Edward Smethurst’s Post

Senate Proposes 32-hour workweek while pay remains the same! On March 12th, Senator Bernie Sanders proposed a new bill that would call for a shorter U.S. work week (4 days / 32 hours) while there is no reduction in gross pay. If the passing of this bill would affect your operations, you may want to investigate outsourcing all or part of your labor with OSI! No matter the outcome of this legislation, OSI can provide your team with knowledgeable and skilled staff for a number of positions. In fact, OSI can outsource any job that does not require a physical presence. With the popularity of remote work, this dynamic has been normalized across most businesses. Find out more about the proposed bill at the link below: https://lnkd.in/gMBaGsSE And if you're ready to start outsourcing with OSI, reach out to our team to discuss how we can help your business! https://lnkd.in/g-UXYP-a #usnews #laborlaws #berniesanders #workweek #4dayworkweek #outsourcedstaffing #outsource #staffing #humanresources

Workers will soon be able to ignore work-related emails and calls outside office hours under new rules to be introduced by the Labour government, The Independent reports. It continues: “Meeting the party’s “right to switch off” campaign pledge, the plan will see workers empowered to disconnect from their jobs outside regular hours, including the right to refuse to take on extra work at the weekends. The plans are expected to cover workers’ annual leave, meaning bosses would not be allowed to ask employees to carry out work-related tasks while on holiday. They will come as part of the government’s Plan to Make Work Pay. Other measures in the package were outlined during the King’s Speech on Wednesday. They include banning exploitative zero-hours contracts, ending ‘fire and rehire’, and making sick pay available from day one of any job. Unlike those measures, however, the right to switch off will not be enshrined in law. Instead, it will likely be recommended in the codes of practice for businesses. In the UK, there is no currently no official right to disconnect from work. Labour said the policy will ensure that “working from home does not become homes turning into 24/7 offices”. The statutory workers’ rights laid out in the King’s Speech are expected to come into place in spring, with the new right to switch off likely to come around the same time.” #righttoswitchoff #hr #humanresources

Do you check your work emails or respond to calls after hours? If elected into power, The Labour Party proposes to introduce a 'statutory right to switch off' so that workers are not contacted unnecessarily outside of their working hours. The aim of the proposal is to encourage and promote a better work life balance for workers in the UK. Other countries such as France and Australia have already implemented this right for their workers. If implemented in the UK, the 'right to disconnect' is likely to be subject to the test of reasonableness. For example, in Australia, workers have the right to ignore communications from their employers outside of their normal working hours, provided that their refusal to communicate is reasonable in the circumstances. With more employees working remotely since the pandemic, it is important that workers feel they are able to switch off. The right to disconnect could be a step in the right direction as it could help workers separate their professional and personal lives. Steps that employers can take right now: ✅️ Encourage staff to avoid checking their emails or taking calls whilst on holiday. Where possible, staff should prepare a handover note of the work they are leaving behind. Teams can work together to pick up any redirected emails on behalf of their colleagues. This is a great way to encourage your staff to make the most of their well-earned holiday breaks and can help them to return to work feeling refreshed (rather than burnt-out). ✅️ Speak to your staff about their experiences with remote/hybrid working and whether they need any support with 'switching off.' ✅️ Provide training to all staff so that they are clear on what is expected of them. Managers should be trained to monitor and recognise unsociable working hours within their teams. Communications outside of normal working hours should be treated as the exception rather than the norm. ✅️ Arrange regular catch-up sessions with your staff. This is a great way of monitoring their workload. 🔔 If you are interested in Employment Law updates, please feel free to follow my page. #WorkLifeBalance #Inclusion #RightToSwitchOff #WorkplaceCulture #LegalUpdates #EmploymentLaw #HR #HcrBrum

Labour’s proposal for a "right to switch off" could protect employees from being contacted outside working hours. This aims to improve work-life balance and may lead to compensation for employees regularly disturbed after hours. The policy follows similar laws in France and Belgium. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/dMYsHydB #RightToSwitchOff #WorkLifeBalance #LabourPolicy #WorkersRights #EmployeeWellbeing

📴 The right to disconnect 📴 The Australian Government is considering a progressive workplace law that would bring Australia up to speed with other countries such as France and Germany. If passed, the Bill will become a national employment standard and have the greatest reach for Australian workers. Employers who do not comply with this right to disconnect may face penalties. However, it needs to be made clear how this law would be enforced across various industries. What powers the Fair Work Commission would have to monitor employee complaints also need to be clarified. The possible benefit of this law is that it will prevent employees from being constantly available for work outside of work hours, something that has become more common since the rise of remote work. At this stage, it is unclear how it will operate alongside the 'reasonable additional hours' clauses in contracts or s62. of The Fair Work Act (reasonable hours). For it to have any effect, it will likely need to be supreme. If it works, it could give employees back more time outside of work hours and allow them to disconnect from work mentally. “That has required a unionised workforce, which typically comes with more rights and entitlements than an un-unionised workforce,” she said. “But how it’s policed is going to be completely different for each industry.” MB's Jessica Heron in The Guardian Read more: https://lnkd.in/g4QyYph5

Can your boss contact you outside of work hours? That may not be the case for much longer as Labour has announced a new workers' rights initiative to protect employees against being contacted by their bosses outside of working hours. Flexible working hours and locations have become widely normalised since the COVID-19 pandemic. But now the government is acknowledging that it can blur the lines between work and home life. Here's everything you need to know about the new proposed plans. #workfromhome https://lnkd.in/exeu9Xdp

Many workers around the world are now reporting a blurred demarcation between home and work, leaving many feeling that they are ‘always on’. One way of addressing that is to create a right to disconnect: unavailability as a legal entitlement. Should the Labour Party win the next general election, it is likely that the UK will follow suit: its employment rights green paper promises employees “a new right to disconnect from work outside of working hours and not be contacted by their employer outside of working hours”. The first and probably most important concern will be enforcement. Any legal right implies a corresponding obligation that requires an enforcement mechanism. It may be that the obligation to allow employees to switch off will be introduced as a statutory right, with a right to financial compensation if breached. Alternatively, or in addition, organisations breaching any new right to disconnect may be required to pay a fine, with enforcement imposed by a government body such as HMRC. Alternatively, it is possible that the UK government will opt for a more light-touch approach and impose an obligation on employers to introduce a written policy about protected ‘down time’ outside of core hours. And what would be the scope of any legal obligation on employers to protect ‘down time’? For example, should flexibility be built in to allow an employer to contact an employee out of hours in exceptional circumstances? Would there be a carve out for staff who are happy to waive their right to disconnect? How would the right work for those individuals whose working patterns do not follow conventional office hours? In other words, any legislation would need flexibility built in, on both the employer and employee side. Although we do not yet have a specific right to disconnect in the UK, some protections are, to a certain extent, wrapped up in existing laws. Health and safety legislation requires employers to take reasonably practicable steps to protect the health and safety of their employees. This encompasses mental health and safety and could include an obligation to ensure that employees have time to rest and recharge. In addition, the Working Time Regulations 1998 set maximum working hours with guaranteed rest breaks and holidays, although there is a limited right to opt out. Beyond legislative obligations, many employers have signed up to the Mindful Business Charter, which promotes a positive workplace culture by clearly defining the limits on expectations and working hours. Rather than impose rigid legal responsibilities (with all the associated litigation that this inevitably generates), it may be that businesses prefer to address concerns about work-life boundaries by introducing policies, practices and a culture in which there is an assumption that availability for work is clearly limited by time, if not by location.

🚨 Australia Introduces Right to Disconnect 📵 (Source: BBC News) As of August 2024, Australians now have the right to disconnect from work after hours without fear of punishment! This new law empowers employees to ignore after-hours communications, promoting better work-life balance and reducing burnout. 🔑 Key Points: • The law doesn’t ban employers from contacting workers but allows employees to choose not to respond unless it’s unreasonable. • With 281 hours of unpaid overtime reported annually, this new rule offers relief to overworked Australians. • Countries like France and Spain already have similar regulations, highlighting a global shift toward protecting employee well-being. • Experts suggest that a rested workforce leads to fewer sick days and increased productivity, benefiting both employees and businesses. This is a major step forward for workplace culture, encouraging a healthier balance between work and personal life! 🌱 👉 More here: https://lnkd.in/eVR43Jrj. #RightToDisconnect #WorkLifeBalance #EmployeeWellbeing #FutureOfWork #AgileWorking #FlexibleWorking

Should employers be allowed to contact their staff outside of work hours? A Senate committee is recommending Australian workers be given the right to disconnect, which could mean no emails or phone calls from their boss after hours. But the small business community has some legitimate concerns about what this would mean for SMEs. #work #industrialrelations #righttodisconnect #workhours #career #smallbusiness SmartCompany

Get prepared for the upcoming clock change on 31st March. Learn how to handle inquiries about pay, mitigate employee lateness and ensure fairness and consistency in managing the shift forward. Read more here: https://buff.ly/3Tt8ikC #easter #spring #employertips #employeefairness #employeeadvocacy