Welcome to our latest newsletter.
We provide professional HR support and payroll services to organisations across Oxfordshire and the surrounding counties. Our goal is to keep you up to date with the latest developments in HR and Payroll that affect your business. We will publish useful hints and tips, interesting business articles and feature the occasional competition with prizes.
Fiona Armitage
Partner
Critchleys HR and Payroll LLP |
Sick of Staff Sickies?
  When an employee phones in sick do you ever suspect that their absence may not be genuine?
Dealing with frequent short term absences can be difficult for employers. However, the launch of a new mobile phone app, "Skiver" from Gospelware, makes it even harder to tell who is genuinely ill and who is throwing a "sickie".
The app promises to provide the perfect cover story so that "lying to your boss has never been so easy". Just chose the number of days you would like to have off work and the app will offer you details of relevant illnesses and their symptoms. It will even send an email to the employer to avoid that awkward phone call to work.
So, how should you discourage this type of absence from your employees?
There are FIVE KEY POINTS you need to address - click here to read them! |
Love it or hate it... the Royal Wedding is coming!
 The Government has announced that there will be a special additional bank holiday on Friday 29 April 2011 to celebrate the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton. Your employees may be celebrating an additional day off but are they entitled to it?
The Working Time Regulations state that all workers are entitled to a minimum of 5.6 weeks (28 days) paid holiday (pro-rata for part time), which can include the bank holidays.
However, there is no statutory right for employees either to take bank or public holidays off work or to receive pay for bank or public holidays if they do not work them.
On the other hand, if you throw a negative impact on company morale into the mix, add a soupçon of the usual Christmas cover headaches, a dash of clashing summer holidays, and a pinch of miscommunication, and you'll soon have a recipe for disaster!
Fortunately, we've prepared a Holiday Entitlement F.A.Q. that addresses both the Royal Wedding and other more frequent holiday issues.
Click here to read more about Holiday Entitlement and then call Fiona and her team on 01865 261188 for a no obligation and confidential discussion. |
CASE STUDY: SEOPTIMISE
 SEOptimise specialise in delivering expert search engine marketing and social media solutions that are specifically customised for its clients.
SEOptimise has been growing its staff levels since the business started and realised that it needs to ensure consistency when dealing with staff, but also to offer the flexibility that is required by a small innovative business.
Commercial Director, Stuart Tofts, uses the Critchleys HR Advice Line service.
"As a growing business in a rapidly evolving technology-driven marketplace, we need to be able to respond to our clients' needs first and are building a team that is committed to this mission," says Stuart.
"Fiona and her team have been instrumental in helping us to develop the appropriate HR policies which reflect our unique company culture and promote excellent working relationships that will result in client satisfaction."
For more information on our Critchleys HR Advice Line, please click here. |
COMPETITION: Win a £500 Business Advice Package
 Congratulations to Mark Nicholas, Trust Manager of The Titus Trust, who won last month's competition, and will be receiving £500's worth of HR advice and support for recruiting and selecting their next employee.
Mark knew that the name of David Brent's fictional rock band was "Forgone Conclusion"!
March 2011 Competition
Would you like to maximise your existing income streams, identify potential new markets, and reduce your employment law risks?
Yes? Well, we have teamed up with Rob Banfield, of Thinking Business, to offer a prize package of business advice worth £500 to one lucky business owner.
To enter, just answer the following jolly tricky question:
"Which Dragon was once the chairman of Millwall Football Club?"
Email your answer and contact details to: farmitage@critchleyshr.co.uk and we will draw the winner from the correct answers on Friday 1st April 2011. |
ABOUT CRITCHLEYS HR AND PAYROLL
 We specialise in working with clients who do not have the time to keep up to date with employment law or process payroll.
Our aim is to remove much of the worry and risk that comes with employing staff, by offering professional HR support and payroll services.
For more information, see www.critchleyshr.co.uk or contact Fiona Armitage on 01865 261188. |
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CLIENT TESTIMONIAL
"Critchleys HR and Payroll have been an invaluable source of help across a number of people issues from holidays to absence. As a Financial Director I can rely on them to provide timely expert HR advice and support, leaving me free to focus on my job."
Tony Banks, Financial Director, AMG Industries
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RETAINED CLIENTS AREA
Our HR Advice Line clients have online access to their own area of our website. This private resource contains employment and HR documents, employer guides, employment law updates, case studies and client special offers.
Click here for this month's Comprehensive Guide to:
Managing Absence
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DON'T BE AN APRIL FOOL
Click on the link below to download Statutory Rate Changes effective in April:
Click here
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