REQUESTING FLEXIBLE WORKING HOURS

From 30th June 2014 all Employees will be able to ask their Employer for a change in their working hours, as long as that they have 26 weeks or more continuous employment.

Currently only staff who are Carers for immediate members of their family are able to make such requests. From July, Employees who want to reduce or change their hours to accommodate other aspects of their lives will be able to make the same request.

It is envisaged that the most common requests are likely to come from:

1. Older workers who may wish to reduce their work.
2. Workers with disabilities who want to keep working but accommodate health problems.

Employers are not obliged to accept the request, but must give it serious consideration, fully investigated it and inform the Employee of the outcome within three months of the request being made.

This would include inviting the Employee to a meeting to discuss their request, writing to them to inform them of the outcome, and giving them an opportunity to appeal if they wish to do so.

If the Employer wishes to turn the request down, they can do so, but the decision must be based on one or more of the following:

1. Unacceptable costs to the business.
2. Inability to share the Employees work among other staff.
3. Inability to recruit other staff to fill the hours the Employee doesn’t want to work.
4. Detrimental effects upon the quality of the Employers work.
5. Detrimental effects upon customer service.
6. Detrimental effects upon performance.
7. Insufficient work for the employee to do during the hours they want to work.

The Employer should also consider potential discrimination if they want to turn down the Employee’s request, such as Employees who want to reduce hours due to health problems, or change hours to accommodate religious commitments.

Profile
Christopher Moses is Managing Director of Personnel Advice & Solutions Ltd and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.  If you have any questions regarding these issues please feel free to contact him on (01529) 305056 or email p.d.solutions@zen.co.uk

While every care has been taken in compiling these notes, Personnel Advice and Solutions Ltd cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions. These notes are intended to provide general information. Guidance for specific legal problems should be sought separately.

NEW BUSINESS ECHO LAUNCHES

The Lincolnshire Echo is completely re-launching its monthly business supplement.

Business Echo will look significantly different, with a radical re-design and a raft of new features.

The first edition of the new supplement will be in the Echo at the end of March, with copies also running in the Target Series in Boston, Sleaford and across East Lindsey.

Echo Editor Steven Fletcher said the redesign would transform the supplement. “We want Business Echo to be a must-read for business people every month,” he said.

“The front page is going to be much more dramatic than it previously was. We will give less room to rounding up the previous month’s news that is already out there, and concentrate more on breaking new stories and writing compelling features.

“We’re not getting rid of the old favourites, like the business lunch spread. That has been a great addition to Business Echo and prominent people have enjoyed being featured in it.

“I’m confident that the business community will enjoy the new supplement, and want their companies and their staff to be included in it.”

Richard Duxbury, Managing Director of Lincolnshire Media, is sure the new supplement will be well-received. “The early designs look really good. It will look smarter and fresher and to improve visibility it will be found outside of the Property and Motors supplements within the Echo and Target Series,” he said.

“We want as much feedback as possible, as we will keep refining the supplement as the months go on.”

If you have a story for Business Echo, contact Hannah Gilbey on 01522 820000 or Hannah.gilbey@lincolnshireecho.co.uk

To advertise, please contact Vicki Campbell on 01522 804272 or vicki.campbell@lincolnshiremedia.co.uk

As an extra incentive Lincolnshire Chamber of Commerce members [including those in Select Lincolnshire for Food] can benefit from a 25% discount on all advertising booked.

BAG A SHARE OF £15,000 COMMUNITY GIVEAWAY!

Community groups and organisations with a ‘Big Idea’ to make their area better are being encouraged to apply for a £15,000 giveaway, supported by 16 local businesses.

The Big Idea competition is offering three not-for-profit groups prizes of FREE professional support which could be anything from drawing up plans for a new village hall, revamping a charity’s marketing package from its website to leaflets, offering a community organisation legal advice on purchase of a new premises or giving a school accountancy support.

Three finalists will be chosen from all the groups who apply. The overall winner will receive up to £10,000 worth of help, the two runners up will receive up to £2,500 of support each.

The initiative is being organised by firms who work together as part of Lincolnshire ProHelp (see Notes to Editors for list). Now in its 12th year, Lincolnshire ProHelp has helped hundreds of organisations over the years with free professional support, help and advice. It is supported by charity Business in the Community.

All not-for-profit groups have to do to apply for The Big Idea is fill out a simple application form by Friday, May 2nd. The finalists will be invited to present details of their projects to Lincolnshire ProHelp on Thursday, June 5th and the overall winner and runners up will be chosen.

Chairman of Lincolnshire ProHelp, Simon Shaw from Optima Graphic Design Consultants, said: “We want more community groups and not-for-profit organisations to come forward and take advantage of the free support we can offer because we’ve got the capacity to do more. We’re also keen to see more local businesses come forward to offer their expertise as it’s good to be able to provide a wider range of services.

“We’re hoping that the Big Idea giveaway will give some deserving groups the support they need to make their ideas a reality while raising awareness of Lincolnshire ProHelp.

“I’m looking forward to seeing what different applications come in – with a top prize of up to £10,000 worth of professional support, I’m sure there’ll be some projects in the mix which can involve several professionals and will really make a difference in their community.”

In 2013, Lincolnshire ProHelp supported 43 organisations and typically, gives around 250 hours of support each year.

Groups helped have included Lea Village Hall, which had architectural plans drawn up by Simons, Horncastle Youth Centre, which had help negotiating a lease from JH Walter and the Nomad Trust, which had a new logo designed by Optima.

Lincolnshire Co-op is a member of ProHelp and has given support such as updating marketing materials for LincUp, the Lincolnshire Credit Union, and the development of a new logo and brand identity for the Riverside Access and Training Centre in Gainsborough.

“Being involved in ProHelp is one of the ways we make sure we’re doing our bit in the local community,” said Retail Marketing Manager Sam Turner. “For businesses, it’s a simple and effective way of giving back.”

To apply for community support from The Big Idea, go to www.biglincolnshireidea.com and download a simple application form.