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Agency Worker Regulations and Employers

January 30, 2012 By

Ever since the AW Regulations were conceived in 2010 employers (or “hirers” in terms of the legislation) and employments agencies have been grappling with the impact that the gain of entitlements the legislation will give agency workers will have on their organizations. It is certain that the Regulations will bring extra costs for example

  •          From the first day of work the agency worker has to have the same “access to canteen facilities, child care provision and transport arrangements” that company employees have.
  •          Managing the data of compliance – tracking assignments length and type, especially repeat assignments with the same hirer.

The regulations also encompass anti-avoidance measures to stop hirers and agencies artificially. For example if the work tasks are organized so that an individual works on a particular tasks less than 12 weeks and then is given a 6 week break before being taken on again on the same work, again for a period of less than 12 weeks this will be taken as a measure of avoidance of bestowing rights. If this happens a third time then an employment tribunal could take the view that the work is being structured in a prohibited way and could give additional fines. Employers do need to take advice, for example by consulting MSL Forza Regulations.

However, there is nothing in the legislation that will act to stop employers taking on agency workers for less than 12 weeks as a company policy which was not the intention of the legislation.

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Do people problems really matter in businesses?

October 31, 2011 By

Busy managers can be prone to dismiss people-problems as pretty trivial in the scheme of things. BUT people problems in spite of what managers at whatever level think do really matter because they:

1)      Waste time – and wasted time means money. People gripe and grumble instead of working

2)      Create unnecessary stress in the company – people get upset about people problems and this can lead to outburst of bad temper, absenteeism and low morale

3)      Distort business decisions – If staff are perceived as “problem  people” then managers often avoid solving the problems and circumvent the problem person by moving them sideways or even promoting them. Organisations often get designed around marginalising or accommodating problem people

4)      Provide opportunities for manager s to develop their management skills- managing people who are agreeable, positive and co-operative is easy. Learning how to manage people problems effectively is a real test of personal skill. A manager who can manage difficult people, can manage anybody.

The manager needs to analyse the problem behaviour and the situation or situations in which it is displayed. It is useful for the manager to have a checklist so that all aspects can be thought through, such as:

1)      Is the behaviour a problem to everybody or just to me

2)      Does the behaviour affect the company efficiency and output

3)      Am I the problem? Does my behaviour cause the problem

4)      Could the situation be amended to help the problem

5)      Will coaching, counselling or re-training help the problem ?

6)      Is it essential to confront the issue in a sensitive manner

Given this analysis it should be much clearer to the manager  why, how and when to act to solve the problem, if at all.

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Strategies for managing people problems

September 13, 2011 By

Developing Strategies:  In order to develop strategies and skills for managing people problems then there are  5  assumptions managers need to agree with:

1)      There is no such thing as a problem person, only problem behaviours. It is always some aspect of the person’s behaviours that cause you a problem

2)      Problem behaviours are made and not born. All problem behaviours have been acquired by the person at some time and as such it is possible to change it

3)      All problems behaviours fall into one of two categories. Too much behaviour and too little behaviour.

4)      Problem behaviours need to be viewed relative to the actual situation in which they are displayed. Problem behaviours may well be caused by the situation itself

5)      Different approaches are needed  depending on whether the behaviour is new or part of habitual behaviour. A capable manager deals with a new problem immediately – it is much easier to nip it in the bud than to try to sort out things that have happened many times and never been confronted before.

There are four alternative ways for managers to act when considering people problems [Read more...]

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