It is almost Christmas! With less than 2 weeks until everyone finishes for the festive period, we at Wildings wanted to focus on recent news, particularly geared to Christmas planning! Whilst this is generally a fun and enjoyable time of year for most people, it can also be fraught with Employment Law mishaps! Read guidance on how to deal with the festive period so you are not caught out!

Keep Calm, It's Christmas Party time!

Most businesses will be holding their Christmas lunches, dinners and parties in the next 2 weeks. These events should be morale boosters, a chance for everyone to relax and wind down and a time to show some appreciation for the year's hard work! However, most of us know that the Christmas Party or event can also be a hive of dangerous activity in respect of Employment law!

In this article, we discuss the steps to take to ensure you stay on the right side of Employment law when planning your Christmas events!

Christmas Excitement & Distractions

After working hard all year, it is expected that people will start to slow down as the Christmas break approaches. For many employees, they will experience burn out from not only continuing to work but also planning for the holidays, buying presents and making arrangements with friends and families.

Employers need to be alert to the issues that can affect employees at this time of year and take reasonable steps to keep staff involved and motivated but also to recognise that the end of the year is also a quieter period and a time to reflect and celebrate achievements with the staff!

Read more here for guidance on this issue!

Christmas Motivation - Keeping it at a High!

At this time of the year, it is no surprise that people are excitable and distracted by the impending break from work and spending time with loved ones. Add to that the fact that most businesses experience a reduction in work, it means keeping employees motivated is a difficult task!

That being said, there are things an Employer can do to keep staff engaged and challenged without becoming oppressive and Grinch-like! Whilst Employers may want to act like it is business as usual for as long as possible, having unreasonable expectations will not benefit anyone!

This article gives practical steps you can take to help ensure your staff stay on track without dampening their Christmas spirits!

Christmas Events - The Journey Home!

As an employer, it is up to you whether you provide transport for your employees after the Christmas party or night out. But, if you choose not to, don't be surprised if some of them do not arrive at work the next day or if you hear of some interesting and worrying journeys!

Statistics show that many revellers will fall asleep on the way home, will lose valuables and will damage their clothing beyond repair. Unsurprisingly, many were unfit to attend work the following day too! This naturally has an impact on the business and is therefore an important consideration for Employers.

Read more about this often ignored area of Christmas planning!

Other Notable News - Wage Rage & December Updates

If you have been keeping up with the news you will have seen many articles and stories about companies that have been named and shamed for failing to pay their employees minimum wage. This topic will continue to be reported about regularly and it is no doubt concerning that some of those named and shamed are well known businesses that you would expect to know better!

Two such companies are Primark and Sports Direct, the latter having been in the news many times this year for Employment law related infringements! It is expected there will be many more high profile employers being 'outed' so stay tuned for more updates!

We have also included a general update on key December news and cases of interest such as the Uber and Deliveroo claims!

Read more about Primark and Sports Direct here.

Read more about December's Updates here.