A to Z of Employment - Entries for A
Absence
Absence is an important factor affecting relationships at work. High levels of absence can cause serious problems for both large and small organisations.
Dealing effectively with absence calls for a continuous and coordinated effort by HR managers, line managers, including first-line supervisors, and worker representatives.
High absence can often be a symptom of workers' dissatisfaction with their jobs. Sound, fair and consistent policies and procedures can provide a framework within which absence problems can be better handled.
Advice on managing absence from work
Accompaniment at disciplinary and grievance hearings
All workers have a legal right to be accompanied by a work colleague or trade union official when they are required to attend certain disciplinary or grievance hearings. The workers companion is allowed to address the hearing in order to put the workers case; sum up the workers case and respond on the workers behalf to any view that is expressed at the hearing.
LRA Code of Practice -
Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures
ACAS
ACAS (Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service) aims to improve organisations and working life through better employment relations. ACAS provides up-to-date information, independent advice, training and works with employers and employees to solve problems and improve performance. It has approximately 730 staff based in 11 main regional centres throughout England, Scotland and Wales with a head office in London.
Action short of dismissal
Action short of dismissal is used in an disciplinary context to describe a penalty which is imposed on an employee arising out a disciplinary hearing and is implemented as an alternative to dismissal, for example, suspension without pay or demotion. An employer must have the contractual right to impose such a penalty; otherwise it could be viewed as a Breach of Contract. Action short of dismissal is also used to describe an unlawful detriment which is imposed on an employee (or worker) by an employer arising out of, for example, issues relating to trade union membership or activities.
Additional Maternity Leave
See Maternity Leave
DEL ER Booklet 16 - Maternity Rights - A guide for employers and employees
Additional award
See Compensation – Unfair Dismissal
Adoption Leave
Who is entitled to adoption leave?
- an adoptive parent of a child newly placed for adoption. It will not apply to step-family adoption or adoption by a child's existing foster carers as these do not involve the new placement of a child.
- employees who have at least 26 weeks' continuous service by the week in which they are notified of being matched with a child for adoption.
- an employee who adopts a child from overseas.
The duration of the leave is 26 weeks' ordinary adoption leave followed by 26 weeks' additional adoption leave. (Note: Only one parent is entitled to the adoption leave).
DEL ER Booklet 35 - Rights to adoption leave and pay
Age Discrimination
See Discrimination
Equality Commission Guidance - Age discrimination
Agency Worker
An Agency Worker is a worker who is supplied by either an Employment Business/Employment Agency to do work for another (the hirer) either under a contract of employment or other such contract as agreed between the Agency/Business and the Hirer.
See Worker, for details of employment rights.
See also Employment Agency/Business
Agricultural workers
See Minimum Wage
Alcohol and Substance Abuse
Health at work is no longer just about the traditional workplace hazards. There is also growing concern about the impact of alcohol, drugs and passive smoking on workers health.
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=693
http://www.hseni.gov.uk/workplace_drugs_and_alcohol_policies.pdf
Annualised hours
Annualised Hours is a type of working pattern in which an employee is contracted to work a set number of hours over, for example, a year and the actual number of hours worked from week to week varies to meet organisational demands. However, the employee will normally be paid the same weekly or monthly salary regardless of the hours worked in the previous pay period.
Antenatal care
All pregnant employees are entitled to time off to keep appointments for antenatal care made on the advice of a registered medical practitioner, registered midwife or registered health visitor.
Antenatal care is not restricted to medical examinations. It could, for example, include relaxation classes and parentcraft classes as long as these are advised by a registered medical practitioner, registered midwife or registered health visitor.
The employer is entitled to ask for evidence of antenatal appointments, except in the case of the very first appointment. With the exception of this first antenatal appointment, the employee must show her employer on request:
- a certificate confirming that she is pregnant. This can be provided by a registered medical practitioner (e.g. a doctor), a registered midwife or a registered health visitor;
- an appointment card or some other document showing that an appointment has been made.
The employee should be paid at her normal hourly rate of pay by her employer during the period of time off for antenatal care. This rate is calculated by dividing the amount of a week’s pay by the number of the employee’s normal working hours in a week. The normal working hours will usually be clear from the agreed terms and conditions of employment, or from the employee’s written statement of main employment particulars.
DEL ER Booklet 16 - Maternity Rights - A guide for employers and employees
Appraisal Schemes
An appraisal scheme is a way of assessing an employee's performance against a set standard. Assessing performance is important because it helps employees to improve and identifies personal strengths and weaknesses. Appraisals are also widely used to link an employee's performance to pay.
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=651
Apprenticeship
A type of employment contract in which an apprentice is engaged to undertake a course of training and learning in order to practice a skilled trade or profession. Generally the contract of apprenticeship will be for a fixed period of time and cannot usually be terminated unless on grounds of very serious misconduct. Apprenticeships are available in a number of different areas, e.g. construction, engineering, hairdressing etc
Arbitration
If both parties to an industrial dispute agree the Agency can appoint an individual, or a panel, to act as independent arbitrator/s to decide how the dispute is to be settled. The parties to the dispute agree, usually with Agency assistance joint terms of reference and, the Agency appoints an arbitrator from its list of suitable independent persons. The arbitrator (acting alone or chairing a panel) considers the written and oral submissions of the parties, makes a decision, and where appropriate, an award which the parties agree to accept and implement. Participation in arbitration is entirely voluntary and the Agency has no power to compel an unwilling party to participate.
Before arranging for arbitration the Agency will take into account the use that has been made of any agreed procedures, and whether conciliation might be a possible alternative.
Arbitration Scheme For the resolution of Individual Unfair Dismissal disputes
Arbitration Scheme for the resolution of Individual Flexible Working Disputes
Asserting statutory rights
Employees have a number of statutory employment rights; see Rights at Work for some examples. An employee is viewed as having asserted one of these rights when they have exercised their right to these entitlements, for example, an employee makes a request to their employer to be provided with an Itemised Pay Statement or to take annual leave.
Associated employer
Employers are said to be associated when one company has control (directly or indirectly) over another or both companies are controlled by a third person. An employee’s service with an associated employer should generally be taken into consideration when computing their total length of continuous employment.
DEL ER Booklet 8 - Rules governing continuous employment and a week's pay
Automatically unfair dismissal
It is automatically unfair to dismiss or select an employee for redundancy on the grounds of their gender, race/nationality, religious belief or political opinion, marital status, age, disability, pregnancy, gender reassignment or for membership or non-membership of a trade union. It is also deemed automatically unfair to dismiss an employee for asserting a statutory employment right. An employee who is dismissed in any of these situations does not generally require the normal one year’s service requirement to make a claim for unfair dismissal.