Should you, or shouldn’t you, rehire an ex-employee?
When a person leaves your employment, it’s usually the final chapter of your working relationship.
Typically, you would be making arrangements to fill the vacancy and wouldn’t expect to see your leaver show up for work again. It would be a bit strange after the card, speeches and send off, after all.
On rare occasions, however, you may be faced with a situation that leaves you wondering if you should rehire an ex-employee. Perhaps this has become more commonplace since the pandemic and Great Resignation.
Don’t ask them to return that parting gift just yet (or at all). There are a few things to consider before you seal the deal.
Think back to the reasons why they left and whether this was on good terms. How long has it been since they left? Has the business changed? Can they fit in with new team dynamics and meet your current requirements? These are all important questions to ask yourself when deciding.
A positive of rehiring an ex-employee can include their familiarity with your business and vision. If they worked well with existing employees, their return may be a morale booster for the wider team.
What about the negatives? If the business has significantly changed, they may find it hard to slot back into things. It would be wise to prepare them if this is the case to avoid them comparing, or suggesting that the old way was better.
You may also have concerns over loyalty. They left once before, will they do so again?
Talk to them to understand their reasons for wanting to return. Ask about long-term goals to see if these match your business plan. This is equally as important if it is you who has approached them about returning. For example, do you need them for the long or short term? Have their circumstances changed? These factors matter and should be discussed early on.
When it comes to HR admin, legally you can rehire an ex-employee, and there is no specific waiting period before doing so. If it is less than a week they will not have lost their continuity of employment.
If an employee has been made redundant for a genuine business reason and the process, including searching for alternative employment is carried out, but suddenly a significant change occurs, does the employee have to return the redundancy pay? Surprisingly the answer is usually no, but their continuity of employment is automatically severed. Some local authorities have different rules regarding redundancy.
Acas published guidance to help employers better understand this and avoid risky fire and rehire practices focused on changing employee contracts and pay.
Overall, rehiring an ex-employee can be a mutually beneficial arrangement if requirements can be met on both sides. If you have questions on how to manage this in your business, get in touch.
When can I request a fit note from an employee?
A fit note, also known as a sick note, doctor’s note, or statement of fitness for work, is a note that a doctor will provide an employee as evidence of their advice concerning the employee’s fitness for work.
If an employee has been signed off sick by their doctor for more than seven consecutive days, the fit note will support this. It may also provide details to help an employer and employee discuss the return to work. It helps to keep a copy on record, as the employee can keep the original.
If an employee is sick for less than seven days, they will not get a fit note from their doctor. If you require evidence of their sickness to pay statutory sick pay (SSP), the eligible employee can self-certify. SSP only applies if the employee earns above the threshold of £123.00 on average each week and after they have been off sick for four or more consecutive days.
For three days or fewer sick, SSP does not apply. If you still want to see a doctor’s note, you would have to pay the GP for one. If you’re concerned, however, about bogus sick days or too many sick days and want to combat this, always invite all employees to a return-to-work interview after any absence.
If employees know that this is a standard procedure, it can deter them from throwing sickies. This meeting is also useful to determine if those who were genuinely off sick are ready to return.
A sickness and absence policy helps all involved to know what to expect regarding procedures and SSP or company sick pay. If you need advice with yours, we can help.
Managing an effective hybrid team
For many teams, hybrid working has become the norm. It reflects where we’re at in the pandemic. Workplaces are open but not everyone is attending, and when they do, it’s not always at the same time.
Managers of newly hybrid teams will likely be learning as they go, navigating a return to the office along with a continuation of remote working; whilst also fielding questions on COVID – which hasn’t completely gone away.
For hybrid working to be successful, managers and team leaders will need support to navigate the unique challenges that could arise. They may benefit from training.
Good communication and time management are key and will help maximise time spent in the office. For example, planning a day where everyone comes in would be useful for important announcements, ensuring that these don’t get twisted if heard through the grapevine instead.
It can also help to revise any temporary processes that were implemented during the pandemic. If hybrid is the way forward for your business, you’ll need policies and processes that support this.
How not to announce redundancy
Last month we touched on redundancy, noting important takeaways for employers arising from the P&O Ferries scandal. You may remember that employees, and pretty much everyone else, were left stunned due to a lack of communication from company execs on what was about to happen.
This month, we have a new example of redundancy gone wrong. Except this time, it was the way in which it was communicated that has caused a stir.
Two of China’s biggest tech companies, JD.com and Bilibili, tried to put a positive spin on their redundancies by congratulating workers being laid off on “graduating the company”.
We’re all for being positive, but this one misses the mark. Unsurprisingly, some of the employees concerned took to social media to voice their displeasure.
Redundancy is a sensitive topic and should be handled as such. You can’t sugar coat the bad news, but you can opt to provide outplacement support which can be invaluable to those departing.
Aachoo! It’s not COVID, it’s hay fever
As the warmer weather makes a comeback, spare a thought for the itchy-eyed employee who turns down lunch in the local park. They’re suffering from hay fever and assuring everyone it’s not COVID every time they sneeze.
Hay fever can be a real pain and disrupt a person’s day-to-day. It’s not just sneezing either, symptom severity depends on the person and the pollen that they are allergic to. Watery eyes, itchy throat and even brain fog can all be factors, making concentration hard and productivity low.
What, if anything, can you do?
The employee will likely know about over-the-counter antihistamines, and will probably have tried all the alternatives such as local honey and Vaseline around the nose. You can help by keeping windows shut and using air conditioning or air purifiers. Allowing home working, if you can, on high pollen days may also help.
Is a sick day justified? Hay fever is a genuine condition and so should be treated like any other sickness if an employee is really struggling with symptoms.
Allergies and other sensitivities in the workplace can require adjustments to be made. If you’re ever unsure, get in touch.
A rude awakening
We often hear about the risk of vicarious liability around the staff Christmas party, but a recent case in Australia has highlighted that this is a risk not just for Christmas.
When two employees were contractually obliged to share a room assigned to them in staff accommodation, one’s midnight drunken antics, which involved him relieving himself over his sleeping colleague, left the Court of Appeal finding the employer vicariously liable and awarding the defendant more than $400,000!
If you need to organise staff accommodation, make sure your behavioural policy is watertight first.
