Ramsdens Solicitors has conducted a survey of over 200 employers seeking responses designed to gauge their confidence in dealing with a number of day-to-day issues and some less common matters.
We received responses from 222 employers in a cross-section of businesses across the UK, with half of those responding employing more than 150 people.
The key finding is that 40% of employers surveyed are tolerating low-performance levels and poor behaviour because the market for recruitment is tight. This is likely to have profound long-term effects on business and organisational performance and on co-workers.
What did we learn overall?
- 40% of employers are tolerating poor performance and behaviour because recruitment is difficult.
- There is clear evidence that employers struggle with achieving their desired outcomes in the areas of grievances, performance management and disciplinary issues.
- There is (not surprisingly) a lack of clear understanding of an employer’s obligations regarding the reasons for and handling of employee requests for time off.
- Around a quarter of employers lack the necessary levels of confidence to deal with a range of day-to-day issues, including handling disciplinary and grievance situations, whistleblowing, and the making of reasonable adjustments, particularly to assist in dealing with the symptoms of the menopause.
David Bradley, Head of Employment Law at Ramsdens Solicitors said: “We conducted this survey because we sensed, from the training and advice provided to clients, that confidence levels in key areas for employers were low.
“We also noticed a change in the environment - post-pandemic - linked to strong levels of employment and vacancies that employers were being forced to tolerate lower levels of performance and, in some cases, conduct. Our survey has confirmed those views.
Gareth Dando, Employment Partner, said: “It is of particular concern that a significant proportion of employers appear to be tolerating poor performance and behaviour because they feel they have little choice in the current environment. This is likely to undermine the values an employer may regard as important and impact the long-term performance of the organisation. It is also likely to impact an area often overlooked, how well-performing employees view certain co-workers and the respect (or otherwise) they have for employers who they expect would address such issues.”
The full survey results
How many people do you employ?
| Answer Choices | Response Percent | Responses |
|---|---|---|
| Less than 30 | 32.88% | 73 |
| 30-75 | 13.06% | 29 |
| 75-150 | 4.50% | 10 |
| More than 150 | 49.55% | 110 |
Do you have a dedicated HR function?
| Answer Choices | Response Percent | Responses |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 55.86% | 124 |
| No | 44.14% | 98 |
How confident are you in handling the following matters?
| Answer Choices | Extremely confident | Very confident | Moderately confident | Slightly confident | Not at all confident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Investigating and handling disciplinary situations | 37 | 43 | 55 | 22 | 26 |
| Handling grievances | 35 | 37 | 61 | 22 | 28 |
| Recognising and handling a whistleblower report | 38 | 33 | 56 | 27 | 29 |
| Handling a data subject access request | 46 | 53 | 47 | 13 | 24 |
| Handling requests for flexible working | 51 | 43 | 53 | 10 | 26 |
| Handling requests for adjustments due to a disability | 45 | 53 | 51 | 14 | 20 |
| Handling requests for adjustments due to other issues. For example, symptoms of menopause | 35 | 41 | 59 | 23 | 25 |
How confident are you in handling the following requests for time off for any reason covered by legislation?
Most confident
- Maternity leave
- Attending an antenatal appointment
- Employees required to carry out jury service
- Paternity leave
- Time off for dependents
Least Confident
- Employees who are members of a special negotiating body or European works council to perform their role and stand for election
- Time off to undertake study or training
- Employees acting as representatives in relation to pension schemes to perform their functions (as representatives)
- Time off for training or education for employees under 18 and who do not have a level 3 qualification (England)/time off for study or training for 16-18 year olds (Wales and Scotland)
- For employees who are trustees of occupational pension schemes, time off for the purpose of performing trustee duties and undertaking relevant training
| Answer Choices | Extremely confident | Very confident | Moderately confident | Slightly confident | Not at all confident | Don't know |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attending an antenatal appointment | 46 | 54 | 33 | 13 | 5 | 15 |
| Accompanying a pregnant woman to an antenatal appointment | 28 | 30 | 44 | 14 | 21 | 29 |
| Maternity leave | 50 | 48 | 42 | 6 | 8 | 12 |
| Adoption leave | 34 | 42 | 40 | 12 | 15 | 20 |
| Paternity leave | 43 | 47 | 35 | 10 | 14 | 15 |
| Shared parental leave | 30 | 40 | 46 | 10 | 19 | 18 |
| Parental bereavement leave | 41 | 37 | 40 | 13 | 16 | 17 |
| Time off for dependants | 40 | 36 | 47 | 12 | 15 | 14 |
| Unpaid parental leave | 39 | 35 | 46 | 14 | 14 | 18 |
| Time off to undertake study or training (for employers with 250 or more employees) | 22 | 30 | 38 | 15 | 19 | 40 |
| Time off for training or education for employees under 18 and who do not have a level 3 qualification (England)/time off for study or training for 16-18 year olds (Wales and Scotland) | 24 | 28 | 41 | 19 | 16 | 37 |
| Accompanying a colleague (or another worker) to a disciplinary or grievance hearing during working hours | 32 | 27 | 41 | 28 | 13 | 25 |
| A Trade Union official, accompanying a worker | 31 | 31 | 46 | 16 | 15 | 27 |
| For employees who are trustees of occupational pension schemes, time off for the purpose of performing trustee duties and undertaking relevant training | 24 | 28 | 37 | 23 | 16 | 37 |
| For employee representatives in redundancy and TUPE consultations to perform their functions and undertake training | 26 | 27 | 41 | 22 | 16 | 34 |
| Employees acting as representatives in relation to pension schemes to perform their functions (as representatives) | 22 | 27 | 39 | 20 | 20 | 38 |
| For employee safety representatives to perform their role and receive training, and where there is no Union safety representative to stand for election | 31 | 30 | 37 | 20 | 18 | 30 |
| Employees who are negotiating representatives, information and consultation representatives or candidates for election to perform their duties and stand for election | 25 | 25 | 39 | 21 | 20 | 35 |
| Employees who are members of a special negotiating body or European works council to perform their role and stand for election | 23 | 23 | 35 | 22 | 23 | 40 |
| For employees under notice of dismissal by reason of redundancy, time off to look for a new job or arrange training for future employment | 26 | 27 | 43 | 20 | 21 | 29 |
| Employees who must carry out certain public duties, i.e. members of a local authority or justices of the peace | 29 | 35 | 40 | 17 | 18 | 26 |
| Employees required to carry out jury service | 46 | 39 | 37 | 17 | 14 | 13 |
With employment levels high and recruitment difficult, would you be more likely to adjust your stance and treat with leniency issues of poor behaviour or performance?
| Answer Choices | Response Percent | Responses |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 39.75% | 64 |
| No | 60.25% | 97 |