Have you heard the latest news?

Welcome to HR Heartbeat, where we give you a rundown of the week's top employment law stories. Stay on the pulse of current trends impacting your business, plus get up-to-the-minute commentaries on all things HR and legal.

So, let’s check out this week’s headlines…

England’s Lionesses are back! But how do you keep a full squad during summer events?

The lionesses will be back on our screens for the Women’s World Cup 2023, hosted in Australia. They will be facing Haiti in their first World Cup group game on July 22 in Brisbane. The full tournament will run from July 20th to August 20th, right in the middle of summer so your employees might decide to kick back and take some annual leave days.

Big sporting and global events can have a huge impact on your team’s tardiness and last-minute absences. Don’t sub your staff! Ask Bright Lightning: How can I minimise the number of unplanned absences when the World Cup is on?

Tube strikes

Last week, the RMT union announced several days of tube strikes at the end of July which will undoubtedly cause problems for commuters in and around London.

A week of rolling strike action will take place from July 23rd to 28th. Employers should make sure their employees know about the disruption in good time so that alternative plans can be made. Whether that’s homeworking, adjusting working hours, or using banked time off in lieu to cover lateness.

In addition, RMT has announced three days of strike action on the trains: July 20th, 22nd and 29th.

For more help, ask Bright Lightning: How can I help my employees navigate tube strikes?

EasyJet cancellations disrupting annual leave

It has been reported that easyJet has cancelled 1700 flights between July and September due to restricted airspace over Europe and ongoing problems with air traffic.

It says that 95% of passengers have been rebooked onto other flights. Be prepared, employees that haven’t secured new travel may want to cancel their annual leave and rearrange for another time.

Given the circumstances, employers can exercise some flexibility and work something out with employees. But it’s worth noting you don’t have to accept an employee’s request to cancel leave they have booked.

And that’s a wrap. Tune in next week for more headlines and make sure you stay ahead of major employment law changes!