What do you do when you’re faced with HR questions from your staff that make you draw a blank?

You could struggle on your own (and maybe get it wrong), or you could ask us for the advice you need. And it’s free, too.

That’s what these business owners did last month…

1. “One of my employees has let their personal hygiene slip. Could they claim I’m discriminating against them if I bring it up?”

It can be a touchy subject, especially if your employee has a disability-linked illness that explains their poor personal hygiene. Disability is a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010, so you could be accused of discrimination.

Speak to your employee and find out if they’re feeling stressed or they’re having difficulties in their private life that could explain their appearance at work. If you’ve got an employee assistance programme (EAP), suggest they call it some confidential advice.

From your conversations with them, you might find there aren’t any obvious outside issues. If they’ve got a role where they deal with customers or clients, you might want to gently remind them about your company’s policy on personal hygiene and appearance in the workplace.

Worried about how to handle an awkward conversation with one of your employees without it escalating? Call us on 0800 144 4050.

2. “A member of staff in my shop has a contract to work Thursday-Monday, and she’s just given me a month’s notice saying she doesn’t want to work on Sundays anymore. What are my options?”

If you work in retail, the Sunday Trading Act lets your employees opt out of working on Sundays (unless it’s their only working day). They can opt out at any time as long as they give you three months’ notice.

If your shop needs staff to work on Sundays, you have to tell them in writing that they can opt out. You have to do this within two months of your employee starting their contract. If you don’t, they only have to give you one month’s notice that they don’t want to work Sundays.

You don’t have to offer your employee extra hours on different days of the week to make up for them choosing not to work on Sundays.

Need advice dealing with staff who want to change their hours? Call us on 0800 144 4050.

3. “I made a mistake and underpaid an employee for their overtime this month. I’m planning to pay it in next month’s salary. Is this allowed?”

Tell your employee that you made a mistake with their overtime. Check whether it would cause them any financial hardship to pay their overtime a month later.

If your member of staff was banking on receiving their overtime payment and it’s for a substantial sum, you could make a one-off payment outside of the normal wage run.

Otherwise, explain that you’ll pay their overtime with their salary next month. But be careful.

New rules around payslips mean from April 2019, they have to include how many hours an employee has worked if they work different shifts.

You also have to make sure that your staff are always paid the National Minimum Wage (NMW) on average for every hour they work. If you mistakenly underpay your staff when they have worked overtime, you might breach NMW laws because you won’t have paid them the right hourly rate.

Made a pay blunder this month? We can help you fix it. Call us on 0800 144 4050.