Recruitment:

At one level Recruitment is all about getting the right person to do a job on an on-going basis for the business. At another level recruitment is a company's opportunity to find someone who can do the basic job but who can also contribute in other ways to help make a business more competitive. The stages involved in the recruitment process generally include planning for employment, designing job and person descriptions, advertising and running a recruitment campaign and the managing the selection process including rating CVs, short listing for interview, conducting an interview and making an offer.

Topics in this section include:

• Employment or Sub-Contracting
• on Being an Equal Opportunities Employer
• Positive Action
• Recruitment documents and tools
• Interviews
• Equal Pay
• Fixed Term Work

Employment or Sub-Contracting

Businesses entering a recruitment phase often consider sub-contracting the work instead of taking on employees. Sub-contracting can provide increased flexibility and reduce costs but it also can limit the effective control the company has over the work and can lead to higher degrees of frustration. Sub-contracting work to self-employed persons also comes with the risk of having the self-employed person being deemed an employee of the company, complete with all the associated employment rights and entitlements, if the relationship is not carefully managed.

A Code of Practice for determining employment status was developed by the Employment Status Group set up under the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness. The code was drawn up because of a growing concern that increasing numbers of individuals were being categorised as 'self employed' when the indicators were that employee status would be more appropriate. The Code of Practice can be downloaded here.

The difference between an employee and a contractor is defined by the the nature of the contract. An employee is engaged under a 'Contract of Service' while a subcontractor is retained under a 'Contract for Services'. There is no requirement for either contract to be in writing and many are not. For example, if you 'hire' someone to mow your lawn, detail your car or wash your windows you are most likely, under the code, engaging that person under a Contract for Services even if they come back every week. Most of these contracting arrangements are not in writing but are agreed verbally. You could alternatively employ the person directly as a part-time worker which would make you responsible for complying with employment legislation. The Code of Practice can help you determine which type of contract you have entered into.

Being an Equal Opportunities Employer

Employers should consider placing the tagline 'An Equal Opportunities Employer' on advertisements and other recruitment documents. This signals to prospective employees and others in the community that the employer has a basic concern with fairness and equality and has taken some steps toward implementing equality in the workplace (and perhaps other aspects of the business). It also tells your customers that you are open for business to everyone in the community. Just be forewarned, if you set this standard people will expect you to comply with it. More information on being and Equal Opportunities Employer is available on the Best Practice page.

Positive Action

Under the Employment Equality Acts employers can take steps with a view to ensuring full equality between employees on all of the nine discriminatory grounds. By definition positive action includes any measure taken by an employer that contributes to the elimination of inequalities in work practices.

Examples of positive action might include assistance with childcare or the provision of leave for family reasons, the use of advertising methods which encourage under-represented groups to apply for jobs, the use of flexible working hours or patterns, the provision of special training courses for women where women have been under-represented in the specific skill area (permitted under section 15 of the Employment Equality Act 1977 ), and so forth. Positive action specifically encourages employers to increase the diversity of their workforce by giving a preference at the time of recruitment to people from groups that are underrepresented. For example, if at the end of a recruitment process there are two candidates remaining who are essentially equal in all areas it is legal for an employer to give a preference to the person that increases the diversity of the workplace.

Recruitment documents and tools:

Although there is no statutory right to a written 'contract' of employment all employees are by law to be given a 'Written Statement of Terms of Employment'. Because this document spells out key aspects of the position for which an employee is needed the Terms and Conditions are a natural place to start the recruitment process. Defining the terms and conditions can help clarify both the job specification and person description which, in turn, help define the contract as explained in the written statement.

Key documents and tools (click title to view): Code of Practice in determining employment status Written Statement of Terms of Employment Job Description Person Specification Advertisement Application Form CV and Interview Score Sheets Interview format Letter of offer Letter of non-selection

The Job Description is a document that describe the duties or work the company needs performed and the conditions under which those duties are to be completed. A sample of this document can be found here (Job Description). When creating this document employers should continuously ask themselves, "How is this position supposed to contribute to the company?" This document should be part of the employee's file and it may be looked for by a labour Inspector visiting your business on a spot inspection.

The Person Specification describes the combination of qualifications, task knowledge, skills , abilities and the general attitude of the person best suited for the work and conditions. When creating this document the employers needs to ask themselves, "What are the most important qualities this person needs in order to maximise the contribution of this position?". This document is not a statutory requirement but, when used properly, can be a key factor in preventing unlawful discrimination.

The advertisement is based upon the job description, person specification and the terms and conditions. It should be designed to prompt applications from suitable candidates and dissuade unqualified persons from applying without unfairly discriminating or discouraging diversity. An employer needs to be clear on the content of the advertisement. Staff from the newspaper, journal or other publication carrying the ad can provide technical assistance with things like placement, colour, use of logos, etc.

It is important to ensure an advertisement doesn't signal an intent to discriminate. The newspaper or journal should help you with this as they too can be liable for what they print. For example when advertising for help in the stores or warehouse area be careful to advertise for a 'stores person' or 'warehousing position' rather than for a 'Stores man' or 'Warehouseman'. Gender exclusive language can send just as clear of message to a woman looking for work as the sign above sent to Irish emigrating to America.

An application form should only be used to collect information needed by the employer to compare the applicant to the job and position descriptions. Asking someone for their age, gender, religion, nationality, family status or any other of the nine grounds can be problematic for the employer if the information isn't necessary and it is used to eliminate an applicant. There is no statutory requirement for this document.

CVs and interviews are used to compare candidates to find the one that best fits the needs of the company. If none of the applicants are a good fit then the process may need to be repeated or the position documents and advertisements refined. Well designed CV and interview score sheets are based on the job description, person specification and terms of employment and help the recruitment panel, if used, be objective about the candidate.

The Curriculum Vitae (CV) is the first opportunity to match a candidate to the job and position descriptions and to check their compatibility with the Terms and Conditions under which they will be employed. Many CVs are poorly written and only provide limited insight into an employees knowledge, skills and ability. Better CVs will clearly identify the candidates strengths as well as their accomplishments.

Interviews

Interviews give the employer an opportunity to further explore a candidates potential of contributing to the company. Since no business can afford to remain static a key element of this process should be look at how the prospective employee will help the company transform or evolve with the marketplace. Employers are routinely advised that the interview is a dangerous process due to the potential threat of a complaint to the Equality Tribunal if they ask an inappropriate question. This is unfortunate as employers who are on edge themselves can hardly be expected to set a candidate at ease during the process.

The interview can be free flowing, following the leads given by the candidate. Asking every candidate the exact same questions even when they have already clearly provided the answer at another point in the interview can be frustrating for the panel and the candidate. Just as every candidate is different you need to be able to explore what they might uniquely bring to the company. It is good to have an interview plan and to identify the information you're looking for prior to the interview. Having an interview score sheet that allows you to weight information provided by each candidate is also very important for maintaining the objectivity and integrity of the process. The whole point of the process is to find the best person for the job, not to hire the person you 'like' the most. Just like with the Application Form, asking inappropriate questions can raise the spectre of unfair discrimination and place the employer as risk of having a complaint lodged with the Equality Tribunal. Employers should keep records of the entire process. There is no reason not to let candidate have access to their information including their own score sheet. Feedback to the unsuccessful candidate is certainly appropriate considering the time they gave to compete in the process.

Once a choice has been made then a letter of offer is appropriate. Additional letters should be sent to communicate the results to the other applicants. It is a good idea (and a point of courtesy) to notify candidates of their progression through the process and if they have been eliminated from the competition. Although not a legal requirement it is appropriate to give a candidate some insight into where they fell short in the process.

Equal Pay for Like Work

The Employment Equality Acts provide for equal pay for like work. Like work is defined as work that is the same, similar or work of equal value.

By law it is a term of everyone's contract of employment that they have an entitlement to equal pay. There are a number of factors that can affect rates of pay between members of staff. These include, among other things, additional duties or work performed as part of their contract, tenure or longevity, additional skills or experience used within or beneficial to the employment, performance bonuses, etc. The principle of Equal Pay provides that every employee has the same right to have all of these factors considered when setting rates of pay as opposed to establishing that every employee must be on exactly the same rate of pay. It is illegal to base rates of pay on factors like race or national origin (or that the person is not Irish), gender, age, or any other of the nine grounds. It is also illegal to pay someone less simply because they are a part-time employee. Equal Pay claims can be taken on any of the nine discriminatory grounds.

Fixed Term and Fixed Purpose Contracts

Occasionally employers will only need an employee for a limited time. This may be to cover the absence of another employees due to maternity, illness, sabbatical or other break in employment or it may be that the employee's services are only required for the duration of a specific project. Fixed-term contracts can be a very effective way to introduce increased diversity within a business.

Employers can retain employees on fixed term / fixed purpose contracts for a maximum of four years. One the employee has been employed for three years they can be given only one more fixed term contract before they must be classified as a permanent employee. Fixed term contracts will not help an employer avoid other legislation such as the Unfair Dismissals Acts since back-to-back fixed term contracts that extend employment to more than one year will automatically bring that legislation into force. Terminating employment at the end of a fixed term contract is generally not an unfair dismissal as long as the employee is not replaced with another person doing the same work. Employers considering the use of fixed term contracts should seek advice prior to entering into the contract with an employee.

Engaging new staff: Inducting and incorporating staff into the business

Successful employment of staff begins with proper induction and integration into the workplace. Whilst most companies have at least a short probationary period some companies take much longer to fully integrate staff. In sectors where there are established apprenticeships it can take over four years for a worker to become a fully qualified member of staff.

There are a number of documents employers are required to provide to an employee immediately upon starting work. These include the Written Statement of Terms of Employment (explained in the Recruitment section) and the procedures that will be used to dismiss an employee.

Induction training generally refers to the time spent with new employees to familiarise them with the company, introduce them to their supervisor and managers, explain company policies, procedures and other rules and regulations and provide them the basic skills necessary to ensure their heath, safety and welfare at work. Induction may also include handing out uniform items, assigning lockers and any other administrative tasks that have to be completed when joining the company. There is no statutory requirement for induction training. Induction training clearly should be carried out in a language the employee can clearly understand as it is crucial to successful employment. Employers may avail of other employees as translators or interpreters for the process.

Key documents and tools (click title to view): Induction checklist Dismissals procedures document Code of Practice for Grievances and Dismissals

Probationary periods: The length of probationary periods vary from employment to employment according to the needs of the business. The purpose of the probationary period is to allow the employer and employee to work through whether or not the job and person are the right match. Most employees will need about six months to become fully acquainted with all aspects of their position.

There are a couple of statutes that help define the probationary period. The first is the Minimum Notice Act and the second is the Unfair Dismissals Act. The Minimum Notice Act provides that no notice is required by either the employer to dismiss or the employee to quit within the first 13 weeks. The Unfair Dismissals Acts broadly but not universally provide that dismissals within the first 12 months of employment do not qualify for protection under the act. The Unfair Dismissals Acts also provide that apprentices may be dismissed at the end of their apprenticeship period if a company does not want to make them a permanent employee. Probationary periods should be fully explained in the Written Statement of Terms of Employment.

Procedures used for dismissal. The Unfair Dismissals Acts, 1977 to 2001 provide that an employer must give a written notice of any agreement or dismissal procedures which exist between him/her and a trade union or of any procedures which have been established by custom and practice, to every employee within a 28 day period of joining the company. This is clearly a policy document that should be provided to an employee in a language they understand.

At the end of the probationary period employees should be at a stage where they can increasingly contribute to the overall success of the business with less direct supervision. Once the employee is fully 'trained-in', their long-term productivity can depend upon a wide variety of factors. Whilst many of these factors change from employment to employment some--Equality, compliance with employment rights and entitlements and maintaining an environment free from from Bullying and Harassment (including sexual harassment)--are always connected to both job satisfaction and performance. Conversely, many employers are concerned that Equality and Diversity initiatives such as Flexible Working Arrangements and Work-Life Balance can lead to reduced working hours and lower levels of productivity.

Key topics connected to implementing equality and diversity within an employment are:

• the Rights of the Employer
• Documents required to implement Employment Equality
• Training required in order to implement Equality
• Vicarious Liability
• Addressing Bullying, Harassment and Sexual Harassment
• Addressing complaints about discrimination, bullying or harassment
• Promotion or career advancement
• Flexible Working Arrangements
• Rules concerning Sickness and Sick pay
• Making changes in work practices

The Rights of the Employer

Section 16 of the Employment Equality Act provides some very good insight to an employers general rights when it comes to employing staff. Specifically the Act says:

16.—(1) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as requiring any person to recruit or promote an individual to a position, to retain an individual in a position, or to provide training or experience to an individual in relation to a position, if the individual—

(a) will not undertake (or, as the case may be, continue to undertake) the duties attached to that position or will not accept (or, as the case may be, continue to accept) the conditions under which those duties are, or may be required to be, performed, or

(b) is not (or, as the case may be, is no longer) fully competent and available to undertake, and fully capable of undertaking, the duties attached to that position, having regard to the conditions under which those duties are, or may be required to be, performed.

This confirms that I have the following rights (and responsibilities as an employer:

1. I can determine the duties (or tasks) to be completed inside my business
2. I can determine the conditions under which those duties are to be completed (Including the conditions of employment and the rules of conduct within the business)
3. I can determine to what level of competency those duties are to be completed
4. I can determine when those duties are to be done
5. I can determine what capabilities are required to meet the requirements of those duties

These rights are echoed by the unfair dismissals acts which explain that employers can generally justify a dismissal based on

• lack of competence or qualification
• misconduct (the rules associated with the employment)
• redundancy (duties are no longer required)

In other words, I am not compelled to hire or retain someone who is not able or willing to do the work which I have to be done under the conditions in which it must be completed. To enforce these rights an employer must be able to stand over the duties and the terms / conditions.

Key documents and tools (click title to view): Equality Policy Statement Equality Policy Equality Training Plan Dignity in the Workplace Charter Bullying Policy Letter Bullying and Sexual Harassment Policy Letter Code of Practice on Addressing Workplace Bullying

Documents required to implement Employment Equality?

A: Research indicates that about three quarters of all employees work in organisations where there is a formal explicit policy on equal opportunities--these tend to be public sector and larger multinational organisations. Equality policies are much more common in the public sector and in large organisations but there is no reason they shouldn't be just as effective in smaller businesses. Here are a few more points from the ESRI research:

• Employees who work in organisations with equality policies are much more likely to consider that opportunities for recruitment, pay and conditions and opportunities for advancement and career development are fair and equal, even when other relevant factors are taken into account.
• The presence of a formal policy on equality in the workplace is strongly associated with lower levels of work stress.
• The presence of a formal policy on equality in the workplace is strongly associated with higher levels of both job satisfaction and organisational commitment.
  

The basic documents I need to implement equality are listed in the grey box above. Note that you can have a single overall equality policy or you may address equality as a line item in other specific policies such as a recruitment policies, dismissals, promotions, etc..

Training required to implement Equality

An Equality Training policy / plan is available here and in the document box above. To be effective Equality training needs to occur at key points in the employment life and on a recurring basis. The key points include at induction and at the time of any promotion. Refresher training should occur at least annually.

Induction training: this training should introduce the new employee to the Equality Officer and other key personnel such as the Bullying and Harassment 'Contact' person, company policies, complaint / grievance procedures and their responsibilities to the company, colleagues and customers. It would be beneficial to provide them with copies of the policy as well as the booklets explaining the Employment Equality and Equal Status Acts that are available from the Equality Authority.

Promotion: Employees being promoted to positions of responsibility should be prepared to address inappropriate behaviour, accept complaints on behalf of the company and train subordinates on the policy as well as the general principles of Equality & Diversity.

Refresher Training: Annual refresher training could be used to cover any changes to policy since the last training, review any resolved issues that have arisen in the company as appropriate, look at complaints adjudicated by the Equality Tribunal--particularly those involving similar companies or in the same sector. This is also a good opportunity to have staff consider any scenarios developed from cases covered in the news.

Vicarious Liability

The principle of Vicarious Liability assets that an employer is liable for the action of an employee, particularly in respect to unfair discrimination, unless the employer can prove they have taken sufficient steps to relieve themselves of the burden and shift the responsibility squarely upon the shoulders of the offending employee.

To have any reasonable claim a company will need to convince the Equality Tribunal that they have worked to implement equality throughout the company and the the employee would have had sufficient reason to know their actions were against company policy. At a minimum a company should expect to be able to demonstrate the following:

• Active support of Equality & Diversity by senior management through publishing of an equality statement and leadership in Equality and Diversity related events
• Appointment of an Equality Officer
• Publishing of an equality statement and appropriate supporting policies and procedures (including records of review)
• Company wide participation in training on a regular basis (including documented attendance by the employee concerned)
• Records of actions taken in response to previous complaints (if any)
• Records of any previous counselling, disciplinary or personalised training given the the employee concerned (if any)
• Copies or records of any diversity and equality awareness materials displayed in the company

Having these records will not guarantee a company will be relieved of Vicarious Liability but they will make a a very compelling case (especially if the action be the employee was patently wrong).

Addressing Bullying, Harassment & Sexual Harassment

Workplace Bullying is defined as repeated inappropriate behaviour, direct or indirect, whether verbal, physical or otherwise, conducted by one or more persons against another or others, at the place of work and/or in the course of employment, which could reasonably be regarded as undermining the individual's right to dignity at work. An isolated incident of the behaviour described in this
definition may be an affront to dignity at work but, as a once off incident, is not considered to be bullying.

Bullying or harassment based on any of the nine grounds may also be addressed as unfair discrimination and may carry more severe penalties if addressed by the Equality Tribunal instead of the Rights Commissioner Service.

A clearer, more specific definition of Bullying can often be more useful for employers when trying to determine what behaviours should be classified as bullying type behaviours.

"Bullying is defined as repeated aggression, verbal, psychological or physical, conducted by an individual or group against another person or persons.  Bullying is where aggression or cruelty, viciousness, intimidation or a need to humiliate dominate the relationships.  Isolated incidents of aggressive behaviour, while to be condemned, should not be described as bullying. In the workplace environment there can be conflicts and interpersonal difficulties. Many of these are legitimate industrial relations difficulties which should be dealt with through the appropriate industrial relations channels. Only aggressive behaviour which is systematic and ongoing should be regarded as bullying." (source: the Equality Authority)

Examples of Bullying Behaviour can include:

• Personal insults and name calling
• Unjustified personal
• Sarcasm
• Shouting (in public or in private)
• Sneering
• Instantaneous rage, often over trivial issues
• Setting someone up for failure
• Undermining someone’s work or job performance
• Withholding critical information to cause extreme embarrassment or failure
• Aggression
• Ignoring or neglecting someone as an act of cruelty
• Continuously refusing reasonable requests as an act of meanness or aggression
• Intimidation and threats in general

When considering behaviours for inclusion in your company's indicative list be sure you don't set the bar either too low or too high. For example, saying that any behaviour causing embarrassment can be bullying could result in people being afraid to talk to each other out of fear of a complaint. Likewise, identifying management pressure to perform as potential bullying can handicap supervisors and managers when it comes to stressing the importance of achieving targets and objectives. At the same time the policy shouldn't excuse managers shouting or cursing at an employee.

Harassment is any act or conduct including spoken words, gestures or the production, display or circulation of written words, pictures or other material if the action or conduct is unwelcome to the employee and could reasonably be regarded as offensive, humiliating or intimidating.

Sexual Harassment can be defined as conduct towards another person which is sexual in nature, or has a sexual dimension, and is unwelcome to the recipient.  It generally involves on person attempting to gratify their sexual desires at the expense of an unwilling partner.   Sexual harassment may be between the same or different sexes.

Addressing Complaints

Employers need to be particularly sensitive in respect to Sexual Harassment and should avoid trying to tell an employee attempting to make a complaint that they are misinterpreting the behaviour or that they are being too sensitive. One of the most damaging myths about Sexual Harassment is that the complainant

Promotion and Career Advancement

The promotion process should start the day a new employee joins the company. This involves records maintenance and regular feedback and appraisal. Promotions give employers an opportunity to recognise success on the part of an employee and to prove the company values merit and performance over simply being the bosses friend. Employers are free to promote from within or to look outside the company for the necessary traits and skill sets. When promoting internally the company should put in place a scoring system similar to that used in the recruitment process in order to objectively evaluate every employee competing for the position. be prepared to give honest, helpful and direct feedback to unsuccessful candidates. Records should be kept for at least six months and should be made available to the employees concerned. Transparency in this process is crucial to maintaining positive attitudes and sustaining the performance levels of unsuccessful candidates. Positive action measures mentioned previously can also apply to promotions.

Flexible Working Arrangements

Flexible working arrangements can be powerful tools for increasing the diversity within the workplace and can make . Four common examples of flexible working arrangements are:

• Part-time working
• Flexible hours
• Working from home and
• Job-sharing or Job-splitting

According to the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), almost one in four employees is involved in flexible working and one in five employees work part time. Few employees are involved in home working or participate in job-sharing arrangements.

Studies show that flexible working arrangements have mixed effects. Research by the ESRI reveals that:

• Part-time working and flexitime are both associated with lower work pressure
• Part-time working reduces stress and work-life conflict
• Employees who work from home experience significantly higher levels of stress and greater work pressure compared to workers with similar jobs and working conditions who do not work at home.
  

To be effective Flexible Work Arrangements must meet the needs of both the employer and employee and therefore trial or test periods are recommended before full implementation of these practices for any given employee.

Sickness and Sick Pay

There is no legislation regarding Sick Pay or absences due to illness. This means there is no entitlement to sick pay and no statutory protection for anyone out with an illness or injury. This also means there is no statutory requirement in respect to how long an employee may be out before the employer requires a 'sick certificate' to verify to employee's incapacity for work.

The standards for sick pay and incapacity for work due to illness or injury are set by the various Employment Regulation Orders (ERO) from the Joint Labour Committees (JLC) established by the Labour Court or a Registered Employment Agreement (REA). If your business is not under an ERO or an REA and you are considering offering Sick Pay then your best guide is to review the ERO for the sector closest to your business to see what the Labour Court has established as the standard.

Making Changes to Work Practices

The only constant in business is that every business must change in order to survive. A policy written today, especially a very specific one, may be out of date before the next time it has to be applied. We spend hours drafting and agreeing procedures only to see changes to our equipment, our product or regulation send us back to the drawing board. Finally, if that isn't enough, our customer's needs or wants change and we have to adapt to that -- change is the story of the age we live in and it is imperative that flexibility and change are built in to every employment contract.

The Terms of Employment (information) Act requires that Written Statements of Conditions of Employment be accurate and up to date. Change to working conditions must be reflected in the written statement within four weeks of the change coming into effect. Although this is often seen as a burden it is actually a very important tool for an employer as it can be used to highlight the fact of constant evolutionary change.

Other work documents, such as the Job Description, also need to be updated on a regular basis. Changes to equipment, technology, regulation, customer requirements and best practice mean that tasks and responsibilities required in January of this year will no longer be on the list (and therefore will have been replaced by different ones) by January of the next year.

By regularly updating employment documents employers reinforce the point that change is part and parcel of the terms and conditions of employment. This, in turn, helps prevent a situation where work practices become set and inflexible. The importance of this lies in the fact that constant organic change that is supported by training and updates to policies and procedures helps employers avoid costly renegotiations of contracts, redundancy situations and staff turnover that can result from periodic seismic shifts in work practices.

Every employee will leave the company at some point, some voluntarily and some involuntarily. Involuntary separation or dismissal can generally be justified by an employer for the following reasons:

Key documents and tools (click title to view): Dismissals Procedures Code of Practice: Grievances and Dismissals

• Competency, capability or availability
• Misconduct
• Redundancy
• Continued employment violates another law or regulation
• Some other substantial reason

Voluntary separation may result from a number of reason including retirement, changes in lifestyle, movement or migration or the employee's desire for a career change.

The fact is all losses generally come with a cost: voluntary losses often result in recruitment drives, retraining of staff or perhaps the burden of overtime payments to other staff picking up the work; dismissals may come with the increased burden of an unfair dismissals claim.

Under the Unfair Dismissals Acts all dismissals are automatically considered unfair unless the employer can prove the action was justified and carried out in an appropriate manner following a fair process. The standard for dismissals due to misconduct is set by the Code of Practice on Grievance and Disciplinary Procedures. Employers considering dismissing an employee should seek advice and assistance including an independent review of the events leading up to the dismissal, a review of the process to be used for the dismissal and the potential for a negotiated resolution to the situation.

The Unfair Dismissals Acts also provide that employers must, within 28 days of employment, provide employees with a copy of the procedures that will be used to dismiss them. This may be issued with or as part of the Written Statement of Conditions of Employment or as a separate policy document.

To repeat a point from the section on Employment Equality,

"Employees who work in organisations with equality policies are much more likely to consider that opportunities for recruitment, pay and conditions and opportunities for advancement and career development are fair and equal, even when other relevant factors are taken into account."

For employers this highlights the importance of implementing Equality. Employers that attend to equality, diversity and fair treatment can significantly reduce or avoid voluntary separations or dismissals and therefore reduce or eliminate the often extreme costs associated with such losses.