spoke about the new employment law stating some agencies use self employed people, but they do not want to pay for the added legislation.  What will probably happen instead is the self employed workers will have to pay in order to meet the requirements of the new law.  The UK will probably take the next two years to amend the directive to better fit the current economic situation, and to make sure those it will affect are being taken care of in every possible way.  Basically the new employment law is going to concentrate on leave and maternity compensation for the self employed worker.  To a degree some of this is already part of the social security laws, but it needs to be firmed up to truly benefit the self employed.  Eventually, the directive will be moulded into a UK employment law, which provides enough benefits to cover the self employed, where certain measures are lacking.

 In business there will be instances you will require the use of outside help.  It might be you need this person for a day or two to offer their advice or you need them for six months to work on a project.  The length you have the consultant on your team is dependent on what you need them for.  However, one thing should always be the same when you use a consultant whether it is for a few days or a longer period of time.  You should always have them sign a consultancy agreement. 

A consultancy agreement is used when a person agrees to provide services to a business and that business has terms in which the consultant can or will provide those services.  The business or the consultant can use a consultancy agreement.  If you use the consultancy agreement template found here it will be in broad terms, with a chance for you to modify it for specifics. 

The general agreement will outline specific clauses:
1.      Details of the parties involved
2.      Information on the project/ work being done
3.      Period of the agreement
4.      Duties and any responsibilities
5.      Fees due
6.      Any confidentiality that is required
7.      Property rights disclosures
8.      Consultancy termination protocols
 
Some of the clauses or aspects of the consultancy agreement are straightforward such as the parties and description of the work.  The duties and responsibilities section are where things can be modified in the general document.  These terms are often in a general description, but if there is any specific action or requirement which is part of the job you can include that in the consultancy agreement.  It should outline everything you as the consultant or company expect in order to leave no room for error.  There are termination clauses discussing how a consultant can be terminated from the job before the work is over.  This is another area that should be explicit in the information.  You may want to mention something like a consultant can be terminated for breaching confidentiality.  The general template can be used for any consultancy you might enter into at any time. 
 

A Compromise Agreement is an agreement that is for use where an employee is exiting a company and as the employer, you and the leaving employee have decided to settle all potentially arising claims that one may have against the other.
In order for a Compromise Agreement to be legally enforceable and binding on the parties relevant to it, it is advisable for the employee to seek independent legal advice if the employee is not in complete understanding of what the function and full implications of signing such a document may be.  If the employee has sought independent legal advice, he or she must obtain a certificate from that solicitor which shall state that the employee accepots and understands that they are waivering any future claim that they may have had against the employer.  This means that any such claim will not be able to be entered into as this would breach the terms agreed and signed upon contained within the Compromise Agreement.
Any business will benefit from the use professional legal documentation.  if are wnating to use a Compromise Agreement template bought online to save costs, you must include a detailed explanation of the reasoning behind the dismissal, redundancy or resignation to explain why the employee is leaving the company.
A Compromise Agreement must be compliant with the Employment Rights Act of 1996 and the Employment Act of 2002 to enable it to legally function. Also, it is common practice for the Compromise Agreement to include a confidentiality clause within it in which the employee will be preventeed from discussing the terms contained within the Compromise Agreement to any third party.
Any claim that has not been expressly waivered within the Compromise Agreement will be able to be claimed by the employee against the company, and vice versa.  It is imperative that the company ensures it protects itself by entering all necessary steps and measures into the terms based in the Compormise Agreement.

A Job Offer Letter is used to make an offer of employment to a potential employer, whether full time or part time, permanent, temporary, casual or contract.   A Job Offer Letter is not the same as an Employment Contract, but instead contains a summary of the basic terms and conditions of employment such as hours, salary, holiday entitlement and sick pay, as well as formally confirming the offer of employment to that employee.
There are often mistakes made when a Job Offer Letter is attempted to changed or modified into a Contract of Employment.  This is because they really are two different types of employment document.  A Job Offer Letter does not contain all of the legal terms of an Employment Contract.  AN Employment Contract should be written by a qualified solicitor or someone with a strong presence and understanding of the law in the field of Employment.  If a dispute was to arise between and employer and employee, the Employment Contract shall be the first document to be examined to see if either party has breached the terms and conditions set out in the document.  These terms and conditions, provided they are reasonable and fair in nature, shall be relied upon to establish the outcome, i.e. penalty, of a breach by either party.  For example, the employee may be entitled to compensation from the employer for their wrongdoing, whereas the employer may have the discretion to impose a disciplinary procedure on the employee, or send them on a skills based course to reaffirm their duties and responsibilities at the company.
A Human Resources (HR) Advisor should be present to ensure the employee understands and accepts the terms of their Employment Contract prior to their signing of such by which they shall be bound.
All company policies must be disclosed to the employee prior to their signing of the Employment Contract, such as medical checks, drug testing, probationary period, termination notice and bonus schemes.
 

Employment - redundancy procedure in the US includes payment guidelines in which employers who have paid his employees under statutory redundancy guidelines may apply to the department for a 60% rebate within 6-months of the time the lump sum of money has been paid.
A Redundancy Form (RP50) should be provided to the employee on the date of payment. This form shows the estimated sum, and confirms the receipt of payment. Copies should contain an original signature in which it should be send to the proper department. Both the employers and employee signatures should be present on copies and the amount as well as the RECD amount by the employee, which should be completed on the form in blue ink and then sent to the department.
The form should not contain any tippexed entries. Block capitals should be used where the RP50 form is completed manually.
If the employer refuses or fails to pay the employee statutory redundancy compensation, the employee may file a claim with the department for direct payments that come from their social insurance funds. The employee must use the RP50 form.
The employee may not appeal his lump sum of money if the employer has not giving the employee the RP50 form. If the employer refuses or fails to complete the form, the employee may file an appeal with the Employment Appeals Tribunal who also requires the RP50 form.
Employment - redundancy procedure in the US
Redundancy is considered fair employment rights. This system is used to decide if there is fair reason to dismiss a worker. In the event there is no fair reason, thus the employee dismissed from the company may file for a lump sum of money if applicable to compensate his or her loss.
Fair procedures must be followed by companies, which require the employer to act reasonably throughout the dismissal processes. Most times these processes are lengthy and complex procedures because it depends on the amount of workers the company proposes to execute redundancy.
Redundancies may arise if an employee ceases to execute certain job tasks as required. If an employee leaves work or his or her work performance has diminished, the redundancy rules apply in which the employer may terminate the workers contract and it could mean that the worker will not be compensated under redundancy compensation.
Thus, guidelines are written to ensure that employers follow the redundancy laws. The complex and lengthy procedures enable employers to consider proposed dismissals. If an employer dismisses more than 20 workers, he is obligated by the law to consult with employee%u2019s legislative body or trade unions first. The consulting procedures obligate the employer to adhere to strict demands that have been outlined by the law.
The employer is obligated by the law to notify the Secretary of State. Upon submitting the proposal, you must then consult with individual employers who you have selected to apply the Employment - redundancy procedure in the US.