Christelle The changes to zero hours contracts UK employers are facing represent the biggest shift in how flexible staff are engaged for some time. They stem from the Employment Rights Act 2025, they are expected to take effect during 2027, and they will require most businesses that use zero hours or low hours arrangements to change … Read more
The Employment Rights Bill zero hours contracts measures were among the Government’s headline commitments when the Bill was introduced in October 2024, and they remained one of the most debated parts of the legislation throughout its passage. The Bill received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025 and became the Employment Rights Act 2025. The zero … Read more
Zero hours contracts are arrangements under which an employer is not obliged to provide any minimum number of working hours, and the individual is generally not obliged to accept the work offered. They are used widely in sectors with fluctuating demand, such as hospitality, retail, care, and events, where the volume of work varies from … Read more
Fire and rehire is the practice of dismissing an employee and immediately offering to re-engage them on new, usually less favourable, terms. Employers turn to it when they need to change something in the contract, such as pay, hours, or shift patterns, and the employee will not agree to the change. It is lawful at … Read more
Fire And Rehire Employment Rights Bill The rules on fire and rehire in the Employment Rights Bill were among the most closely watched parts of the legislation, and they changed considerably between the Bill’s introduction and its passage into law. Employers who formed a view of the reforms early on may be working from an … Read more
Managing probation periods correctly matters considerably because the decisions made during them are among the most consequential an employer takes. A well-run probation identifies problems early, gives the new employee a fair opportunity to meet the required standard, and produces a clear record supporting whatever decision is reached at the end. A poorly run one … Read more
Probation periods are contractual arrangements under which an employer assesses a new employee’s suitability for a role, usually over the first three to six months of employment. An employee on probation is employed in full from their first day, with the same statutory rights as any other member of staff, and the probationary label changes … Read more
Employee sickness absence is often given little attention until it starts costing the business money. Absence is one of the most frequent reasons clients contact GAP HR. Sometimes it is a long absence with no clear end in sight; more often it is a short-term pattern that everyone in the business has noticed, and nobody … Read more
The statutory sick pay changes 2026 represent the most substantial reworking of the scheme since it was introduced in 1983. Some employers have felt little difference, while others, particularly those with part-time or low-paid teams, are still adjusting to what their absence costs now look like. Tracking reform of this kind so that clients do … Read more
Anyone searching for the rules on statutory sick pay 2026 will find a scheme that looks quite different from the one employers knew a year ago. The waiting days and earnings threshold have gone, and the amount an employee receives can now vary with what they earn. At GAP HR, we have supported small, owner-managed … Read more
Employers handling a flexible working application are expected to follow the ACAS Code of Practice on Flexible Working, and tribunals must take it into account when deciding whether a request was dealt with properly. While the Code is short and relatively straightforward, many small businesses are unaware of it and its importance to their decision … Read more
Employers cannot turn down a flexible working application for any reason they choose, since the flexible working request reasons to decline are fixed by statute. There are eight such reasons, set out in the Employment Rights Act 1996. A reason that falls outside the list, however sound it may be from a commercial standpoint, will … Read more
Refusing a flexible working request can be entirely lawful, and no employer is obliged to agree to every application it receives. That said, the law does require employers to handle requests properly, and it is the handling rather than the decision itself that most often causes problems. An employer with a perfectly sound commercial reason … Read more
A written flexible working policy is one of the most useful documents a small employer can have, because it turns an area of law that is easy to get wrong into a process that managers can follow consistently. Without one, decisions tend to be made on an ad hoc basis, different employees receive different treatment … Read more
Since April 2024, any employee can submit a flexible working request from their very first day in the job, and employers no longer have the option of waiting until someone has built up service before considering one. For owner-managed businesses, this has changed the way requests need to be handled. The process is governed by … Read more
One of the most effective steps an employer can take to meet its legal duties is well-delivered sexual harassment awareness training. Training not only reduces the likelihood of harassment happening in the first place, but it also forms part of the evidence that an employer took its obligations seriously. Gap HR Services was founded in … Read more
Every employer in the UK now carries a positive legal duty to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace before it happens. For owner-managed businesses without a dedicated HR function, working with experienced HR consultants like ours can help ensure they understand what the duty involves and how they can ensure compliance. Gap HR Services has … Read more
When employers ask what they need to do to meet their legal duty to prevent harassment, a sexual harassment risk assessment is almost always the starting point. Without one, it is very difficult for an employer to demonstrate that it took the duty seriously. Gap HR Services has spent decades helping small, owner-managed businesses across … Read more
Some small businesses are unaware that employer liability for third-party harassment is set to become one of the more significant legal exposures for any organisation whose staff deal with the public. From October 2026, an employee who is harassed by a customer, client, or contractor may be able to bring a claim against their employer. … Read more
Harassment in the workplace does not always happen between colleagues. Third-party harassment concerns the way your staff are treated by people outside your organisation, and from October 2026 it becomes a direct legal responsibility for employers. For any business whose people deal with customers, clients, or the public, the issue deserves close attention now rather … Read more
Running a small business in the UK means wearing many hats, and one that can quickly become problematic is that of HR manager. Whether you have three employees or thirty, the legal obligations placed on you as an employer are the same, and failing to comply with them can have severe consequences. That is where … Read more
Employment law in the UK is detailed, complex, and at times, unforgiving. For small and owner-managed businesses without an in-house HR team, keeping pace with statutory obligations, drafting compliant documentation, and responding to disputes can be a significant burden, often falling on the business owner. At GAP HR, we have provided HR and employment law … Read more
For small and owner-managed businesses, HR roles and responsibilities are rarely neatly defined. It is usually a broad collection of responsibilities, which grows ad hoc over time as the business expands. This informal approach can work for a time, but as a workforce grows, so does the risk of inconsistency, non-compliance, and tribunal proceedings. At … Read more
Mental health absences now account for one of the largest categories of long-term sickness in the UK, and the issue is hitting small and owner-managed businesses particularly hard. Cover costs mount, workloads shift onto already stretched colleagues, and difficult decisions about an individual’s future eventually have to be made. Terminating an employee with mental health … Read more
Pregnancy affects every person differently, and the range of health-related issues that can arise during those nine months is broader than many employers realise. Understanding the reasons for sick leave during pregnancy matters not just from a compassion standpoint, but also from a legal one. Pregnancy-related absence is treated differently in law from ordinary sickness … Read more
The tax-free element of a settlement is one of the main advantages for an employee, particularly since employment tribunal awards are fully taxable. If you are searching for ‘settlement agreement tax calculator UK’, chances are you need advice on the tax implications of a potential settlement with an exiting employee. While these tools can act … Read more
If you are an employer searching ‘settlement agreement calculator ACAS’, chances are you are already in a difficult position. You may have a member of staff you need to move on or a dispute you need to resolve, and no in-house HR team to call on. If that sounds familiar, we are here to help. … Read more
Using a redundancy settlement agreement calculator to work out your potential liability if your business is making redundancies is a sensible starting point. However, statutory redundancy pay is just one part of what an employer may owe when a redundancy exit is concluded through a settlement agreement. The way the redundancy process was handled, the … Read more
A settlement agreement payment calculator is a useful tool in understanding how much you may need to pay a specific employee if you entered into a settlement agreement with them. However, for such tools to be genuinely useful, you need to know how to use them properly. If you miss a component, undervalue a risk, … Read more
When a working relationship breaks down to the point where both sides know it cannot continue, the question that employers tend to ask first is, how much will this cost? That is exactly the question our employment settlement agreement calculator UK is designed to answer. Understanding your potential liability enables you to enter into settlement … Read more
Choosing the right HR consulting firms for small businesses can be the difference between being caught out by employment law issues and having the confidence to manage people effectively. At GAP HR, we work exclusively with small, often owner–managed organisations, helping them stay compliant, resolve disputes early, and build clear, lawful processes that reduce the … Read more
HR support for small businesses is not an optional extra. It is the practical protection that keeps recruitment, contracts, conduct issues, and difficult conversations from turning into expensive legal disputes. Since 2003, we have focused on HR and employment law issues for small, owner- managed businesses. Our sole aim is to help employers stay legally … Read more
Running a small business in the UK frequently involves wearing a lot of hats. You are the decision-maker, the salesperson, the problem-solver and, more often than not, the person who has to deal with all manner of staff issues. HR for small business UK is not something most business owners think about until something goes … Read more
Small business human resources consulting gives owner‑managed and micro‑businesses the confidence to manage people fairly, lawfully, and successfully. At Gap HR, we work closely with small organisations across the UK, helping them to build solid HR foundations that protect their reputation, reduce risk, and support growth. We are your external HR partner, tailoring our service … Read more
Small business HR consulting is not a luxury reserved for companies with dedicated HR departments. For most of the owner-managers we work with, it is an essential line of defence against costly, time-consuming, and deeply stressful employment tribunal claims. Choosing the right HR partner matters far more than most business owners realise until it is … Read more
‘What is classed as gross misconduct?‘ is one of the most common questions our clients ask our expert HR specialists, usually when they feel they need to take swift action but cannot afford to get the process wrong. At GAP HR, we support small, owner-managed businesses across the UK with HR and employment law issues, … Read more
If you are looking for a highly experienced, reliable HR consultant to protect your business, support your managers and keep your people processes legally compliant, GAP HR is ideally placed to assist. We built our business to specialise in working with small, owner-managed businesses across the UK, acting as their dedicated outsourced HR support. Our … Read more
Gross misconduct examples are a common concern for employers. The stakes are high, decisions are time-sensitive, and the consequences can be extremely damaging if the process is mishandled. At GAP HR, we support employers with practical HR and employment law advice. Our clear focus is helping you stay tribunal-free, and we have been doing so … Read more
In this guide to outsourcing HR, we set out what outsourcing HR is, what you can sensibly outsource, and how to use it to protect your business while keeping your management time focused on your commercial operations. At Gap HR, we provide outsourced HR support for small, owner-managed businesses across the UK, specialising in HR … Read more
Choosing an HR company for small business is one of the easiest ways to protect your time, your reputation, and your cash flow when people issues arise. At Gap HR, we are an expert outsourced HR company specialising in HR and Employment Law support for small, owner-managed businesses across the UK, stepping in as dedicated … Read more
