Companies are facing significant financial challenges due to the economic downturn, and are having to adapt to new ways of working including social distancing. The HR implications are hugely important and need to be managed, but can be costly and a distraction from running the business. You are probably having to deal with one or more of the following:

• Changes to the Furlough scheme – from 1 July employers are able to bring back furloughed employees flexibly and from 1 August, employers will be required to share in the cost of furlough. Are you ready for the changes?

• If you are unfortunately having to make redundancies you need to be sure not to fall foul of employment legislation :
  • for example, you need to have a fair selection criteria to avoid potential discrimination claims which are uncapped
  • failure to manage a fair process could result in an unfair dismissal claim costing up to £88,519

• It’s quite likely that you will have more people working flexibly and remotely and it is therefore important to understand your rights as an employer and your employees’ rights for example:
  • if they have caring responsibilities
  • the need for and implications of changes in employment contract terms

• If your employees are based in the workplace, are you socially distance ready?

• You may need to restructure your workforce in order to focus on critical core activities.  For example, re-deploying people to different roles, changing working hours and training people in new ways of working. These actions need to be handled sensitively and within the boundaries of employment law.

• These are difficult times and people have all sorts of concerns including for their health, their job and their family. As a responsible employer you will care about the welfare of your staff. Communicating well and looking after emotional well-being not only makes sense for your staff but also leads to a more secure and productive team.

Good HR is not just “the right thing to do”. People management during this crisis may have a big impact on your business. It can help ensure you get the best from your staff and also reduce financial risks such as tribunal penalties for badly managed redundancy processes, reputational damage for poor treatment of staff, and the potential physical and mental harm to employees.

peoproHR have expertise in all areas of HR. Partner with us for effective Pandemic People Management – reduce the risks, maximise the opportunities.

Further information on the importance of people management during the crisis is available below in our Insight – Operating in the ‘new normal’.  We have also provided a link to a series of useful additional resources.