Stress In The Workplace

According to the Health & Safety Executive (HSE), over 400,000 employees suffer stress, depression or anxiety caused or made worse by their current or past work.  Over 13 million working days are lost each year as a result of stress. In addition to loss of productivity, employers need to take care not to put themselves at risk of a claim from an employee, resulting in both financial penalties and potential loss of reputation.  O2 was ordered to pay nearly £110,000 in damages to an accountant who suffered ill health, having requested assistance on a number of occasions. Through taking a positive approach to tackling work related stress your business also stands to benefit from improved morale amongst staff and reduced cost of absences, sickness cover and recruitment. Stress is defined as: 'the adverse reaction people…

Break Clauses In Leases

A Court of Appeal decision highlights the risks for commercial tenants of failing to correctly exercise the break clause in their lease. In this case, the tenant failed to give vacant possession in accordance with the terms of the break clause in its lease. The tenant wanted to carry out repairs to the property to control costs and avoid a dilapidations claim for damages in excess of its own costs in doing the repairs. There was no obligation on the tenants to complete the works before vacating the property; they were only required to pay rent up to the break date and give vacant possession. By deciding to stay in the property to complete the repairs, the tenant failed to provide vacant possession and was, therefore, not entitled to terminate its lease. Fortunately, the tenant…

New Rights For Agency Workers

New laws protecting agency workers come into force on 1 October 2011. For example, from the start of their assignment, agency workers will be entitled to access any collective facilities and amenities that other employees or workers within a business have access to (such as child-care facilities). Who is an agency worker? An agency worker is any individual who: Is supplied by a temporary work agency (TWA) to work temporarily for and under the supervision and direction of your business; and Has a contract with the TWA, which is either: a contract of employment with the TWA; or any other contract to perform work and services personally for the TWA. A TWA is an employment business that supplies workers to hirers for temporary work (as opposed to an employment…

Tenancy Deposit Schemes

This checklist explains what a tenancy deposit scheme (TDS) is and what a landlord's obligations are under a TDS. What is a TDS? A landlord under an assured shorthold tenancy (AST) must protect a tenant's deposit by using an authorised tenancy deposit scheme (TDS) operated by an approved scheme administrator. A TDS has two main objectives: To ensure that, when a tenant pays a deposit, it will be protected and returned to the tenant at the end of the AST, except when the landlord has a legitimate claim on it. To resolve disputes between landlords and tenants using dispute resolution rather than via the courts. There are two types of TDS There are two types of TDS: A custodial TDS requires a landlord to pay its tenant's deposit to a scheme…

Is Probate Always Needed

We are often asked about when it is necessary to apply for probate, particularly where the estate is small with assets of less than £20,000. If you are an executor, you will be responsible for collecting in all monies, paying any debts and distributing any legacies to family, friends or charities. Before you can do this, in most cases you would need to apply to the Probate Registry for a 'grant'. Evidence of the grant of probate may be required by some financial institutions before they will release any money, so you will need to check with each bank or building society about their policies for the relevant accounts. If the deceased person owned stocks or shares and has any insurance policies, then you will also need the grant in order to release these monies. For…