First published on Thursday, October 2, 2025
Last updated on Thursday, October 2, 2025
Welcome to HR Heartbeat, where we take a look at the week’s most pressing HR and employment law stories. With over 18 years’ experience in employee relations, I give my opinion on current trends impacting your business, as well as my own personal commentary on all things HR and legal.
If you're not barefoot then you're overdressed (even in the office)
In a move to reduce stress in the workplace, businesses in the UK are introducing sock-only policies. The trend kicked off in Silicon Valley, where employees are “leaving their footwear at the door in the name of comfort, creativity, and culture.” As Gen Z workers reportedly value wellbeing over financial reward, more flexible dress codes might be the key to making the workplace more welcoming.
I’d offer a note of caution, however. One person’s informal is another person’s unprofessional. When you’re looking at dress codes, keep your clients in mind as much as your staff. If shoes are the difference between winning a client and not, then maybe you should toe the line with a formal shoe-on policy.
Police officer caught 'key jamming' instead of working from home
A detective constable has been found guilty of gross misconduct for ‘key jamming’ – holding down a single key so it looked like he was typing while working from home. This is a career-ending breach of the standards of the police force.
It’s not the first time this has happened. In June 2025, a police constable was found to have been weighing down his Z key, typing nearly 11 million zs in 100 hours before he was caught.
If you’re considering monitoring your employees, think about privacy and data protection. And talk to your teams about your reasons and methods for monitoring. The BrightHR Blip app has been used over 60 million times to monitor clocking in and out. It’s a way to check working patterns and breaks, and to make sure your payroll and timesheets run smoothly.
Half of jobseekers have a gap in their CVs
Recruiters are reporting a long-running and growing pattern of employment gaps in CVs. According to analysis by LiveCareer UK of 19 million UK CVs, 32% of jobseekers have a gap of over six months, and only half of CVs overall have no gaps at all.
As far as I’m concerned, gaps in CVs aren’t a worry. The Covid pandemic caused many people to take career breaks due to caring responsibilities. And there’s been volatility in the job market since 2020. My advice would be: don’t disregard a great candidate without a good reason.
You can find more advice for recruiters on the BrightHR website, with interview templates and HR documents to support the recruitment process. There’s also a People Navigator so you can easily create job listings and securely manage the process online, keeping your candidates in the loop.
And that’s a wrap from me. Tune in next time for my take on the latest headlines and employment law stories, helping keep your business ahead!
