Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

In this guide:

  • Statutory Parental Bereavement Leave

    Employer guidance on statutory leave entitlement for an employee whose child has died or was stillborn.

    An employee can take 2 weeks’ leave from the first day of their employment for each child who has died or was stillborn.

    They can choose to take:

    • 2 weeks together
    • 2 separate weeks of leave
    • only one week of leave

    The leave:

    • can start on or after the date of the death or stillbirth
    • must finish within 56 weeks of the date of the death or stillbirth

    Taking leave with other types of statutory leave

    If the employee was on another type of statutory leave when the death or stillbirth happened, Parental Bereavement Leave must start after that other leave has ended. This includes if the statutory leave is for another child.

    If an employee’s Parental Bereavement Leave is interrupted by the start of another type of statutory leave, they can take their remaining entitlement to Parental Bereavement Leave after that other leave has ended.

    The remaining Parental Bereavement Leave must still be taken within 56 weeks of the date of death or stillbirth.

    Parental Bereavement Leave can be taken between blocks of shared parental leave that had already been booked when the child died, even if the shared parental leave is for another child.

    Developed with
    Department for the Economy
    Also on this site
    Parental leave and time off for dependants
    Managing employee bereavement
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/statutory-parental-bereavement-leave

    Links

  • Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

    Employer guidance on statutory pay entitlement for an employee or worker whose child has died or was stillborn.

    Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay for an eligible employee or worker is either:

    • £184.03 a week or;
    • 90% of their average weekly earnings (whichever is lower).

    Tax and National Insurance need to be deducted.

    Calculate Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay using Basic PAYE tools or guidance on manual calculation.

    Some employment types, like agency workers, directors and educational workers, have different rules for entitlement.

    Extra leave or pay

    Your company can offer more leave and pay but you can only recover 2 weeks’ payment for each employee or worker and for each death. You should make sure your Parental Bereavement Leave and Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay policies are clear and easily accessible to staff.

    Employment rights

    An employee’s rights (like the right to pay rises, holidays and returning to a job) are protected during Parental Bereavement Leave. You still have to pay Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay even if you stop trading.  

    Eligibility for leave and pay

    To qualify for Parental Bereavement Leave and Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay, an employee must meet the criteria both as a parent (including if they had day to day responsibility) and an employee. They might not be eligible for both.

    Eligibility for pay

    To qualify for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay an employee or worker must meet the conditions of entitlement, including the criteria as a parent.

    If the employee or worker was the child’s parent or the parent’s partner

    An employee or worker will be eligible if, at the time of the child’s death or stillbirth, they were:

    • the child’s or baby’s parent - either biological, adoptive or parent of a child born to a surrogate
    • the partner of the child’s or baby’s parent

    Biological parents are not eligible once an adoption or parental order has been made unless there was a contact order in place after the adoption.

    If the employee or worker was not the child’s parent but had day to day responsibility for the child

    An employee or worker may be eligible if they or their partner had:

    • the child or baby living with them at their home for 4 continuous weeks, ending with the date of the death
    • day to day responsibility for the child or baby’s care during that time

    If the employee or worker or their partner was paid to look after the child, they’re not entitled to leave or pay unless they were:

    • a foster parent paid a fee or allowance by a local authority
    • reimbursed for expenses to do with the care of the child or baby
    • getting payments under the terms of a will or trust for the child or baby’s care

    An employee or worker is not eligible if one of the child or baby’s parents or someone who had parental responsibility for the child was also living in the household.

    If the employee or worker was an adoptive parent

    If they or their partner was an adoptive parent, an employee is eligible:

    • after the adoption order was granted
    • before the adoption order was granted, if the child was placed with them for adoption and the placement was not disrupted (for example, being temporarily placed elsewhere) or stopped

    If the employee or worker was an adoptive parent of a child from outside the United Kingdom

    If the employee or worker and their partner was adopting a child from outside the United Kingdom and the court order had not yet been made, they may still be eligible. Both of the following must apply:

    • the child was living with them
    • they have an ‘official notification’ confirming they were allowed to adopt

    If the employee or worker had a baby with the help of a surrogate parent

    If they or their partner were a parent of a child born to a surrogate, an employee or worker is eligible:

    • after a parental order was made
    • before a parental order was made if they had applied or intended to apply for a parental order within 6 months of the child’s birth and expected it to be granted

    Parental Bereavement Leave

    To get Parental Bereavement Leave, the employee must also:

    • be classed as an employee - it does not matter how long they’ve worked for you
    • give you the correct notice for Parental Bereavement Leave

    Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

    To get Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay, the employee or worker must have been continuously employed by you for at least 26 weeks up to the end of the ‘relevant week’. The ‘relevant week’ is the week (ending with a Saturday) immediately before the week of the death or stillbirth.

    They must also:

    • remain employed by you up to the day the child dies or is stillborn
    • earn on average £123 a week (gross)
    • give you the correct notice for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

    Use the guidance on manual calculation to check entitlement and to work out the relevant week.

    There are special rules for some employee situations, for example if they leave or become sick.

    Non-payment form

    You can refuse Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay if the employee does not qualify.

    To do this, send them a completed non-payment form (SPBP1) or your own equivalent form within 28 days of their pay request with evidence. You should keep a record of the week which was refused and the reason why.

    If an employee is unhappy with your decision, they can contact the HMRC Statutory Payments Disputes Team. They must do this within 6 months of the start date of the Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay period they claimed.

    Record keeping

    You must keep records for HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), including:

    • the start date for any period Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay was paid
    • the payments you’ve made (including dates)
    • a copy of the evidence of entitlement from the employee for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay including their written declaration, name and date of the child’s death or stillbirth
    • details of any weeks the employee claimed Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay but you did not pay and the reason why

    You must keep records for 3 years from the end of the tax year they relate to.

    You can use HMRC’s record keeping form (SPBP2) or your own.

    Get help with statutory pay

    For financial help with statutory pay, you can:

    Apply for an advance if you cannot afford payments

    You can apply online for an advance to pay for an employee’s Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay.

    Before you start, you’ll need:

    • your employer PAYE reference
    • your payment or account office reference numbers - this is on the letter when you first registered as an employer
    • the amount of tax or National Insurance owed to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
    • bank or building society details for you or the third party it’s being paid to
    • a completed R38 form if the advance is being paid to a third party

    You’ll also need information about the employee including their:

    • National Insurance number
    • average weekly earnings
    • parental bereavement leave and pay arrangements - you can get this information from their self-declaration

    Your advance can be paid either by BACS or payable order.

    Contact HMRC if you’ve got questions about advance payments.

    Apply online

    Apply online for an advance if you have a Government Gateway user ID and password.

    If you do not have a Government Gateway user ID and password, you can create one when you apply.

    After you’ve applied

    If the advance is being paid to a third party and you’re sending a completed R38 form by post, send it to HMRC within 4 weeks of applying for an advance.

    Corporate Treasury
    HMRC
    BX9 1BG

    Once your application has been approved, the money will be paid to the bank or building society account you provided or you’ll be sent a cheque (payable order), depending on which payment option you chose.

    If there are any issues with your application, HMRC will contact you directly.

    Paying back your advance payment

    You’ll need to pay back your advance payment through Employer Payment Summary (EPS).

    Developed with
    Department for the Economy
    Also on this site
    Parental leave and time off for dependants
    Managing employee bereavement
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/statutory-parental-bereavement-pay

    Links

  • Notice periods for Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay

    An employee must give notice for Parental Bereavement Leave as well as evidence for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay.

    An employee must give notice for Parental Bereavement Leave as well as evidence for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay.

    Parental Bereavement Leave

    An employee has 56 weeks to take Parental Bereavement Leave. This starts from the date of the child’s death.

    The 56 weeks is split into 2 periods:

    • from the date of the death or stillbirth to 8 weeks after
    • 9 to 56 weeks after the date of the death or stillbirth

    They can take 2 weeks’ leave in one block or as 2 separate blocks of one week.

    You must get notice from the employee before they take Parental Bereavement Leave. How much notice depends on when they’re taking leave.

    0 to 8 weeks after the child’s death or stillbirth

    An employee must give you notice before the time they would normally start work on the first day of the period they want to take off work.

    9 to 56 weeks after the child’s death or stillbirth

    An employee must give you at least one week’s notice before the start of the week or weeks they want to take off work.

    How employees should give you notice

    They should tell you:

    • the date of the child’s death or stillbirth
    • when they want their Parental Bereavement Leave to begin
    • how much leave they are taking - either 1 or 2 weeks

    An employee can give you notice informally, for example by phone, text message or email. You cannot ask for:

    • notice for leave in writing (such as following up with an email, letter or form)
    • notice to cancel leave in writing
    • evidence of entitlement for leave
    • details about the employee’s relationship to the child or baby

    Cancelling Parental Bereavement Leave

    An employee can cancel their Parental Bereavement Leave if they’ve given you the required notice for taking leave.

    If they were starting the leave within 8 weeks of the death or stillbirth, they must let you know about the cancellation no later than the time they would normally start work on the first day of planned leave.

    If they were starting the leave 9 weeks or later after the death or stillbirth, they must let you know no later than one week before the start of the planned leave.

    They can rebook another week’s leave if they cancel before the leave was due to start and they give you the correct notice.

    Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

    An employee must ask for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay within 28 days (or as soon as is reasonably practicable), starting with the first day of the week they want to claim pay for.

    They must give you in writing (for example, a letter or email) each time:

    • the dates of the period they want to claim Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay
    • their name
    • the date of the child’s death or stillbirth

    The employee will also need to give you a self-declaration to confirm they are eligible because of their relationship to the child or baby - they only need to provide this once when they first ask for pay.

    Cancelling Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

    An employee can cancel their Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay if they’ve given you the required notice for claiming pay.

    If their pay was due to start within 8 weeks of the child’s death or stillbirth, they must give you notice on the first day of the week of pay they want to cancel.

    Developed with
    Department for the Economy
    Also on this site
    Parental leave and time off for dependants
    Managing employee bereavement
    Issue the correct periods of notice
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/notice-periods-parental-bereavement-leave-and-pay

    Links

Statutory Parental Bereavement Leave

In this guide:

  • Statutory Parental Bereavement Leave

    Employer guidance on statutory leave entitlement for an employee whose child has died or was stillborn.

    An employee can take 2 weeks’ leave from the first day of their employment for each child who has died or was stillborn.

    They can choose to take:

    • 2 weeks together
    • 2 separate weeks of leave
    • only one week of leave

    The leave:

    • can start on or after the date of the death or stillbirth
    • must finish within 56 weeks of the date of the death or stillbirth

    Taking leave with other types of statutory leave

    If the employee was on another type of statutory leave when the death or stillbirth happened, Parental Bereavement Leave must start after that other leave has ended. This includes if the statutory leave is for another child.

    If an employee’s Parental Bereavement Leave is interrupted by the start of another type of statutory leave, they can take their remaining entitlement to Parental Bereavement Leave after that other leave has ended.

    The remaining Parental Bereavement Leave must still be taken within 56 weeks of the date of death or stillbirth.

    Parental Bereavement Leave can be taken between blocks of shared parental leave that had already been booked when the child died, even if the shared parental leave is for another child.

    Developed with
    Department for the Economy
    Also on this site
    Parental leave and time off for dependants
    Managing employee bereavement
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/statutory-parental-bereavement-leave

    Links

  • Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

    Employer guidance on statutory pay entitlement for an employee or worker whose child has died or was stillborn.

    Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay for an eligible employee or worker is either:

    • £184.03 a week or;
    • 90% of their average weekly earnings (whichever is lower).

    Tax and National Insurance need to be deducted.

    Calculate Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay using Basic PAYE tools or guidance on manual calculation.

    Some employment types, like agency workers, directors and educational workers, have different rules for entitlement.

    Extra leave or pay

    Your company can offer more leave and pay but you can only recover 2 weeks’ payment for each employee or worker and for each death. You should make sure your Parental Bereavement Leave and Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay policies are clear and easily accessible to staff.

    Employment rights

    An employee’s rights (like the right to pay rises, holidays and returning to a job) are protected during Parental Bereavement Leave. You still have to pay Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay even if you stop trading.  

    Eligibility for leave and pay

    To qualify for Parental Bereavement Leave and Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay, an employee must meet the criteria both as a parent (including if they had day to day responsibility) and an employee. They might not be eligible for both.

    Eligibility for pay

    To qualify for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay an employee or worker must meet the conditions of entitlement, including the criteria as a parent.

    If the employee or worker was the child’s parent or the parent’s partner

    An employee or worker will be eligible if, at the time of the child’s death or stillbirth, they were:

    • the child’s or baby’s parent - either biological, adoptive or parent of a child born to a surrogate
    • the partner of the child’s or baby’s parent

    Biological parents are not eligible once an adoption or parental order has been made unless there was a contact order in place after the adoption.

    If the employee or worker was not the child’s parent but had day to day responsibility for the child

    An employee or worker may be eligible if they or their partner had:

    • the child or baby living with them at their home for 4 continuous weeks, ending with the date of the death
    • day to day responsibility for the child or baby’s care during that time

    If the employee or worker or their partner was paid to look after the child, they’re not entitled to leave or pay unless they were:

    • a foster parent paid a fee or allowance by a local authority
    • reimbursed for expenses to do with the care of the child or baby
    • getting payments under the terms of a will or trust for the child or baby’s care

    An employee or worker is not eligible if one of the child or baby’s parents or someone who had parental responsibility for the child was also living in the household.

    If the employee or worker was an adoptive parent

    If they or their partner was an adoptive parent, an employee is eligible:

    • after the adoption order was granted
    • before the adoption order was granted, if the child was placed with them for adoption and the placement was not disrupted (for example, being temporarily placed elsewhere) or stopped

    If the employee or worker was an adoptive parent of a child from outside the United Kingdom

    If the employee or worker and their partner was adopting a child from outside the United Kingdom and the court order had not yet been made, they may still be eligible. Both of the following must apply:

    • the child was living with them
    • they have an ‘official notification’ confirming they were allowed to adopt

    If the employee or worker had a baby with the help of a surrogate parent

    If they or their partner were a parent of a child born to a surrogate, an employee or worker is eligible:

    • after a parental order was made
    • before a parental order was made if they had applied or intended to apply for a parental order within 6 months of the child’s birth and expected it to be granted

    Parental Bereavement Leave

    To get Parental Bereavement Leave, the employee must also:

    • be classed as an employee - it does not matter how long they’ve worked for you
    • give you the correct notice for Parental Bereavement Leave

    Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

    To get Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay, the employee or worker must have been continuously employed by you for at least 26 weeks up to the end of the ‘relevant week’. The ‘relevant week’ is the week (ending with a Saturday) immediately before the week of the death or stillbirth.

    They must also:

    • remain employed by you up to the day the child dies or is stillborn
    • earn on average £123 a week (gross)
    • give you the correct notice for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

    Use the guidance on manual calculation to check entitlement and to work out the relevant week.

    There are special rules for some employee situations, for example if they leave or become sick.

    Non-payment form

    You can refuse Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay if the employee does not qualify.

    To do this, send them a completed non-payment form (SPBP1) or your own equivalent form within 28 days of their pay request with evidence. You should keep a record of the week which was refused and the reason why.

    If an employee is unhappy with your decision, they can contact the HMRC Statutory Payments Disputes Team. They must do this within 6 months of the start date of the Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay period they claimed.

    Record keeping

    You must keep records for HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), including:

    • the start date for any period Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay was paid
    • the payments you’ve made (including dates)
    • a copy of the evidence of entitlement from the employee for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay including their written declaration, name and date of the child’s death or stillbirth
    • details of any weeks the employee claimed Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay but you did not pay and the reason why

    You must keep records for 3 years from the end of the tax year they relate to.

    You can use HMRC’s record keeping form (SPBP2) or your own.

    Get help with statutory pay

    For financial help with statutory pay, you can:

    Apply for an advance if you cannot afford payments

    You can apply online for an advance to pay for an employee’s Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay.

    Before you start, you’ll need:

    • your employer PAYE reference
    • your payment or account office reference numbers - this is on the letter when you first registered as an employer
    • the amount of tax or National Insurance owed to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
    • bank or building society details for you or the third party it’s being paid to
    • a completed R38 form if the advance is being paid to a third party

    You’ll also need information about the employee including their:

    • National Insurance number
    • average weekly earnings
    • parental bereavement leave and pay arrangements - you can get this information from their self-declaration

    Your advance can be paid either by BACS or payable order.

    Contact HMRC if you’ve got questions about advance payments.

    Apply online

    Apply online for an advance if you have a Government Gateway user ID and password.

    If you do not have a Government Gateway user ID and password, you can create one when you apply.

    After you’ve applied

    If the advance is being paid to a third party and you’re sending a completed R38 form by post, send it to HMRC within 4 weeks of applying for an advance.

    Corporate Treasury
    HMRC
    BX9 1BG

    Once your application has been approved, the money will be paid to the bank or building society account you provided or you’ll be sent a cheque (payable order), depending on which payment option you chose.

    If there are any issues with your application, HMRC will contact you directly.

    Paying back your advance payment

    You’ll need to pay back your advance payment through Employer Payment Summary (EPS).

    Developed with
    Department for the Economy
    Also on this site
    Parental leave and time off for dependants
    Managing employee bereavement
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/statutory-parental-bereavement-pay

    Links

  • Notice periods for Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay

    An employee must give notice for Parental Bereavement Leave as well as evidence for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay.

    An employee must give notice for Parental Bereavement Leave as well as evidence for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay.

    Parental Bereavement Leave

    An employee has 56 weeks to take Parental Bereavement Leave. This starts from the date of the child’s death.

    The 56 weeks is split into 2 periods:

    • from the date of the death or stillbirth to 8 weeks after
    • 9 to 56 weeks after the date of the death or stillbirth

    They can take 2 weeks’ leave in one block or as 2 separate blocks of one week.

    You must get notice from the employee before they take Parental Bereavement Leave. How much notice depends on when they’re taking leave.

    0 to 8 weeks after the child’s death or stillbirth

    An employee must give you notice before the time they would normally start work on the first day of the period they want to take off work.

    9 to 56 weeks after the child’s death or stillbirth

    An employee must give you at least one week’s notice before the start of the week or weeks they want to take off work.

    How employees should give you notice

    They should tell you:

    • the date of the child’s death or stillbirth
    • when they want their Parental Bereavement Leave to begin
    • how much leave they are taking - either 1 or 2 weeks

    An employee can give you notice informally, for example by phone, text message or email. You cannot ask for:

    • notice for leave in writing (such as following up with an email, letter or form)
    • notice to cancel leave in writing
    • evidence of entitlement for leave
    • details about the employee’s relationship to the child or baby

    Cancelling Parental Bereavement Leave

    An employee can cancel their Parental Bereavement Leave if they’ve given you the required notice for taking leave.

    If they were starting the leave within 8 weeks of the death or stillbirth, they must let you know about the cancellation no later than the time they would normally start work on the first day of planned leave.

    If they were starting the leave 9 weeks or later after the death or stillbirth, they must let you know no later than one week before the start of the planned leave.

    They can rebook another week’s leave if they cancel before the leave was due to start and they give you the correct notice.

    Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

    An employee must ask for Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay within 28 days (or as soon as is reasonably practicable), starting with the first day of the week they want to claim pay for.

    They must give you in writing (for example, a letter or email) each time:

    • the dates of the period they want to claim Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay
    • their name
    • the date of the child’s death or stillbirth

    The employee will also need to give you a self-declaration to confirm they are eligible because of their relationship to the child or baby - they only need to provide this once when they first ask for pay.

    Cancelling Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

    An employee can cancel their Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay if they’ve given you the required notice for claiming pay.

    If their pay was due to start within 8 weeks of the child’s death or stillbirth, they must give you notice on the first day of the week of pay they want to cancel.

    Developed with
    Department for the Economy
    Also on this site
    Parental leave and time off for dependants
    Managing employee bereavement
    Issue the correct periods of notice
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/notice-periods-parental-bereavement-leave-and-pay

    Links

Hybrid working: employer guidance

In this guide:

  • Advantages and disadvantages of employees working at home

    Key advantages and disadvantages of home working - from productivity boosts to problems monitoring performance.

    Home working opens up a new range of possibilities for the way businesses can work and structure themselves. The outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in March 2020, gave employers and employees a practical insight into home working as commercial premises had to shut down in response to the government's requirements to protect public health.

    Before the coronavirus pandemic, working from home was on the increase as many employers identified the benefits that it can bring to their business and the improved work-life balance for their employees. Even if you don't think working from home would be beneficial for your business, employees with 26 weeks of service have a statutory right to request flexible-working arrangements such as home working and you, as an employer, have to seriously consider such requests.

    Advantages of employees working from home

    With increasing numbers of employees working at home - or using home as a working base for at least part of the week - it's clear there are a number of benefits for business, such as:

    Flexibility and agility

    Home working enables more agility and flexibility in working arrangements. With employees no longer tied to an office, they may be better placed and more willing to work flexible hours such as earlier or later in the day or even at weekends. This may help you meet certain business needs eg if you are trading with customers residing in a different time zone.

    Improved employee retention

    Home working can help retain employees as the flexibility of home working can help them meet childcare needs, reduce their commute, and enable them to fit their work around their personal lives. Being allowed to work from home, staff will also feel increased levels of trust from their employer, which can contribute greatly to staff loyalty.

    Attract new talent

    Home working can be offered as an incentive to come and work for you helping you to attract new talent to your business. Even just offering the option to work from home will give you an advantage in the job market over competitors that don't offer home working as an option to their staff.

    Increased productivity

    Due to fewer interruptions, which would normally occur in an office environment. By contrast, working from home allows for a quieter environment that can facilitate more focused work. You may also find that some employees may wish to increase their paid contractual hours as they save time that was previously spent commuting to and from the workplace.

    Increased staff motivation

    By working from home staff will feel more trusted by their employer as the working relationship isn't as closely monitored and employees are allowed a degree of autonomy to get on with their work. Staff will also be happier developing a home working routine that suits them better and this can contribute towards them feeling more motivated to give their best.

    Improved staff health and wellbeing

    Working from home eliminates the need for a commute to work which can be stressful for your employees. Time savings such as this also enable staff to get extra health benefits such as additional sleep, spending more time with family, exercising, or preparing healthier meals.

    Financial benefits

    Savings on office space, office supplies, utility bills, and other facilities. Staff may also be able to take advantage of the tax relief available from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) for working from home - see claim tax relief for your job expenses - working from home.

    Convenience

    You may have staff that do a lot of visits to customer locations and are therefore not regularly in the office. Allowing them to base themselves from home may be more convenient and leads to further time and cost savings.

    Better work/life balance

    Working from home can help employees improve their work-life balance eg staff that would have had to commute will now be able to use that time for themselves giving the basis for a better work-life balance. Staff are also able to fit in household chores around their working day giving them more free time in the evenings eg loading or unloading the dishwasher or preparing dinner on their lunch break.

    Technology makes it easier

    The internet has made it possible for staff to be continually connected to the office. Tools such as Skype have made communication between colleagues and teams much easier and at times can lead to more efficient and effective meetings.

    Lower sickness absences

    Staff are more likely to feel happier and more energised working from home and therefore less chance of their immune system is negatively impacted by burnout. Also, the fact that employees are working in isolation there is less chance of infections spreading as would be the case within an office environment.

    Disadvantages of employees working from home

    Though there are some disadvantages to employees working from home, most of these relate to those working from home for all, as opposed to part, of their working week:

    Working from home doesn't suit everyone

    Working from home might not be suited to everyone's personality or ability. Some employees might prefer the routine and structure that working in an office environment provides them. Some staff may prefer personal interaction with colleagues and also find face-to-face guidance with their manager extremely beneficial in helping them complete tasks and achieve their goals. You also need to be mindful of employees with a disability. Working from home may have a negative impact on the support they need to do their job. Working from home may also not fit in with everyone's home life eg some people may have young children that may be unaware of boundaries and cause interruptions during the working day. Others may not have the physical space required to create a suitable dedicated working area.

    Staff feeling isolated

    Individuals working from home may feel a disconnect from their colleagues and organisation as a whole that an office environment naturally allows. To address this issue employers could ensure that communication is more regular. So by scheduling quick catch-ups by phone or regular team meetings through other technologies like Teams, Skype, or Zoom, staff are given more opportunities to feel involved and part of the team. More informal and social catch-ups would also help counteract any feelings of isolation.

    Difficulty monitoring performance

    There could be difficulty managing home workers and monitoring their performance. Different personalities may also respond to monitoring with varying degrees of positivity. You could look at setting goals and targets with workers that are easily measured so that if their targets aren't being met you can identify and remedy any performance issues at an early stage. See managing staff performance and effectively manage employees who work from home.

    Home distractions

    Although home working removes the distractions that may occur in the office if a worker doesn't have a suitably quiet dedicated working space at home they may get easily distracted by household noises or other members of their household.

    Potential burnout

    Where an office provides a clear physical distinction between work and home life, working at home can lead to staff struggling to differentiate between work life and home life. This may lead to employees finding it difficult to know how to switch off from work leading to longer hours, increased stress, and inevitable burnout. Employers should encourage their staff to take regular breaks and remind them of the importance of taking their leave.

    Cost of working from home

    Initial costs of training and providing suitable equipment such as laptops, mobile phones, and other IT equipment. You will also have to consider adaptations to meet health and safety standards.

    Problems with staff development

    You may find that not having staff in close physical proximity leads to difficulty in maintaining staff development and upgrading skills. However, you could encourage staff to take the opportunity to learn new skills through online events and courses. To get started search for events on our Events Finder.

    ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Information security risk

    Information security problems could be more likely to occur when staff are working from home. There is increased risk with laptops being taken home and the need for staff to access servers remotely. Employers should ensure they put measures in place to protect company data by installing encryption software and remote-wipe apps if mobile devices provided by you go missing. Virtual private networks also encrypt your data and provide secure access to a remote computer over the internet. This helps keep your files and data secure yet accessible to your staff. See IT security and risks.

    Negative impact on mental health

    The switch to working from home may have a negative impact on your worker’s mental health if they are unable to find a routine that works for them, are struggling to separate work and home life, or are feeling isolated. To help you can encourage your employees to develop a working routine, set up a dedicated work space, and set boundaries for other household members. Create more opportunities for staff to stay connected by communicating through regular chats and team catch-ups. Eating healthily and taking regular exercise can also help improve mental health especially when woven into a regular routine. See simple tips to tackle working from home from the NHS.

    Decreased staff morale

    It can be harder to maintain team spirit when employees are working at home on their own.

    Not all jobs suit home working

    Working from home suits some jobs better than others. Equally, working from home suits some personality types but not others. Some people may prefer colleague contact by face-to-face communication.

    Poor broadband speeds

    You should be mindful that depending on where your staff live they may not be able to access broadband speeds that enable them to do their job effectively eg rural broadband is often very slow. 

    The coronavirus pandemic gave some employers, who may not have otherwise considered working from home an option for staff, a practical insight into how it affects their business and employees. It has enabled employers to have first-hand experience of the advantages and disadvantages of home working. This experience can be very beneficial in helping employers determine the future direction of working practices that will benefit their business.

    For further information see the Labour Relation Agency's (LRA) practical guide to working from home: COVID-19 and beyond.

    Hybrid working approach

    A shift towards home working doesn't mean employees have to work only at home. Often splitting time between home, or other remote locations and the workplace is the most productive solution. You may want your staff to provide feedback on their working from home experience to get them involved in the process of developing a hybrid working policy.

    For further guidance see hybrid working: employer guidance and the LRA's practical guide to hybrid working.

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  • Types of work and skills suited to home working

    Types of job that are well-matched for home working and the skills employees will need.

    When weighing up whether to let an employee work from home, you should consider the nature of their job.

    Jobs suited to home working

    Some types of work are particularly suited to home working. For example:

    • telesales and marketing
    • customer service
    • consultancy and professional services, such as accountancy or HR administration
    • writing, editing, research and translation
    • some types of administrative work

    Skills employees need to work at home

    You also need to consider whether employees themselves are suited to working away from your base. They're likely to need skills in a number of key areas:

    • time management and self-discipline
    • motivation
    • self-sufficiency
    • communication
    • technology

    Home working isn't for everyone. Bear in mind that if you allow one person to do it, you may be setting a precedent that others will want to follow, so it's best to have a clear idea from the start of how home working could fit the needs of your business. You should establish fair criteria for home working as this will minimise any discrimination risk.

    Remember, too, that in some cases you're legally obliged to seriously consider requests for working from home. Employees with 26 weeks' service can request a range of flexible working patterns from their employers - including the right to work from home.

    Read more on flexible working: the law and best practice.

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  • Employment contracts and working from home

    How the written statement of terms and conditions may need to be amended when implementing homeworking.

    An employee's place of work is stated in the written statement of their terms and conditions of employment.

    When an employee starts working from or at home, it may be necessary to amend the written statement as a result.

    You must follow set procedures when changing an employment contract.

    See how to change an employee's terms of employment.

    Working from home arrangements during the coronavirus pandemic

    The working from home arrangements that were in place during the COVID-19 pandemic were not normally considered to be permanent variations to the contract but post pandemic it may be mutually beneficial for it to become the new normal working arrangement and so it may suit both employer and employee for it to remain in place. See the Labour Relations Agency's (LRA) guide on flexible working.

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  • Providing equipment for employees who work at home

    Your responsibilities for the equipment and furniture home workers use in carrying out their work.

    As an employer you're likely to be responsible for providing, installing, and maintaining all equipment unless the employee uses their own.

    Equipment you need to provide may include:

    • workstation, including a suitable desk and chair
    • filing cabinet, drawers, and shelving
    • computer, laptop, or tablet with office software, anti-virus software, email, and broadband internet connection
    • printer
    • stationery and office supplies

    Advances in technology allow you to create virtual teams where employees work together despite working from home.

    IT equipment can be expensive, so make sure it is compatible with your existing systems and meets a genuine business need.

    Read more on how technology can facilitate working from home.

    Remember that you still have health and safety responsibilities for people who work at or from home. Read about your health and safety obligations towards home workers.

    Insurance and rates

    You'll probably need to extend your business insurance to cover equipment used by employees in their homes. The employee's home insurance policy is unlikely to cover this. They should check with their insurer to make sure they're covered for working at home.

    It's also worth mentioning to potential home workers that if they use part of their home exclusively for work, they may have to pay business rates for that portion of their home. It's a good idea to get them to check the position with Land & Property Services. See how to use your home as a workplace.

    You also need to ensure that employees take care of business equipment and information in their possession. Employers must ensure that data protection principles are adhered to eg establish procedures to be followed in terms of the storage and security of information and what to do if any item is damaged or lost.

    Taxation

    This can be complicated and worth getting specific guidance from HM Revenue & Customs in respect of liabilities and set-offs. See expenses and benefits: homeworking.

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  • Effectively manage employees who work from home

    What you can do to make home working a success - performance monitoring, training, communication, and feedback.

    Working from home can bring a wide range of benefits for both businesses and employees, but it needs to be properly managed to be successful.

    Monitoring performance

    Monitoring and assessing the performance of people who work at home is perhaps the most significant managerial challenge. It can be helpful to measure their effectiveness in terms of their output rather than the hours they work.

    Agree on set goals and deadlines for particular tasks. Keep a close eye on how well the targets are being met and give feedback promptly and sensitively if things go wrong.

    Staff training

    Training can prepare employees and help them develop the skills they need. This might include:

    • self-management skills, eg in time management
    • general skills, eg in using IT more effectively or writing reports
    • job-specific skills

    Encouraging communication

    For staff who work alone, a sense of isolation is one of the factors most likely to make home working fail. As a result, it's important to put formal systems in place to ensure people feel part of the team. For example:

    • frequent two-way feedback sessions about work and work-related issues
    • regular scheduled visits to the workplace
    • inclusion in social activities
    • clear procedures to follow and people to contact if things go wrong

    If an employee's job is home-based from the start, it's a good idea to carry out their induction at your premises. Home workers are more likely to be focused and productive if they have a chance to establish a clear idea of the people and company they're working for.

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  • Your health and safety obligations towards home workers

    Key health and safety duties towards home workers - from risk assessments to ensuring equipment is suitable.

    As an employer you have the same responsibilities for ensuring the health and safety of home workers as you would for staff based at your premises. Your duties are likely to include:

    • carrying out a health and safety risk assessment - see managing the risks in your business
    • purchasing compulsory employers' liability insurance if you don't already have it - see liability insurance
    • ensuring equipment is fit for its purpose
    • testing, certifying and maintaining electrical equipment provided by the business
    • ensuring computers can be used comfortably and without disturbing glare, see how to ensure your employees are operating computers safely
    • making sure lighting levels are appropriate
    • avoiding trailing cables to reduce the risks of trips and falls
    • ensuring staff are suitably trained to work safely
    • keeping records of, and if necessary reporting, any serious accidents, illnesses, or injuries experienced by home workers

    Remember, too, that employees who use computers regularly - including home workers - are entitled to an eye test paid for by their employer.

    Home workers must take reasonable care of their health and safety, as well as that of other people such as family members, neighbours, and visitors. They must also ensure they use work equipment correctly.

    During the coronavirus pandemic, it was unlikely that the employer would have been able to carry out the usual health and safety risk assessments at the employee's home. However, the employer should ensure that:

    • the employee feels the work they're being asked to do at home can be done safely
    • the employee has the right equipment to work safely
    • the line manager maintains regular contact with the employee, including making sure they don't feel isolated
    • reasonable adjustments are made for an employee who has a disability

    The employee should also keep in regular contact with their line manager about health and safety risks and homeworking arrangements that need to change.

    For information on your business's health and safety duties, see what you need to do about health and safety.

    See the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) guidance on managing home workers' health and safety.

    If you have employees who use their home as a base and generally don't work from your premises, you may have additional health and safety responsibilities to them. See how to ensure the safety of lone workers.

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  • How technology can facilitate working from home

    Using IT to facilitate homeworking - phones, broadband, extranets, virtual private networks, and security issues.

    You'll need to keep in touch with employees who work at home. At the very least, you should consider installing a dedicated work phone at the employee's home or provide them with a mobile phone.

    This makes it easier to work out billing arrangements and, as you won't need to see the employee's phone bill, preserves their privacy.

    Broadband internet connections have made emailing colleagues and business contacts and sharing documents quick and easy.

    Virtual teamwork

    With virtual teamworking, your employees do not need to be working in the same place, or even at the same time, in order to work together. Consider the following options:

    Different time, different place

    Employees work separately and keep in touch with you and each other via email.

    Same time, different place

    Employees can communicate with each other in real-time through telephone conference calls, video-conferencing, or using instant messaging.

    Different time, same place

    Employees can access your business network or databases by connecting to an intranet or extranet. A virtual private network is a more secure, but expensive, way of doing this.

    Same time, same place

    Even working from home, your employees will still need to meet face-to-face occasionally. Email and electronic diaries allow you to arrange meetings and transfer documents, while wireless technology allows you to meet anywhere.

    Any time, any place

    Mobile phones and laptop computers with wireless internet access mean that your employees are always accessible and can work wherever they are. Read more on mobile technology.

    Data security

    There are important security issues. For example, data security could be compromised if employees working from home use their work computers for personal purposes. It's best to provide staff with a computer and make it clear that it's for business use only.

    Install anti-virus and firewall software on users' PCs and use passwords to control access to their computers and to your network. Make sure home workers have read and understood your IT policies and know their information security responsibilities.

    Employees who deal with sensitive information should be particularly careful about:

    • Keeping equipment at home - they should make sure that their premises are properly secured.
    • Transporting equipment from one place to another - items should never be left unattended in a public place.
    • Using public internet access - public computers can store information that has been entered.
    • Working in a public place such as a train - information on a laptop screen could be seen by others.
    • Destroying data that is no longer required - eg a cross-cut shredder should be used to dispose of sensitive papers.

    Read NCSC's guidance on home working: preparing your organisation and staff.

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  • Responsibilities of home workers

    Ensuring staff understand their duties to keep homeworking legal and safe.

    Employees who work from home have a number of key responsibilities.

    They should:

    • check whether there are any restrictions on home working within the terms of their lease, mortgage, or tenancy agreement for the property
    • keep their insurance company informed about the new use of their home
    • check if planning permission will be required and apply for it if necessary, though this is unlikely to be the case for a home office
    • check if business rates are payable on the part of the property used for work
    • ensure their own health and safety and the safety of anyone visiting or living in their home who could be affected by their work
    • ensure that they keep sensitive information safe and secure, eg by destroying data securely when they have finished with it

    Employees should also be aware that if they set aside a room to work in that has no domestic purpose, they may be liable for business rates on that part of the property or capital gains tax if the property is sold.

    Read more on how to use your home as a workplace.

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  • Hybrid working: employer guidance

    How employers can get the most of staff using a mix of working at home or remotely and also in the workplace.

    Hybrid working is a form of flexible working where staff spend part of their week working from home or remotely with the rest of their working time spent based in the workplace.

    Employers can implement hybrid working for their organisation in different ways. For example, some employers might suggest that all staff come into the workplace two or three days a week and spend the other days working from home. These specific days could be set by the employer or left to individuals to determine themselves.

    Benefits of hybrid working

    Hybrid working can bring together the benefits that staff experience when working from home, such as fewer distractions and increased productivity, and combine these with the advantages of working in a shared location, such as feeling part of a team and collaborating with greater ease.

    Advantages that hybrid working can bring include:

    • more flexibility as you can develop hybrid working patterns that suit the needs of the business
    • increased staff productivity and motivation
    • higher levels of trust and engagement, especially if staff are involved in determining their own hybrid working patterns
    • increased job satisfaction means you are more likely to retain staff
    • attract new talent – many recruits now expect to be offered the opportunity to work from home in some capacity
    • more opportunities for collaboration between teams on the days people are in the office together
    • helps support inclusion and diversity
    • better staff wellbeing with decreased feelings of isolation and improved mental health for staff with more opportunities for social interaction
    • better connection between managers and staff as days in the office offer opportunities for face-to-face engagement
    • improved work-life balance for staff
    • savings on office space and facilities costs
    • improved team availability with staff given the flexibility to connect remotely if they can't make a physical meeting

    What to consider when introducing hybrid working

    To get the maximum benefit from hybrid working, you should examine:

    Organisation goals

    Consider what your organisation’s objectives are and how hybrid working could support you in achieving your targets.

    Customer needs

    How are your customers’ needs met? Can their requirements be delivered online, or is there a need for physical interaction with customers?

    Getting the best out of your staff

    Determine the type of hybrid working model that will support staff wellbeing and give them the platform to be motivated and productive in their job. The use of SMART targets that are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound will give your staff a clear understanding of what is required of them. In addition, SMART targets enable managers to identify if employees are meeting their targets, and if not, identifying issues at an early stage to provide support staff may need to meet their targets including adjusting the number of days they work in the office, for example, if they need face-to-face support and encouragement. see set business performance targets.

    Attracting and retaining staff

    You should consider the type of hybrid working that can help you to attract new talent and retain existing staff. Most job applicants like the opportunity to choose to work from home, so offering this as a benefit can give you a competitive advantage in the job market.

    Days in the office

    Establish why staff are required in the office on certain days and think about what you hope to achieve then. Is it to increase teamwork or collaboration on projects? Is it to maximise staff wellbeing and morale?

    Working hours

    Can your business’s operating hours be more flexible? For example, if you have customers in global locations, the remote working element of hybrid working enables you to adapt working hours to benefit customers in different time zones. Being flexible also offers staff the opportunity to determine working hours that best fit their work-life balance.

    Flexible working requests

    Address your legal requirements, including managing formal requests from staff for hybrid working through a flexible working policy. Employees could also request hybrid working as a reasonable adjustment under disability discrimination legislation.

    Data protection duties

    Securing sensitive data can be more challenging when employees divide their work time between home and the office. Create a policy outlining how to manage data in the workplace, at home, and when commuting between the two. Provide training to all staff on their data protection responsibilities. Read the Information Commissioner’s Office guidance on data protection and working from home.

    Health and safety responsibilities

    Employers must ensure the health, safety, and wellbeing of their staff when working from home and in the workplace. Employers have a duty of care and must carry out a health and safety risk assessment for all staff.

    IT requirements

    You will need to ensure staff can access the technology required to work at home, remotely, and in the workplace with minimal technical issues. IT security will also be a priority, as staff will be connecting to your organisation’s systems remotely.

    Tax issues

    Make your staff aware that they may be able to claim relief for additional household costs if they have to work at home for all or part of the week. See claim tax relief for your job expenses if working from home.

    How to introduce hybrid working

    When introducing hybrid working, you should take on board the needs of your staff. Take time to engage with staff and their representatives to get their input and effectively communicate your plans with them at each step of the process. This approach will maximise staff buy-in and develop high levels of trust when introducing hybrid working.

    Requiring all staff to come into the workplace on set days each week could be counterproductive if staff resent employers stipulating which days they have to be in the workplace. A fixed-day approach also restricts the flexibility that hybrid working offers employers and their workforce. Giving staff the autonomy to select how many days and on which days they come into the office passes responsibility to your workforce. This approach can gain employee buy-in and establish a platform for building trust. It also sets a better work-life balance that could help maximise staff motivation, loyalty, and productivity.

    Hybrid working policy

    Whichever way you introduce hybrid working, you should communicate your decision clearly to all staff with details on how it works from a practical point of view. For example, you may want to outline scenarios that may impact the hybrid working approach such as when leave such as holidays or sick leave is taken. Ensure you treat all staff fairly when implementing hybrid working. It is good practice to develop a hybrid working policy.

    You should be aware that many staff have been working from home full-time for a period due to the coronavirus, so some staff may be anxious about returning to the workplace, if they haven't already done so. Support staff on the return to the workplace and offer training to help employees at all levels in the organisation get the most from hybrid working.

    It is a good idea to trial hybrid working; review its progress after a certain period, and then, if required, make changes that will help you maximise the benefits it can bring to your organisation and your staff. Ensure you consult with your employees and their representatives if you make any changes.

    Further guidance including a sample policy on hybrid working

    You can read further guidance on introducing hybrid working and access a sample hybrid working policy in the Labour Relation Agency’s practical guide to hybrid working.

    Read the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development guidance on planning for hybrid working.

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  • Managing employees working from home: seven top tips

    The following top tips highlight key issues you should be aware of if you are considering home working as a possibility for your business.

    Allowing staff to work from home on either a full or part-time basis can bring a range of business benefits, including greater staff motivation and increased productivity.

    The following top tips highlight key issues you should be aware of if you are considering home working as a possibility for your business.

    1. Consider an employee's job and skills

    When deciding whether to let an employee work from home, you should consider if the job is suited to home working. For example, telemarketing and writing could be particularly suited to home working. The employee is also likely to need skills in a number of key areas including communication and time management. See types of work and skills suited to home working.

    2. Be aware of legal requirements

    When an employee starts working from home, it may be necessary to amend their written statement of their terms and conditions of employment.  See employment contracts and working from or at home. You will probably need to extend your business insurance to cover equipment used by employees in their homes. See providing equipment for employees who work at home.

    3. Provide appropriate equipment

    As an employer, you're likely to be responsible for providing, installing, and maintaining all equipment unless the employee uses their own. Equipment you need to provide may include a desk and chair, PC or laptop, and printer. See providing equipment for employees who work at home.

    4. Encourage communication

    For staff who work from home, a sense of isolation is one of the reasons that home working may fail. It's therefore important to put formal systems in place to ensure people feel part of the team. See effectively manage employees who work from home.

    5. Train and monitor employees

    Training can help employees working from home to develop the skills they need, for example, time management or writing reports. Monitoring employees' performance is also important to ensure targets are being met. See effectively manage employees who work from home.

    6. Be aware of health and safety responsibilities

    You have the same responsibilities for ensuring the health and safety of home workers as you would for staff based at your premises. Your duties are likely to include ensuring equipment is fit for purpose and that lighting levels are appropriate. See your health and safety obligations towards home workers.

    7. Consider information security

    You should ensure that employees adhere to data protection principles. For example, data security could be compromised if employees working from home use their work computers for personal purposes. You should make clear that the computer you provide is for business use only. You should also install anti-virus and firewall software, use passwords to control access to your network, and ensure workers have read your IT policies. See how technology can facilitate working from home.

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Creating and updating workplace policies to focus on diversity and inclusion - Greiner Packaging Ltd

In this guide:

  • What is an equality plan?

    Your equality plan allows you to integrate equality into your performance management system and corporate planning processes.

    An equality plan outlines how your company's equality and diversity policy will be implemented.

    Your equality and diversity policy should explain your business' stance on diversity and set out the legal rights and obligations of your staff. It is your promise to treat all employees, and potential employees, fairly and considerately.

    See equality and diversity workplace policies.

    Your equality plan allows you to integrate equality into your performance management system, quality initiatives, and corporate planning processes.

    You may draft an equality plan that focuses on one particular protected equality ground (such as racial group, sex, or disability) or, alternatively, on two or more grounds, or, to take a fully integrated approach, on all of the protected equality grounds.

    Equality plan templates

    The Equality Commission has published two template equality plans that may assist you to draft your own:

    The Equality Commission can provide further assistance on request, such as where you may wish to develop an equality plan that focuses on any other specific equality ground (such as sex or disability).

    Equality plans can also be used to develop plans to promote affirmative and positive action where this is deemed appropriate.

    Equality plan sample template

    The Equality Commission supports businesses to promote good equality practice and can help you to develop an equality plan for your business.

    It has developed a sample equality plan document that you can download and customise for your own needs.

    Download the Equality Commission's sample employment equality plan (DOC, 151K).

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  • Advantages of workplace equality plans

    Developing an equality plan can have a number of benefits.

    Having an effective equality plan in place will enable you to coordinate all equality-related work throughout your business. In addition, it will allow you to prepare for upcoming developments in legislation and best practice.

    Advantages of having an equality plan

    Developing an equality plan can produce a number of business benefits.

    It can help you:

    • identify gaps and potential problem areas in your business
    • raise awareness of your business's commitment to equality
    • demonstrate actions undertaken to avoid discrimination in case of tribunal proceedings
    • carry out equality training and awareness with employees
    • access private investment, public procurement, and EU funding where commitment to equality of opportunity may be an eligibility factor

    Your equality plan will also ensure that you revise your other employment policies eg bullying and harassment and redundancy policies, to ensure they also comply with equality standards.

    Developing an equality plan with the Equality Commission

    You can receive support from the Equality Commission to develop an equality plan for your business.

    By accessing this support, you will also avail of their full range of speciality knowledge, training, guidance, and support and you will be able to work with Commission staff to develop examples of good practice which could be promoted on the Equality Commission website. Equality plans.

    Business benefits of an equality plan

    Watch the video below of Paul Oakes, Manager of the Advisory Services Team at the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland, who explains how a business can benefit from developing an equality plan.

    Paul also details the four steps a business should take when implementing an equality plan and explains how the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland can provide various means of support to businesses.

    Developed with
    The Equality Commission
    Help
    Equality Commission Employer Helpline
    Actions
    Equality plan sample template (DOC, 151K)
    Also on this site
    HR documents and templates
    Prevent discrimination and value diversity
    Diversity, equality and inclusion in the workplace
    Set up employment policies for your business
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/advantages-workplace-equality-plans

    Links

  • How to develop an equality plan

    The Equality Commission can help you to develop an equality plan that will be tailored to the specific needs of your business.

    The Equality Commission can help you to develop an equality plan that will be tailored to the specific needs of your business.

    Your equality plan should provide you with a practical and manageable framework for undertaking all equality work within your business.

    Equality planning will also help you to assess what further work you need to undertake to promote good practice and it may also show areas where you need to ensure you meet legal requirements.

    Step 1: Review your existing equality practices

    When starting to develop your equality plan, you should first review your current employment practices against the Equality Commission's equality indicators. You can find these in the Equality Commission's template equality plan (DOC, 151K).

    Reviewing your employment practices will help you to determine the extent to which your policies meet current equality legislation requirements and best practices.

    You can then develop an equality plan outlining what action you intend to take in order to remedy any areas of non-compliance.

    Step 2: Draw up an equality plan

    Your equality plan should include:

    • an outline of how your equality and diversity policy will be implemented - including set dates, how these will be implemented, and by whom
    • a flexible structure that can be tailored to your specific needs
    • a review of your other employment policies eg recruitment and selection, redundancy, bullying and harassment
    • a way of integrating equality into performance management systems, quality initiatives and corporate planning processes
    • how you will evaluate your success and how and when you will review the overall working of your equality policy
    • an ongoing equality training plan for all staff

    Step 3: Train staff and promote equality across the workplace

    You should establish equality awareness training within your business to support your equality plan. Staff at all levels should be involved in this training.

    New employees should receive equal opportunity awareness training as part of their induction process. See preparing for an induction.

    The training should show your commitment to the promotion of equality of opportunity and the effective implementation of your equality plan.

    Equality training should be ongoing, with an annual update for all employees. See training your staff.

    Developed with
    The Equality Commission
    Actions
    Equality plan sample template (DOC, 151K)
    Equality plans
    Equality Commission employer training programme
    Labour Relations Agency employment seminars
    Also on this site
    HR documents and templates
    Prevent discrimination and value diversity
    Diversity, equality and inclusion in the workplace
    Job offers and staff inductions
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/how-develop-equality-plan

    Links

  • Equality monitoring and review of your business

    Monitoring can help you to identify equality issues or problems that affect your employees.

    A critical stage in delivering equality in the workplace is to monitor the effectiveness of your equality policy and plan to ensure they are both working in practice.

    Monitoring demonstrates your commitment to promoting equality within your business. It can also help you to identify equality issues or problems that affect your employees and can help you to implement solutions such as alternative policies or practices.

    What does equality monitoring involve?

    Equality monitoring involves gathering individual information from potential and existing employees at certain times and then comparing and analysing this against other groups of employees in your business or the broader workforce.

    You should only collect information that you are going to use.

    Ask job applicants for monitoring data on a sheet that can be detached from their application form so that the information can be kept separate from the selection process. It should be made clear that this information will only be used for equality monitoring and not in the short-listing process.

    Download a sample monitoring questionnaire for job applicants (DOC, 13K).

    To obtain an accurate view of your business you will also need to monitor the existing workforce. Explain your reasons for equality monitoring and make it clear you are only trying to ensure that every employee has the same access to training, promotion, and other opportunities.

    Take action

    If you find some of your equality processes aren't working, you should find out why and take action.

    For example, if you find your business is not attracting the number of jobseekers you might expect, you should look at your recruitment and selection procedures. Is one group benefiting at the expense of another?

    If it is shown that this is the case, you should take affirmative or positive action, such as:

    • encourage more people to apply for posts by considering job-sharing and part-time working
    • advertise widely to attract a diverse workforce
    • offer work experience opportunities or mentoring for students

    For more information on the equality monitoring process, see the Equality Commission guidance on monitoring.

    Developed with
    The Equality Commission
    Actions
    Equality plan sample template (DOC, 151K)
    Equality plans
    Also on this site
    HR documents and templates
    Advertising a job and interviewing candidates
    Prevent discrimination and value diversity
    Diversity, equality and inclusion in the workplace
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/equality-monitoring-and-review-your-business

    Links

  • Get help to review your equality-related workplace policies

    The Equality Commission for Northern Ireland offers employers free and confidential help to review and get the most from their workplace equality policies.

    The Equality Commission for Northern Ireland offers employers free and confidential help to review and get the most from their workplace equality policies.

    With many employees taking steps to return to the workplace after months spent working from home, now may be the time to think about reviewing your workplace policies such as those relating to:

    • equal opportunities
    • harassment
    • recruitment and selection
    • pregnancy and maternity
    • menopause
    • flexible working and others

    You may even be considering introducing a customer service policy, particularly taking into account those customers and clients with disabilities.

    If you’ve made a commitment to equality and diversity in your business, the Equality Commission may be able to help you to review your equality policies and provides a free and confidential service to businesses. Many businesses have already made use of this service and some have also availed of free training from the Equality Commission.

    How do I make use of this service?

    If your business is interested in reviewing its equality-related workplace policies you can contact Paul Oakes, Equality Commission's Advisory Services Team Manager, by emailing poakes@equalityni.org.

    Find out about the support available for employers and service providers from the Equality Commission.

    Developed with
    The Equality Commission
    Help
    Equality Commission Employer Helpline
    Also on this site
    Set up employment policies for your business
    Prevent discrimination and value diversity
    HR documents and templates
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/get-help-review-your-equality-related-workplace-policies

    Links

  • Implement an equality plan

    Creating and updating workplace policies to focus on diversity and inclusion - Greiner Packaging Ltd

    Maeve Turbitt, People & Culture Generalist, explains how Greiner Packaging has reviewed existing workplace policies and developed new ones focusing on equality and diversity with the help of the Equality Commission.

    Greiner Packaging Limited is a plastic packaging manufacturer and provider of customised packaging solutions specialising in technologies such as thermoforming, injection moulding and extrusion. Their customer portfolio includes Nestle, Premier Foods, Yeo Valley and Dale Farm. Based in Dungannon, Co. Tyrone, the organisation is one of four divisions of the Greiner Group, with headquarters in Austria.

    Maeve Turbitt, People & Culture Generalist, explains how Greiner Packaging has reviewed existing workplace policies and developed new ones focusing on equality and diversity with the help of the Equality Commission.

    “Greiner Packaging has a wide range of workplace policies currently in place that help colleagues understand what is expected of them when working for and representing Greiner. We have over 30 workplace policies that all colleagues are aware of and can consult at any time through the company handbook. We also have policies that relate specifically to equality and diversity in the workplace including our equal opportunities policy and positive work environment policy.”

    “We have developed our workplace policies so that colleagues know how they are expected to behave whilst working for and representing Greiner. These policies also ensure we as employers are fair and consistent in our approach to all our people. This process delivers an open and transparent atmosphere, helps us retain staff, and attract the right people to come to work for us.”

    Delivering diversity and inclusion through our workplace policies

    “We have previously worked with the Equality Commission after attending a number of their employer training events and so became aware of the service they offer to Northern Ireland employers in helping them to review their workplace policies from an equality point of view.”

    “We then worked with the Equality Commission to review our equal opportunities policy and positive working environment policy. The Equality Commission helped us to rewrite our policies to ensure that as an organisation, we are committed to creating a friendly and harmonious working environment - free from harassment and bullying and treating every colleague with respect and dignity.”

    “After reviewing and rewriting our policies, we reissued them to all our people along with a new code of conduct. This commitment clearly outlines to our workforce our dedication to diversity and inclusion right across the organisation.”

    “In conjunction with the Equality Commission, we also delivered training sessions to all our colleagues on diversity and inclusion. We hosted these training sessions both virtually and face-to-face to enable us to reach and educate our entire workforce of over 300 people.”

    “By reviewing our workplace policies and having a commitment to delivering diversity and inclusion, it ensures that we provide equal opportunities to all job applicants and helps us to promote a respectful and harmonious working environment for everyone. We have also identified the need to provide a mechanism for workers who believe they have been discriminated against to enable them to raise any matters sensitively through the appropriate procedure.”

    Our plans to introduce new workplace policies

    “We plan to take a look at introducing a number of new workplace policies that will help support colleagues that are affected by symptoms of menopause. We have just begun this process by looking at the guidance available from the Equality Commission and the Labour Relations Agency. We have also attended one of their joint webinars on the subject of menopause in the workplace. This engagement will help give us the foundation we need to take the steps required to introduce a menopause policy to our organisation.”

    “Greiner Packaging has also identified the heartache and stress that miscarriage can bring. We also plan to introduce a workplace policy on miscarriage that will help give any colleague affected by miscarriage the time, space, and support they need during such a traumatic time.”

    Find out how the Equality Commission can help your business review its equality related workplace policies.

    Case Study
    Maeve Turbitt
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/creating-and-updating-workplace-policies-focus-diversity-and-inclusion-greiner-packaging

    Links

How to make virtual recruitment work for your business

In this guide:

  • What is virtual recruitment?

    Recruiting staff using online processes and how this differs from more traditional face-to-face recruitment practices

    Traditionally, the recruitment process involves meeting potential new employees in a physical space. These meetings are usually at job fairs or when candidates come to a workplace for a job interview. Social distancing measures during the coronavirus pandemic have restricted traditional face-to-face recruitment. Businesses have had to adapt by exploring other options to recruit new staff.

    Virtual recruitment relies on a host of different technologies to help businesses find the most suitable person for a job role while also helping employers to recruit more efficiently and effectively. Employers can now easily use these online tools to attract talent, connect with and screen candidates, conduct in-depth interviews, introduce candidates to managers and colleagues and even give virtual workplace tours, all without ever meeting a candidate in person.

    During the coronavirus pandemic, virtual recruitment has provided a hiring solution to employers. It has enabled the recruitment process to take place from start to finish exclusively online. However, virtual recruitment is not just a temporary solution. Employers have become more comfortable using various technologies for virtual interaction. Many employers have also sampled the benefits in efficiency and effectiveness that virtual recruitment can bring. A hybrid recruitment process using virtual and physical methods may be the best option for employers moving forward.

    Virtual recruitment can also work harmoniously with remote working, removing geographical barriers for employers and enabling businesses to recruit the best talent from across the world. Find out about the other business benefits of virtual recruitment.

    Also on this site
    Recruiting staff
    How to employ someone: step-by-step
    Job offers and staff inductions
    Employees working from home
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/what-virtual-recruitment

    Links

  • Advantages and disadvantages of virtual recruitment

    The many business benefits that virtual recruitment processes can bring for employers hiring new staff and some potential drawbacks

    Recruiting new employees using a virtual recruitment process can bring many advantages to employers and their businesses. Many employers had no choice but to use virtual recruitment as they took on staff during the coronavirus pandemic. These employers have experienced in practice some of the advantages that virtual recruitment can bring for businesses.

    Advantages of virtual recruitment

    • Breaks geographical barriers – virtual recruitment enables employers to extend their reach for talent wider than traditional methods would. In practice, employers can now attract international talent, but you must ensure your workers are eligible to work in the UK.
    • Saves time – virtual recruitment enables employers to screen more candidates in a shorter amount of time. You can build automation into some of the recruitment stages, for example, online competency tests can automatically rank candidates based on their performance. Online video interviews can be scheduled more flexibly than traditional face-to-face interviews so that the fit around your schedule and not the other way round.
    • Saves money – virtual recruitment can bring a number of savings for employers. Recruitment events held online are less expensive than hosting or attending physical job fairs. Virtual recruitment also requires no travel or accommodation costs. If you are hiring new staff on a regular basis, these cost savings will add up. The technology required to deliver virtual recruitment is often inexpensive and offers a good return on investment.
    • Reduces the time to hire – when recruiting, your main aim is to get the best possible candidate started in their new role as soon as possible. Virtual recruitment can help this by speeding up the recruitment process as a whole. It enables employers to vet and shortlist a larger volume of candidates in a shorter space of time. There is also no need to set aside a significant amount of time to facilitate candidates and an interview panel to fulfil face-to-face interviews.
    • Gain competitive advantage – virtual recruitment shows potential candidates that your organisation is progressive and innovative, potentially making you a more attractive employment option over competitors. The majority of job seekers today are comfortable with interacting online and are likely to expect that at least some of your recruitment process would be online too.
    • Hire the right candidate – by saving you time and money, virtual recruitment also enables employers to focus on recruiting the best possible person to employ. You can streamline your recruitment process to help you connect more easily with candidates to understand their strengths and skills.
    • Better experience for candidates – virtual recruitment makes it much easier for communication between the employer and potential candidates. Virtual job fairs, for example, enable employers to connect directly with a larger talent pool. A common complaint from candidates using traditional recruitment is that their queries go unanswered. Tools like virtual chat answers any questions or queries that candidates may have about a job role in real-time.
    • Reduces paperwork – through virtual recruitment all candidate records, such as application forms or competency tests, are hosted in a digital format and so this reduces the paperwork burden that traditional recruitment usually has. Employers can easily access information about a candidate in real-time when required . Employers, if given consent by the candidate, can record interviews. This makes it easier for employers to go back and review what a candidate said, so there is less reliance capturing a full record through written notes during the interview.
    • A fairer recruitment process – virtual recruitment can also support diversity and inclusion when you are hiring new staff. Some employers use artificial intelligence hiring tools to ignore demographic information such as race, gender and age. Such technology, also available for CV screening, may reduce the risk of conscious and unconscious biases that can infringe traditional recruitment practices.

    Disadvantages of virtual recruitment

    • Technology issues – virtual recruitment relies heavily on technology, so you are dependent on systems working smoothly for you. Extensive system testing and having a fall back plan can help you counteract this.
    • A high volume of applications – as virtual recruitment removes geographical barriers, you might attract a large volume of job applications. However, clearly describing job specifications and distinctly outlining required experience and qualifications will help to ensure you only invite responses from suitable candidates.
    • Too impersonal – candidates may find the process is too detached as there is no face-to-face physical interaction with virtual recruitment. By ensuring there are options for communication throughout the recruitment process, employers may find that they have the opportunity to interact more effectively with candidates in a virtual environment than they may have when recruiting traditionally.

    Although there are many advantages to virtual recruitment, it does not mean you should completely discount physical recruitment practices. There are still benefits for businesses using traditional processes for some of their recruitment stages. A hybrid approach may work best for you and your business.

    Also on this site
    Recruiting staff
    How to employ someone: step-by-step
    Job offers and staff inductions
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/advantages-and-disadvantages-virtual-recruitment

    Links

  • How to make virtual recruitment work for your business

    How to ensure virtual recruitment processes fit with your business strategy and deliver the best possible candidates

    To help you make the most out of virtual recruitment, take a look at your current recruitment process and map out the different stages. These stages may include writing the job description, deciding on salary range, advertising the job, pooling candidates, shortlisting candidates, arranging interviews, contacting applicants and sending the job offer.

    You can then determine what you want from your recruitment process. Is your goal to reach a higher volume of potential candidates? Do you want to reduce the time it takes from the initial job advert to getting a new employee started? Or do you want to reduce recruitment costs?

    Virtual recruitment tools

    Once you have identified what you want to get from virtual recruitment processes, you can explore the right technology and software tools to help you achieve this. Types of virtual recruitment tools include:

    • Virtual recruitment fairs – host online events to showcase your organisation as a great place to work. Virtual recruitment fairs are easy for people to attend, which may give you access to a larger talent pool.
    • Social media – you can use various social media channels to put out engaging content to build your employer brand. You can also encourage employees to share their experiences and share current vacancies with their online connections.
    • Video interview tools – technology allows you to host online interviews to streamline the process for both interviewers and candidates.
    • Collaboration tools – this can help speed up the process for the recruitment panel enabling them to work together in real-time and remain in sync when reviewing and shortlisting candidates.
    • Applicant tracking systems – allow you to set up a fair and equitable hiring process by deciding on a scorecard of primary attributes for a candidate’s success at the beginning to evaluate candidates more efficiently and consistently.
    • Recruiting chatbots – can collect candidate information, ask screening questions, rank candidates on metrics, answer FAQs and schedule an interview.
    • Candidate satisfaction surveys – you can survey candidates that have gone through your recruitment process and find out ways to improve or streamline the process.
    • Skills testing tools – allow you to assess the hard skills of candidates before interviews by setting technical skill tests to ensure you hire candidates with the required skills.
    • Psychometric tools – help you to identify traits in candidates that are essential for high-performance roles.
    • Background check tools – pre-employment background screening can check a candidate’s experience and qualifications without taking up valuable HR time.

    Recruitment team

    You will also need to select your virtual recruitment team - the staff that will help deliver your virtual recruitment strategy. Ensure your recruitment team receives the necessary training to be able to use any new virtual recruitment tools. You may also want to get other areas of your organisation involved. For example, having senior management record short video messages for online job fairs.

    Promote your organisation as a great place to work

    Recruiting using online practices gives you the platform to think creatively about promoting your organisation as an attractive place to work. For example, you could create short videos that show your workplace, the varied tasks and jobs that staff perform and social or team building activities. You could also encourage some staff to talk briefly about why they enjoy working for you. This approach can be effective in bringing to life for candidates what it would be like to work for your organisation compared to a text description of the company. It can also help set you apart from your competition when trying to attract top talent.

    Know what you are looking for in a candidate

    Recruiting online opens up a wider pool of talent. To help ensure you find suitable applicants, clearly define what you are looking for in a candidate, including qualifications, abilities, traits and experiences. Your job description should explain the essential and desirable criteria to ensure that the expectations of applicants are clear from the start. This clarity will limit applications from unqualified applicants. Precisely defining what you are looking for in a candidate will also make evaluating their suitability easier.

    Communication

    Virtual recruitment makes it much easier for employers to communicate with candidates at various stages of the recruitment process. Good communication does not necessarily mean an extra burden on recruiters’ time. You can use automated candidate messaging tools to schedule emails or text or use chatbots to answer frequently asked questions in real-time.

    Automation

    Streamlining and automating parts of your hiring process through virtual recruitment can facilitate less expensive, faster and more efficient hiring procedures. This approach can lead to broadening your applicant pool and getting access to top-level talent, For example, you could automate the screening of candidates through online skills testing that automatically scores and ranks candidates based on their performance.

    Skills testing can also be an effective way to reducing bias in the recruitment process. It can allow candidate ranking by the skills required and ignore information contributing to unconscious bias such as name, gender, age, address, and school attended. However, be sure to prioritise the candidate experience when automating recruitment processes. Don’t implement efficiency improvements that benefit the hiring team at the expense of the candidate.

    Understanding your current recruitment processes including, its weaknesses and potential improvements, will help you plan your strategy for virtual recruitment. You may not get it right the first time around, so be sure to invite feedback from candidates, both successful and unsuccessful, and make improvements to ensure you get the most from your recruitment process.

    Also on this site
    Recruiting staff
    How to employ someone: step-by-step
    Job offers and staff inductions
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/how-make-virtual-recruitment-work-your-business

    Links

Advantages and disadvantages of virtual recruitment

In this guide:

  • What is virtual recruitment?

    Recruiting staff using online processes and how this differs from more traditional face-to-face recruitment practices

    Traditionally, the recruitment process involves meeting potential new employees in a physical space. These meetings are usually at job fairs or when candidates come to a workplace for a job interview. Social distancing measures during the coronavirus pandemic have restricted traditional face-to-face recruitment. Businesses have had to adapt by exploring other options to recruit new staff.

    Virtual recruitment relies on a host of different technologies to help businesses find the most suitable person for a job role while also helping employers to recruit more efficiently and effectively. Employers can now easily use these online tools to attract talent, connect with and screen candidates, conduct in-depth interviews, introduce candidates to managers and colleagues and even give virtual workplace tours, all without ever meeting a candidate in person.

    During the coronavirus pandemic, virtual recruitment has provided a hiring solution to employers. It has enabled the recruitment process to take place from start to finish exclusively online. However, virtual recruitment is not just a temporary solution. Employers have become more comfortable using various technologies for virtual interaction. Many employers have also sampled the benefits in efficiency and effectiveness that virtual recruitment can bring. A hybrid recruitment process using virtual and physical methods may be the best option for employers moving forward.

    Virtual recruitment can also work harmoniously with remote working, removing geographical barriers for employers and enabling businesses to recruit the best talent from across the world. Find out about the other business benefits of virtual recruitment.

    Also on this site
    Recruiting staff
    How to employ someone: step-by-step
    Job offers and staff inductions
    Employees working from home
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/what-virtual-recruitment

    Links

  • Advantages and disadvantages of virtual recruitment

    The many business benefits that virtual recruitment processes can bring for employers hiring new staff and some potential drawbacks

    Recruiting new employees using a virtual recruitment process can bring many advantages to employers and their businesses. Many employers had no choice but to use virtual recruitment as they took on staff during the coronavirus pandemic. These employers have experienced in practice some of the advantages that virtual recruitment can bring for businesses.

    Advantages of virtual recruitment

    • Breaks geographical barriers – virtual recruitment enables employers to extend their reach for talent wider than traditional methods would. In practice, employers can now attract international talent, but you must ensure your workers are eligible to work in the UK.
    • Saves time – virtual recruitment enables employers to screen more candidates in a shorter amount of time. You can build automation into some of the recruitment stages, for example, online competency tests can automatically rank candidates based on their performance. Online video interviews can be scheduled more flexibly than traditional face-to-face interviews so that the fit around your schedule and not the other way round.
    • Saves money – virtual recruitment can bring a number of savings for employers. Recruitment events held online are less expensive than hosting or attending physical job fairs. Virtual recruitment also requires no travel or accommodation costs. If you are hiring new staff on a regular basis, these cost savings will add up. The technology required to deliver virtual recruitment is often inexpensive and offers a good return on investment.
    • Reduces the time to hire – when recruiting, your main aim is to get the best possible candidate started in their new role as soon as possible. Virtual recruitment can help this by speeding up the recruitment process as a whole. It enables employers to vet and shortlist a larger volume of candidates in a shorter space of time. There is also no need to set aside a significant amount of time to facilitate candidates and an interview panel to fulfil face-to-face interviews.
    • Gain competitive advantage – virtual recruitment shows potential candidates that your organisation is progressive and innovative, potentially making you a more attractive employment option over competitors. The majority of job seekers today are comfortable with interacting online and are likely to expect that at least some of your recruitment process would be online too.
    • Hire the right candidate – by saving you time and money, virtual recruitment also enables employers to focus on recruiting the best possible person to employ. You can streamline your recruitment process to help you connect more easily with candidates to understand their strengths and skills.
    • Better experience for candidates – virtual recruitment makes it much easier for communication between the employer and potential candidates. Virtual job fairs, for example, enable employers to connect directly with a larger talent pool. A common complaint from candidates using traditional recruitment is that their queries go unanswered. Tools like virtual chat answers any questions or queries that candidates may have about a job role in real-time.
    • Reduces paperwork – through virtual recruitment all candidate records, such as application forms or competency tests, are hosted in a digital format and so this reduces the paperwork burden that traditional recruitment usually has. Employers can easily access information about a candidate in real-time when required . Employers, if given consent by the candidate, can record interviews. This makes it easier for employers to go back and review what a candidate said, so there is less reliance capturing a full record through written notes during the interview.
    • A fairer recruitment process – virtual recruitment can also support diversity and inclusion when you are hiring new staff. Some employers use artificial intelligence hiring tools to ignore demographic information such as race, gender and age. Such technology, also available for CV screening, may reduce the risk of conscious and unconscious biases that can infringe traditional recruitment practices.

    Disadvantages of virtual recruitment

    • Technology issues – virtual recruitment relies heavily on technology, so you are dependent on systems working smoothly for you. Extensive system testing and having a fall back plan can help you counteract this.
    • A high volume of applications – as virtual recruitment removes geographical barriers, you might attract a large volume of job applications. However, clearly describing job specifications and distinctly outlining required experience and qualifications will help to ensure you only invite responses from suitable candidates.
    • Too impersonal – candidates may find the process is too detached as there is no face-to-face physical interaction with virtual recruitment. By ensuring there are options for communication throughout the recruitment process, employers may find that they have the opportunity to interact more effectively with candidates in a virtual environment than they may have when recruiting traditionally.

    Although there are many advantages to virtual recruitment, it does not mean you should completely discount physical recruitment practices. There are still benefits for businesses using traditional processes for some of their recruitment stages. A hybrid approach may work best for you and your business.

    Also on this site
    Recruiting staff
    How to employ someone: step-by-step
    Job offers and staff inductions
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/advantages-and-disadvantages-virtual-recruitment

    Links

  • How to make virtual recruitment work for your business

    How to ensure virtual recruitment processes fit with your business strategy and deliver the best possible candidates

    To help you make the most out of virtual recruitment, take a look at your current recruitment process and map out the different stages. These stages may include writing the job description, deciding on salary range, advertising the job, pooling candidates, shortlisting candidates, arranging interviews, contacting applicants and sending the job offer.

    You can then determine what you want from your recruitment process. Is your goal to reach a higher volume of potential candidates? Do you want to reduce the time it takes from the initial job advert to getting a new employee started? Or do you want to reduce recruitment costs?

    Virtual recruitment tools

    Once you have identified what you want to get from virtual recruitment processes, you can explore the right technology and software tools to help you achieve this. Types of virtual recruitment tools include:

    • Virtual recruitment fairs – host online events to showcase your organisation as a great place to work. Virtual recruitment fairs are easy for people to attend, which may give you access to a larger talent pool.
    • Social media – you can use various social media channels to put out engaging content to build your employer brand. You can also encourage employees to share their experiences and share current vacancies with their online connections.
    • Video interview tools – technology allows you to host online interviews to streamline the process for both interviewers and candidates.
    • Collaboration tools – this can help speed up the process for the recruitment panel enabling them to work together in real-time and remain in sync when reviewing and shortlisting candidates.
    • Applicant tracking systems – allow you to set up a fair and equitable hiring process by deciding on a scorecard of primary attributes for a candidate’s success at the beginning to evaluate candidates more efficiently and consistently.
    • Recruiting chatbots – can collect candidate information, ask screening questions, rank candidates on metrics, answer FAQs and schedule an interview.
    • Candidate satisfaction surveys – you can survey candidates that have gone through your recruitment process and find out ways to improve or streamline the process.
    • Skills testing tools – allow you to assess the hard skills of candidates before interviews by setting technical skill tests to ensure you hire candidates with the required skills.
    • Psychometric tools – help you to identify traits in candidates that are essential for high-performance roles.
    • Background check tools – pre-employment background screening can check a candidate’s experience and qualifications without taking up valuable HR time.

    Recruitment team

    You will also need to select your virtual recruitment team - the staff that will help deliver your virtual recruitment strategy. Ensure your recruitment team receives the necessary training to be able to use any new virtual recruitment tools. You may also want to get other areas of your organisation involved. For example, having senior management record short video messages for online job fairs.

    Promote your organisation as a great place to work

    Recruiting using online practices gives you the platform to think creatively about promoting your organisation as an attractive place to work. For example, you could create short videos that show your workplace, the varied tasks and jobs that staff perform and social or team building activities. You could also encourage some staff to talk briefly about why they enjoy working for you. This approach can be effective in bringing to life for candidates what it would be like to work for your organisation compared to a text description of the company. It can also help set you apart from your competition when trying to attract top talent.

    Know what you are looking for in a candidate

    Recruiting online opens up a wider pool of talent. To help ensure you find suitable applicants, clearly define what you are looking for in a candidate, including qualifications, abilities, traits and experiences. Your job description should explain the essential and desirable criteria to ensure that the expectations of applicants are clear from the start. This clarity will limit applications from unqualified applicants. Precisely defining what you are looking for in a candidate will also make evaluating their suitability easier.

    Communication

    Virtual recruitment makes it much easier for employers to communicate with candidates at various stages of the recruitment process. Good communication does not necessarily mean an extra burden on recruiters’ time. You can use automated candidate messaging tools to schedule emails or text or use chatbots to answer frequently asked questions in real-time.

    Automation

    Streamlining and automating parts of your hiring process through virtual recruitment can facilitate less expensive, faster and more efficient hiring procedures. This approach can lead to broadening your applicant pool and getting access to top-level talent, For example, you could automate the screening of candidates through online skills testing that automatically scores and ranks candidates based on their performance.

    Skills testing can also be an effective way to reducing bias in the recruitment process. It can allow candidate ranking by the skills required and ignore information contributing to unconscious bias such as name, gender, age, address, and school attended. However, be sure to prioritise the candidate experience when automating recruitment processes. Don’t implement efficiency improvements that benefit the hiring team at the expense of the candidate.

    Understanding your current recruitment processes including, its weaknesses and potential improvements, will help you plan your strategy for virtual recruitment. You may not get it right the first time around, so be sure to invite feedback from candidates, both successful and unsuccessful, and make improvements to ensure you get the most from your recruitment process.

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What is virtual recruitment?

In this guide:

  • What is virtual recruitment?

    Recruiting staff using online processes and how this differs from more traditional face-to-face recruitment practices

    Traditionally, the recruitment process involves meeting potential new employees in a physical space. These meetings are usually at job fairs or when candidates come to a workplace for a job interview. Social distancing measures during the coronavirus pandemic have restricted traditional face-to-face recruitment. Businesses have had to adapt by exploring other options to recruit new staff.

    Virtual recruitment relies on a host of different technologies to help businesses find the most suitable person for a job role while also helping employers to recruit more efficiently and effectively. Employers can now easily use these online tools to attract talent, connect with and screen candidates, conduct in-depth interviews, introduce candidates to managers and colleagues and even give virtual workplace tours, all without ever meeting a candidate in person.

    During the coronavirus pandemic, virtual recruitment has provided a hiring solution to employers. It has enabled the recruitment process to take place from start to finish exclusively online. However, virtual recruitment is not just a temporary solution. Employers have become more comfortable using various technologies for virtual interaction. Many employers have also sampled the benefits in efficiency and effectiveness that virtual recruitment can bring. A hybrid recruitment process using virtual and physical methods may be the best option for employers moving forward.

    Virtual recruitment can also work harmoniously with remote working, removing geographical barriers for employers and enabling businesses to recruit the best talent from across the world. Find out about the other business benefits of virtual recruitment.

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  • Advantages and disadvantages of virtual recruitment

    The many business benefits that virtual recruitment processes can bring for employers hiring new staff and some potential drawbacks

    Recruiting new employees using a virtual recruitment process can bring many advantages to employers and their businesses. Many employers had no choice but to use virtual recruitment as they took on staff during the coronavirus pandemic. These employers have experienced in practice some of the advantages that virtual recruitment can bring for businesses.

    Advantages of virtual recruitment

    • Breaks geographical barriers – virtual recruitment enables employers to extend their reach for talent wider than traditional methods would. In practice, employers can now attract international talent, but you must ensure your workers are eligible to work in the UK.
    • Saves time – virtual recruitment enables employers to screen more candidates in a shorter amount of time. You can build automation into some of the recruitment stages, for example, online competency tests can automatically rank candidates based on their performance. Online video interviews can be scheduled more flexibly than traditional face-to-face interviews so that the fit around your schedule and not the other way round.
    • Saves money – virtual recruitment can bring a number of savings for employers. Recruitment events held online are less expensive than hosting or attending physical job fairs. Virtual recruitment also requires no travel or accommodation costs. If you are hiring new staff on a regular basis, these cost savings will add up. The technology required to deliver virtual recruitment is often inexpensive and offers a good return on investment.
    • Reduces the time to hire – when recruiting, your main aim is to get the best possible candidate started in their new role as soon as possible. Virtual recruitment can help this by speeding up the recruitment process as a whole. It enables employers to vet and shortlist a larger volume of candidates in a shorter space of time. There is also no need to set aside a significant amount of time to facilitate candidates and an interview panel to fulfil face-to-face interviews.
    • Gain competitive advantage – virtual recruitment shows potential candidates that your organisation is progressive and innovative, potentially making you a more attractive employment option over competitors. The majority of job seekers today are comfortable with interacting online and are likely to expect that at least some of your recruitment process would be online too.
    • Hire the right candidate – by saving you time and money, virtual recruitment also enables employers to focus on recruiting the best possible person to employ. You can streamline your recruitment process to help you connect more easily with candidates to understand their strengths and skills.
    • Better experience for candidates – virtual recruitment makes it much easier for communication between the employer and potential candidates. Virtual job fairs, for example, enable employers to connect directly with a larger talent pool. A common complaint from candidates using traditional recruitment is that their queries go unanswered. Tools like virtual chat answers any questions or queries that candidates may have about a job role in real-time.
    • Reduces paperwork – through virtual recruitment all candidate records, such as application forms or competency tests, are hosted in a digital format and so this reduces the paperwork burden that traditional recruitment usually has. Employers can easily access information about a candidate in real-time when required . Employers, if given consent by the candidate, can record interviews. This makes it easier for employers to go back and review what a candidate said, so there is less reliance capturing a full record through written notes during the interview.
    • A fairer recruitment process – virtual recruitment can also support diversity and inclusion when you are hiring new staff. Some employers use artificial intelligence hiring tools to ignore demographic information such as race, gender and age. Such technology, also available for CV screening, may reduce the risk of conscious and unconscious biases that can infringe traditional recruitment practices.

    Disadvantages of virtual recruitment

    • Technology issues – virtual recruitment relies heavily on technology, so you are dependent on systems working smoothly for you. Extensive system testing and having a fall back plan can help you counteract this.
    • A high volume of applications – as virtual recruitment removes geographical barriers, you might attract a large volume of job applications. However, clearly describing job specifications and distinctly outlining required experience and qualifications will help to ensure you only invite responses from suitable candidates.
    • Too impersonal – candidates may find the process is too detached as there is no face-to-face physical interaction with virtual recruitment. By ensuring there are options for communication throughout the recruitment process, employers may find that they have the opportunity to interact more effectively with candidates in a virtual environment than they may have when recruiting traditionally.

    Although there are many advantages to virtual recruitment, it does not mean you should completely discount physical recruitment practices. There are still benefits for businesses using traditional processes for some of their recruitment stages. A hybrid approach may work best for you and your business.

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  • How to make virtual recruitment work for your business

    How to ensure virtual recruitment processes fit with your business strategy and deliver the best possible candidates

    To help you make the most out of virtual recruitment, take a look at your current recruitment process and map out the different stages. These stages may include writing the job description, deciding on salary range, advertising the job, pooling candidates, shortlisting candidates, arranging interviews, contacting applicants and sending the job offer.

    You can then determine what you want from your recruitment process. Is your goal to reach a higher volume of potential candidates? Do you want to reduce the time it takes from the initial job advert to getting a new employee started? Or do you want to reduce recruitment costs?

    Virtual recruitment tools

    Once you have identified what you want to get from virtual recruitment processes, you can explore the right technology and software tools to help you achieve this. Types of virtual recruitment tools include:

    • Virtual recruitment fairs – host online events to showcase your organisation as a great place to work. Virtual recruitment fairs are easy for people to attend, which may give you access to a larger talent pool.
    • Social media – you can use various social media channels to put out engaging content to build your employer brand. You can also encourage employees to share their experiences and share current vacancies with their online connections.
    • Video interview tools – technology allows you to host online interviews to streamline the process for both interviewers and candidates.
    • Collaboration tools – this can help speed up the process for the recruitment panel enabling them to work together in real-time and remain in sync when reviewing and shortlisting candidates.
    • Applicant tracking systems – allow you to set up a fair and equitable hiring process by deciding on a scorecard of primary attributes for a candidate’s success at the beginning to evaluate candidates more efficiently and consistently.
    • Recruiting chatbots – can collect candidate information, ask screening questions, rank candidates on metrics, answer FAQs and schedule an interview.
    • Candidate satisfaction surveys – you can survey candidates that have gone through your recruitment process and find out ways to improve or streamline the process.
    • Skills testing tools – allow you to assess the hard skills of candidates before interviews by setting technical skill tests to ensure you hire candidates with the required skills.
    • Psychometric tools – help you to identify traits in candidates that are essential for high-performance roles.
    • Background check tools – pre-employment background screening can check a candidate’s experience and qualifications without taking up valuable HR time.

    Recruitment team

    You will also need to select your virtual recruitment team - the staff that will help deliver your virtual recruitment strategy. Ensure your recruitment team receives the necessary training to be able to use any new virtual recruitment tools. You may also want to get other areas of your organisation involved. For example, having senior management record short video messages for online job fairs.

    Promote your organisation as a great place to work

    Recruiting using online practices gives you the platform to think creatively about promoting your organisation as an attractive place to work. For example, you could create short videos that show your workplace, the varied tasks and jobs that staff perform and social or team building activities. You could also encourage some staff to talk briefly about why they enjoy working for you. This approach can be effective in bringing to life for candidates what it would be like to work for your organisation compared to a text description of the company. It can also help set you apart from your competition when trying to attract top talent.

    Know what you are looking for in a candidate

    Recruiting online opens up a wider pool of talent. To help ensure you find suitable applicants, clearly define what you are looking for in a candidate, including qualifications, abilities, traits and experiences. Your job description should explain the essential and desirable criteria to ensure that the expectations of applicants are clear from the start. This clarity will limit applications from unqualified applicants. Precisely defining what you are looking for in a candidate will also make evaluating their suitability easier.

    Communication

    Virtual recruitment makes it much easier for employers to communicate with candidates at various stages of the recruitment process. Good communication does not necessarily mean an extra burden on recruiters’ time. You can use automated candidate messaging tools to schedule emails or text or use chatbots to answer frequently asked questions in real-time.

    Automation

    Streamlining and automating parts of your hiring process through virtual recruitment can facilitate less expensive, faster and more efficient hiring procedures. This approach can lead to broadening your applicant pool and getting access to top-level talent, For example, you could automate the screening of candidates through online skills testing that automatically scores and ranks candidates based on their performance.

    Skills testing can also be an effective way to reducing bias in the recruitment process. It can allow candidate ranking by the skills required and ignore information contributing to unconscious bias such as name, gender, age, address, and school attended. However, be sure to prioritise the candidate experience when automating recruitment processes. Don’t implement efficiency improvements that benefit the hiring team at the expense of the candidate.

    Understanding your current recruitment processes including, its weaknesses and potential improvements, will help you plan your strategy for virtual recruitment. You may not get it right the first time around, so be sure to invite feedback from candidates, both successful and unsuccessful, and make improvements to ensure you get the most from your recruitment process.

    Also on this site
    Recruiting staff
    How to employ someone: step-by-step
    Job offers and staff inductions
    Content category
    Employment and skills

    Source URL

    /content/how-make-virtual-recruitment-work-your-business

    Links

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