133 employer employee relationships

Question 1

what is a contract of employment

Answer 1

-employees must be provided with a written statement of the terms of employment within 12 weeks of starting employment-> stating levels of pay,holiday entitlement, disciplinary procedures etc
- also protects employees against unfair dismissal-> this protection only comes into affect after 2 years of service

Question 2

explain the right of health and safety

Answer 2

-employers have a duty to take all reasonable care to ensure the well-being and safety of their employees
-legal responsibility to ensure working environments are safe and employees are trained to. deal with risks involved in their jobs
- employees also have responsibilities such as taking reasonable care to ensure they abide to health and safety rules eg.wearing hard hats on building sites

Question 3

explain dismissal

Answer 3

-where an employer ends an employee’s employment- to dismiss a employee the employer must show they have:
. a valid reason that they can justify
. acted reasonably in the circumstances

-they also must:
. investigate the situation fully before dismissal
. be consistent (not dismiss an employee for doing something they let other employees do)

Question 4

explain what is meant by equal opportunities

Answer 4

-equality act 2010 legally protects against discrimination in the workplace. forms of discrimination:
-direct-> treating someone with a protected characteristic less favourably than others
-indirect->putting rules in place that apply to everyone, but put someone with a protected characteristic at an advantage
-harassment
-victimisation->treating some unfairly because they have complained about discrimination

Question 5

evaluate the impact of equal opportunities to employers

Answer 5

(+) -diverse workforce-> range of perspectives/ideas/skills-better innovation/problem solving skills
-employees treated fairly-motivated/loyal-inclusive workforce reduces absenteeism-> saves on recruitment and training costs

(-) managing a diverse workforce can be challenging as it may require balencing different prespectives, working styles/ needs- could end up being costly, and slow down decision making
- long recruiment process

Question 6

evalaute the impact of equal oppotunities to emoyees

Answer 6

(+) feel valued-increasing job satisfaction, equal oppotunites meana ll employees have a fair chance of advancing based on their skill/effort, imporved well-being-positive working environment
(-) if poorly implimeted , equal oppotunity policies may be focusing on incuding and hiring special characteristics employees, rather than selecting the best candidate which can disencourage empoyees , -increased competition

Question 7

what is collective bargainig

Answer 7

process of negotiation between employers and a group of employees aimed at agreemnets to regulate working salaries, working conditions, benifits ext. -> joining other workers more chance of haing a voice/influencing eg.trade unions

Question 8

role of trade unions

Answer 8

-independant, membership based organisations of workers that represnt and negotiate on behalf of their working people
-they give advice when thier memebers have [roblems at work and help imprve wages and working conditions by negotating with employees

Question 9

(+) of trade unions

Answer 9

-improved working cnditions
-increased wages (increased spending in the economy)
-proves greater coordinarion between firms and employees and workers

Question 10

(-) of trade unions

Answer 10

-time lost due to strike action
-increase in wages can lead to infliation
-trade unions can increase wages- unemployement- can’t afford too many employeess

Question 11

how can trade unions resolve employee/employer disputes

Answer 11

• overtime ban- workers work basic hours-refuse to do extra work
• work-to-rule- workers stick very closely to every rule in the workplace eg.health and safety rules- slows down production
• strikes- withdrawal of labour

Question 12

difference between negotiation and consulatation

Answer 12

negotiation- duscussion aimed at reaching an agreement/comporimise
consultation- employer talks and listens to effected employee

Question 13

role of ACAS

Answer 13

-goverment funded- prove free advice to employees- help resolve disputes
-role:-to advise,- to conciliate (help employers/employees understand eachother better/ but does not agree or diagree with either side agreement. -abriation (listens to both sides and makes a decision, both parties have agreed in advace they will abide by Acas’s decision