If an employee refuses to attend a disciplinary hearing, you can still proceed lawfully if you follow a fair process. This guide explains UK rules, the Acas Code of Practice, valid reasons for non-attendance, postponements, and how to run a hearing in absence. You will get practical letters guidance, an on-the-day checklist, a timeline view, and when to seek expert HR help from Specialised HR.
An employee not turning up and ignoring messages can feel stressful. This guide explains UK specific steps when someone goes AWOL, from first contact attempts to a fair disciplinary process aligned with the Acas Code. You will learn when to escalate, what to pay, how to avoid discrimination risks, and how to document each action. We also share a short case study and a week by week timeline. If you need hands on help, Specialised HR offers practical support and compliant templates.
Employment tribunals consume time, money and reputation. This guide shows UK employers how to cut risk through fair processes, robust documentation, thoughtful investigations and early action. You will learn the steps from Acas Early Conciliation to ET3, what to do when an ET1 arrives, and how to defend claims without losing your values. Practical, legally grounded advice from Specialised HR with links to authoritative UK sources.
Workplace issues rarely explode overnight—they escalate through silence, sudden formality, and growing team impact. This guide explores three clear warning signs an employee issue is about to escalate in 2026, with UK-specific, values-led advice grounded in ACAS guidance, UK GDPR, and ethical HR best practice—so you can act early, protect trust, and reduce risk.
Harness Culture in 2026: A Practical Guide for Ethical SMEs and Charities –
Turn your values into everyday actions with a clear, living ‘how we work’ culture. This guide shows ethical small businesses and charities how to define behaviours, embed sustainability, and align with UK law and recognised standards like B Corp, ACAS, and ISO 30414. Learn how to create a short playbook that boosts trust, wellbeing, and performance, while simplifying decision-making, onboarding, and reporting. Practical steps, templates, and light measurement approaches help your team live your mission confidently every day.
Difficult conversations don’t need to damage trust or morale. With the right preparation, structure, and mindset, they can strengthen relationships and reinforce your organisation’s values. This practical guide shows how to approach challenging discussions with clarity and kindness — from planning and opening the meeting to managing emotions, documenting fairly, and following up effectively. Grounded in UK law and ACAS guidance, it’s designed for ethical, people-first employers who want to lead with confidence, fairness, and care in 2025.
1. Set clear and realistic expectationsUnderperformance is often a symptom of the individual not being the right fitfor the role or not being supported sufficiently to do their job well. This...
Don't let employees ruin your business or charity. Dealing with the issues will save you time, money and a lot of stress. It can be very simple to deal with these issues with the right advice and...
All charities are set up for the purpose of helping or supporting a cause, and everyone who works in it will share the same values. However, charities are like businesses in many senses they need...
As we see the end of the furlough period and the job retention scheme (expires on 31st October 2020), many employers will are bringing employees back to work. For some employees, they may have been...
