Employment & Work

Employment is a very important part of many people’s lives and it’s important to feel content. Unfortunately, situations can arise which may make you feel anxious or insecure in your job. These can range from changes to your employment contract, to restructures and redundancies or disputes with a colleague or line manager.

This section includes several links which can help if you’re having problems at work.

If you feel that you are being treated differently because of who you are, you may be being discriminated against. Visit our DISCRIMINATION section for more information.

1. YOUR BASIC RIGHTS AT WORK

This section provides information on general rights at work, contracts of employment and your rights if you work for an agency worker. Please click on the links below to be taken to your desired section.

AGENCY WORK
BASIC RIGHTS AT WORK
CHILD EMPLOYMENT
CONTRACTS OF EMPLOYMENT
DISCRIMINATION AT WORK
FLEXIBLE WORKING
HEALTH AND SAFETY AT WORK
INSOLVENCY: WHAT TO DO IF YOUR EMPLOYER GOES OUT OF BUSINESS
MATERNITY PAY AND LEAVE
PATERNITY PAY AND LEAVE
PAY
REDUNDANCY
SELF EMPLOYMENT: THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
SICKNESS AT WORK
STRESS, DEPRESSION AND MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT AT WORK
WORKING HOURS, HOLIDAYS, BREAKS AND LEAVE
YOUNG WORKERS

AGENCY WORK

If you're an agency worker it's important to know how you should be treated by your agency and your employer.

Find out more information about your rights here
Source: Citizens Advice

BASIC RIGHTS AT WORK

Find out more information on contracts of employment, holidays, pay etc. here
Source: eoc.org.uk

CHILD EMPLOYMENT

You are not allowed to work full time until you are 16 and have finished school. If you are 13 to 15 and want to earn some money you can have a job, but there are lots of rules about the number of hours you can work each week and the type of work you can do.

Find out more information here
Source: gov.uk

CONTRACTS OF EMPLOYMENT

For information on employment contracts including the difference between workers and employees, between employed and self-employed status, changes to contracts, and illegal contracts, click here

Source: Citizens Advice

DISCRIMINATION AT WORK

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has written a series of guides to explain your rights under equality law. These guides support the Equality Act 2010. The Act brings together a number of different equality laws, many of which have existed for a long time, with the intention of making Equality law simpler and easier to understand.
Source: Equality and Human Rights Commission

FLEXIBLE WORKING

If you are finding it hard to balance your work life with other commitments, you could consider asking to work flexibly. This means asking your employer to work in a different way from the way you work at present.

For information on how to make a request for flexible working, click here

Source: Citizens Advice

HEALTH AND SAFETY AT WORK

This site provides information for all workers on their rights and responsibilities regarding health and safety at work.
Source: Health and Safety Executive

INSOLVENCY: WHAT TO DO IF YOUR EMPLOYER GOES OUT OF BUSINESS

If your employer has debts they are unable to pay, they are classed as Insolvent. If this happens to your employer, you have rights and can make a claim for money you’re owed.

Find out more information here
Source: gov.uk

MATERNITY PAY AND LEAVE

This guide outlines your rights when you are pregnant and after the birth
Source: Maternity Action

PATERNITY PAY AND LEAVE

Read about your rights to pay and time off if you are a father here
Source: Worksmart TUC

PAY

General Information on Pay

Information about pay, which includes when and how you get paid (including notice periods, deductions and overtime), are crucial terms of your contract with your employer.

Find answers to your pay-related queries here
Source: gov.uk

National Minimum Wage & the Living Wage

For a tool to check whether you're being paid the National Minimum- or Living Wage - and whether your employer owes you money from the previous year, because of underpayment - click here

For information on what to do if you're being paid less than the Minimum- or Living Wage, click here.

Sources: gov.uk, Citizens Advice

REDUNDANCY

If you are made redundant, there are many things to think about at a difficult time.

For information on matters surrounding redundancy, including how to challenge this, and your entitlement to redundancy pay, click here

Source: Citizens Advice

SELF EMPLOYMENT: THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES

There is more information about self-employment under our TAX section

Self-employment at first it seems attractive, especially if you have recently become unemployed or redundant. Although one of the main attractions of becoming self-employed is no longer having to work for somebody else, there are several disadvantages you should consider.

Click here for a useful checklist.
Source: reed.co.uk

SICKNESS AT WORK

Are you entitled to sick pay?

You might be able to get Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) when you're off work sick. It depends on your earnings and your situation. Your employer might also pay you their own sick pay - usually called ‘contractual sick pay’ (CSP). You get CSP and SSP at the same time.

Find out more information here
Source: Citizens Advice

How to claim sick pay

For information on how to claim sick pay from your employer and what information you may need, click here

Source: Citizens Advice

Other entitlements when you are off work sick

For information about what other payments you may be entitled to and what to do when you sick pay ends, click here

Source: Citizens Advice

Getting sick pay when you are pregnant

Different rules may apply, depending on whether your illness is related to your pregnancy.

Find out more information here
Source: Citizens Advice

STRESS, DEPRESSION AND MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT AT WORK

Mental health problems such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder do not need to stop you from working.

Click here for practical advice about talking to your employer and about your rights at work.
Source: Acas

WORKING HOURS, HOLIDAYS, BREAKS AND LEAVE

Most people at work have a basic set of working time rights that cover how long they can work each week, how often they should get breaks and how much holiday they should get each year.

Click here to download a free guide
Source: Worksmart TUC

YOUNG WORKERS

This section explains in clear language what rights you have at work and how to make sure you are being treated properly by your employer. It’s a good guide if you are starting work for the first time.

Read the guide here
Source: Citizens Advice

2. USEFUL CALCULATORS

Please click on the links below to be taken to your desired section.

FOR WORKERS
FOR EMPLOYERS

FOR WORKERS

Calculating your Redundancy Pay

Redundancy pay is based on age, weekly pay and number of years in the job.

Calculate how much statutory redundancy you can get here.
Source: Gov UK

Pay calculator

This form is for calculating your annual, monthly, weekly, daily and hourly rates of pay given only one of them.
Source: salarybot.co.uk

Holiday entitlement calculator

Calculate statutory holiday entitlement in days or hours for a full leave year or work out holiday someone is entitled to when they start or leave a job part way through a leave year

Calculate your statutory holiday entitlement here
Source: gov.uk

Maternity Pay Calculator

This calculator helps you to estimate your Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) and work out your qualifying week. It can also estimate your Maternity Allowance if you don’t qualify for SMP
Source: gov.uk

National Minimum Wage calculator for workers

Check if your pay matches the National Minimum Wage or if your employer owes you payments from past years here

FOR EMPLOYERS

Calculate your employee's statutory sick pay

This calculator is for employers. Calculate your employee's Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) here
Source: Gov.UK

Calculate your employee's statutory redundancy pay

This calculator is for employers. Calculate your employee's statutory redundancy payment here
Source: Gov.UK

Maternity and paternity calculator for employers

This calculator is for employers. Calculate maternity, paternity and adoption pay here
Source: Gov.UK

National Minimum Wage calculator for employers

Check if you’re paying a worker the National Minimum Wage or if you owe them payments from past years here
Source: Gov.UK

3. WHAT TO DO IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM AT WORK

This section provides information on how to raise a grievance at work.

Under HELPFUL TOOLS there is a sample letter which you can use to help write a grievance

Problems at work

If you have a problem at work, these pages will help you understand how to tackle it and what to do at each stage, whether you're sorting things out informally, taking out a grievance or making a claim to an employment tribunal

Find out more information here
Source: Citizens Advice

You have a problem with your employer

Click here for a list of scenarios and useful information about resolving certain problems
Source: TUC

4. WHAT ACTION AN EMPLOYER CAN TAKE AGAINST YOU

This section provides information on disciplinary action and dismissal.

Discipline

Click here if you are facing disciplinary action from your employer.
Source: ACAS

Check if your dismissal is unfair

Being sacked from your job can come as a huge shock and it often feels unfair. The legal term for being sacked is 'Dismissal'. Your employer is allowed to dismiss people, but if they do so unfairly, you can challenge this.