Thoughts and Queries

Hello - and welcome to my occasional posts about matters relating to HR, people management and business.

#StandUpToBullying: My Five Words

As a HR consultant, I'm no stranger to the problem of workplace bullying. As I'm currently working with a company delivering bullying and harassment training, the timing of this year's Stand Up to Bullying is especially pertinent.They're a...Read on

Bank Holidays and Part Time Entitlement

Its that time of year where Bank Holidays are aplenty and, weather permitting, its time to fire up the barbecues or join the traffic jams heading for the coast.Behind the fun is a serious point though: have you ever heard a part time...Read on

Mental Health in the Workplace - What Can Employers Do?

Mental health - a subject which has affected me personally and one which is all over the news at the minute. With 1 in 4 of us being affected by mental health issues, its never been so important to get to grips with mental health in the workplace.ACAS defines mental ill health as ranging...Read on

Is Sickness Giving You a Headache?

Did you know that on average each employee of a small business takes 4 days sickness each year? Whilst it may not seem like much - you know what kind of impact that has - loss of productivity and profit to name just a few. Mint HR are running a...Read on

Sacking a President

It's 9 o'clock and you're sat with your feet up watching the latest thrilling instalment of The Walking Dead. Youre just dunking a biscuit into your tea when your phone begins to buzz. You pick it up. Notification after notification from the company...Read on

Sickness - 5 Tips Any Employer Needs to Read

Sickness is something I seem to be dealing with a lot at the minute. Unless you're extremely lucky - you will at some point, have to deal with sickness. Even if it's not an issue - the following will help you manage sickness and stop it escalating....Read on

3 Reasons Why Recruitment Sucks

This may be a controversial blog - especially as there is so much help out there for recruitment but I'm going to say what I think anyway. Whilst I do believe you need to do all you can to find the right person when hiring, it's not clear cut. Just like Brian...Read on

Show Your Employees the Love

Cheesy I know - but I'm in a loved up mood and I'm here to tell you how you can spread this good feeling throughout the workplace. I've posted a fair bit lately about the harsh side of managing employees - today we need to focus on the nice stuff.It's...Read on

Blue Monday

'I felt it was worth commenting on Blue Monday as no doubt others will be and I wanted to consider it with a fresh pair of eyes. In summary - it's a load of rubbish!Blue Monday is identified in 2017 as the 16th January and is supposedly the most depressing day of the year.It's linked with post Christmas blues, the credit card bills landing, it's freezing, dark and we're back to...Read on

The Key to Keeping Your Employees Happy

I work with lots of SMEs and one of the questions I regularly get asked is, "How do I keep my teams on side?" I answer this in my usual practical HR fashion but Mint HR grows, it got me thinking about how I would put my own advice into practice.For me, the following are essential:The right fitA new start up or rapidly expanding business needs to have the right...Read on

An SME Without HR is Like Tonic Without Gin

I know you don't normally associate HR with an alcoholic drink but SMEs need such an accompaniment. Did you know that gin has many health benefits (as long as drunk in moderation) and HR can have that same...Read on