Your Handy Business Travel Checklist

You’re off on a business trip. Amongst all the meeting preparation, getting your presentation ready and making sure your laptop is charged, there is still your packing to do. Overlook this at your peril, however, because there will always be something vital you’ll wish you never left behind. Whilst you’re probably not likely to omit to pack your passport, boarding pass and currency, there are things you really could do with not forgetting.

If you’re packing in a hurry for a business trip, use this at-a-glance guide to make sure you don’t miss anything essential.

Essential item 1: Health Cover. If you’re travelling within Europe, make sure you have a valid European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). It’s free of charge and will allow you access to free or discounted healthcare across the EU. This includes pre-existing conditions. You should also make sure you have adequate travel insurance that covers you for emergency treatment and repatriation.

Essential item 2: Chargers and Adapters. You won’t get very far if you can’t charge your smartphone, tablet or laptop. As well as your chargers, you’re going to need the appropriate power adapters. Make sure you have the right ones, because at very least they won’t work. At worst, they could actually damage your devices, or even cause a fire (it has been known!). Also bear in mind that hotel rooms are never overly generous when it comes to power sockets, so it could pay to pack a multi-socket adapter.

Essential item 3: Internet Access. Your hotel may say it offers Wi-Fi, but just how reliable it is could be anyone’s guess. Tethering from your mobile could cost you dear when you are roaming, so if you are going to be dependent on internet access during your trip, and let’s face it, we’re all pretty much internet dependent any time of the day, reassure yourself by getting yourself a Wi-Fi dongle or by pre-loading an international mobile hotspot with credit.

Essential item 4: Pen and Paper. Yes, we said pen and paper! What happens if your device battery runs out and you are left with nothing on which to take notes or write down something essential, like the details of a potentially lucrative new contact? Pack a pen and notebook and you’ll have a back-up.

Essential item 5: USB Drive. Worst case scenario, your laptop fails. Your presentation is stored on it. What to do? If you have a back-up copy on a flash drive, you can borrow, hire or even buy another device, and you’re ready to go.

Essential item 6: Ear Plugs. You have to be up at the crack of dawn to deliver your presentation. But your hotel room neighbours are making the most of their holiday, or there’s some sort of fiesta going on right below your balcony. Cue the ear plugs: pop them in and enjoy a restful night’s sleep, so you are primed and ready for your big day.

Business travel can be stressful, but if you go well-equipped, you’ll have a very different and far more positive experience.

Statutory Pay Freeze for 2016

The Government has announced that there will be no annual increase in various types of statutory pay in 2016.

Statutory maternity and paternity pay, shared parental pay and adoption pay will see no rise from the current rate of £139.58 or 90% of an employee’s average weekly earnings if this amount is less than the statutory rate. The rate of statutory sick pay has also been frozen at the current weekly rate of £88.45.

There is no statutory requirement to increase statutory pay rates annually, but they do normally go up every April so that they rise alongside the consumer price index (CPI). However, the fact that the CPI actually dropped in the year leading up to September 2015 by 0.1 per cent prompted the freeze for the 2017-2017 period.

Employers are usually able to claim back 92 per cent of employees’ statutory maternity pay, paternity pay, adoption pay and shared parental pay.

To be entitled to statutory payments, an employee’s average earnings must be equal to or more than the lower earnings limit, which has also been frozen at £112.

Useful Statutory Pay Guides for Employers

You may find the following Government guides to statutory pay useful:

Statutory Sick Pay: 

https://www.gov.uk/employers-sick-pay/overview

Maternity Pay & Leave:

https://www.gov.uk/employers-maternity-pay-leave/entitlement

Paternity Pay & Leave:

https://www.gov.uk/employers-paternity-pay-leave/entitlement

Adoption Pay & Leave:

https://www.gov.uk/employers-adoption-pay-leave/entitlement

Shared Parental Leave & Pay:

https://www.gov.uk/shared-parental-leave-and-pay-employer-guide/overview

Additional Parental Pay & Leave:

https://www.gov.uk/employers-additional-paternity-pay-leave

If you are in need of any advice, you should talk to your bookkeepers. They will be able to guide you through how statutory pay works, and will help you forecast ahead if you have staff taking leave in the near future.

Crucial Christmas Considerations for Employers

It’s that time of year when as an employer, you are faced with a raft of trials and tribulations. Christmas always tends to throw up all sorts of issues where annual leave, discipline and discrimination are concerned. Here are some of our top tips on what you should be doing in order to deal with these issues effectively, so that your workplace Christmas can be a peaceful one.

Be Clear on Policy

Your seasonal policies should be well documented and managers and supervisors should be familiar with them. Make sure you have policies in place covering everything from annual leave to social events.

It is vital to have policies in place covering social events because as an employer you have a duty of care towards your personnel, plus there’s the issue of the Equality Act 2010 that makes you liable when it comes to discrimination, victimisation and harassment. You need to be able to demonstrate that you have taken practicable steps to prevent anything along these lines taking place.

Beware Discrimination

Religious discrimination is something that causes employers a great deal of worry at Christmas. Will your festive party offend those who do not celebrate Christmas? Hopefully not, because staff parties should be focused on morale boosting rather than any sort of religious observation.

It is wise in any case to be mindful of all the religious festivals that fall throughout the year, and ensure you are balanced in your approach.

You may also come across problems with Christian employees refusing to work on bank holidays that have religious significance. Again the Equality Act 2010 applies, which means you cannot treat staff any differently to others because of their religion. Workers do not have a right to time off in order to observe religious occasions, but if you do refuse them, it could constitute religious discrimination. Putting a policy in place is essential.

Know the Rules on Annual Leave

Employees do not have a right to take holidays during the festive period and unless there is an agreement to the contrary, notice equating to twice the length of the holiday they wish to take must be given.

If taking leave is not acceptable to you at this time of year, then you can give counter notice stating that the leave cannot be taken, providing this notice equates to the length of the leave requested, and that you are not stopping the employee taking the leave they are entitled to for that holiday year. On refusing leave that falls within allowable parameters, you must always be able to state valid business reasons.

Bear in mind that actions taken against employees who fail to attend work without permission should be reasonable. There have been cases where employees have been dismissed for this reason, and later the dismissal has been found to be unfair by the Employment Tribunal.

It is also worth noting that unless a contract states otherwise, employees are not entitled to bank holidays off, neither are they entitled to any additional pay when working them.

Confused about Christmas as an employer? Chat your concerns through with your bookkeepers in the first instance and they’ll point you in the right direction as to the advice you need to get things right.