15 May 2008 - Proposed new legislation that may have a significant impact on small employers in particular has been announced.

Yesterday, an independent review of how to extend the right to request flexible working to parents of older children up to the age of 16 was published.

Currently the flexible working Regulations are limited to employees with children under the age of six or 18 in the case of a disabled child and to employees who have caring responsibilities for adults.

A further extension to the right to request flexible working will be significant and it is proposed that legislation amending the existing Regulations will come into force in April 2009.

This is in addition to the proposed right of employees to request time to train which the Prime Minister outlined in his draft Queen's Speech.  This would be modelled on the right to request flexible working, in circumstances where the training would benefit both the employee and the employer. 

Employers will need to think about amending their flexible working policies in preparation of this further change to legislation.

6 November 2007 - Proposed new legislation that will affect employers has been announced in the annual Queens speech.
A summary is shown below.

Apprenticeships (draft) Bill

This bill is likely to give 16 to 18-year-olds an entitlement to an apprenticeship, in an effort to reduce the number of young people not in education, training or employment.

Education and Skills Bill

This bill will require all 16 to 18 year olds to stay in some form of education or training by 2015. It will also place a duty on employers to release young people for the equivalent of one day's training a week.

Employment Bill

This bill proposes clearer and stronger enforcement of employment law and to bring in measures to resolve disputes more quickly.

National Insurance Contributions Bill

This bill would harmonise the upper earnings limit (UEL) for national insurance contributions with the higher rate income tax threshold. The UEL will rise in phases, to match the higher rate income tax threshold by April 2009.

Pensions Bill

This bill will mean eligible workers are automatically enrolled into a pension scheme, with a minimum employer contribution introduced.
New laws will set up an additional state pension system, known as personal accounts.
The system will introduce compulsory pension saving for employees who are not already members of good company pension schemes. Employers as well as staff will have to make contributions. There will be a duty on every employer to contribute to good quality workplace pensions for their employees.
It is expected that the new system will be operational from 2012 with staff paying in 4% of their salaries and employers 3%, with an extra 1% from the government in the form of tax relief.

20th October 2006: Quality Award for Richards HR Solutions

Following an assessment by an independent body, Richards HR Solutions has been awarded ISO 9001 certification. This certification has only been achieved by about 5% of UK businesses and this prestigious award is recognised world wide.

A delighted Trevor Richards said “We have always been proud of the service we offer our clients and the way we conduct our business. Now with the award of ISO 9001 certification, this has been confirmed by independent outside experts who are used to judging quality standards on a daily basis in a variety of trades, industries and professional services firms”.

Stuart Clark a Lead Assessor, who undertook the assessment for QMS Quality Management Systems, paid particular tribute to “the investment and emphasis placed on quality, people and training that enables Richards HR Solutions to provide an efficient service to all their clients”.

The award of ISO 9001 is all the more impressive given that Richards HR Solutions was only established in 2005 to provide a practical and pragmatic HR service to small and medium sized firms and already has clients from a very diverse cross section of businesses.

12th September 2006: We are delighted to announce that Trevor Richards, the Managing Director of Richards HR Solutions has had his professional ability and experience recognised by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development by being appointed a Chartered Fellow.

Trevor said, “I am very pleased to have my membership of the CIPD upgraded to Chartered Fellow. It is recognition of my vast experience in the field of HR, but more importantly our clients can be sure they are receiving a first class professional service.”