Small business owners are unaware of their workers’ employment rights, the findings of a new report have revealed.

Despite their legal responsibilities, many employers weren’t able to answer simple questions about holidays and maternity leave, the Disability Discrimination Act or fixed term contracts.

The research was carried out by Consult GEE and involved 700 decision makers from small and medium-sized businesses. It revealed that even basic contractual arrangements were misunderstood by many small businesses, leaving them open to the threat of legal action.

The report revealed that:

  • A fifth of respondents wrongly believed they could change an employee’s contract, without consent, after terms and conditions had been agreed
  • Only a third knew that an employee could make a claim if they feel forced to resign after their hours or holiday are changed.
  • A third were confused about flexible working regulations
  • Two thirds were unsure about health and safety regulations
  • Four out of ten didn’t know how many weeks a mother can take as maternity leave; 63 per cent didn’t know how many weeks a father is entitled to.
  • Only half knew how much annual holiday an employee is entitled to.

The majority of employers did know that unfair dismissal was the most likely cause of being taken to an employment tribunal and that poor performance is not a valid reason for making somebody redundant. However, two thirds did not realise the potential seriousness of being taken to a tribunal, unaware that there is no limit to the money that can be award for sex, race or disability discrimination.

Over 90 per cent of the employers questioned blamed their ignorance on the difficulty of keeping up with changes in legislation and called for the government to stop making the law so confusing.

Business owners also called for more rights to discipline staff without fear of facing legal repercussions, and the need for a central source of information for current and new legislation.

Juliana Leonard, policy development officer for employment affairs at the Federation of Small Businesses, said: “Small businesses tend not to have HR managers to deal with the wealth of employment law and the continuing changes to it.

“The significant advances in employee rights over the last seven years have left business owners struggling to stay on top of the changes while trying to run a business at the same time. In the meantime, employers’ rights have been continually ebbed away.”

For a full copy of the report, visit: www.consultgee.essential-hr.co.uk or call Consult GEE on 020 7393 7127.