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Featured Adoption Agency Georgia Articles
Being Family Friendly
Derian Keyms
The trigger date - 6 April 2003. Family Friendly rights, brought to employees and employers alike with the implementation of the Employment Act 2002. These include increased maternity leave together with the introduction of paternity leave, adoption leave and the new right to request flexible working. Amidst the plethora of information on the legal detail of these “family friendly” rights – Derian Keyms takes a moment to consider the HR perspective – what “family friendly” measures should employers now take?
Information on the UK’s new family friendly rights is widely, and freely, available. It’s said that “the devil’s in the detail” – well, there’s more than enough legal detail, and in abundance! But what’s lacking is information and guidance for employers on what to do now. How to stay ahead, and how to minimise the risk of a claim. Much of my article may seem blindingly obvious – but so are most issues, with the advantage of retrospect. So I invite you to join me in a quick rundown of top tips for employers…
In a nutshell, these consist of my “Five C’s” - Compliance, Contractual, Clarity, Communication and Consistency:
Compliance. Ensure awareness and understanding of what the statutory minimum provisions are, together with any collective or workforce agreements that may also govern internal provisions.
Contractual. Review existing arrangements and cross check those with individual contractual rights. Revisit “Custom and Practice” – what actually happens as opposed to what you think should happen!
Clarity. Try and minimise misunderstanding with the use of simple, clear and user friendly language. Ensure defined procedures and processes for employees, managers, HR and payroll – a step-by-step guide.
Communication. Communication of new policies and procedures should be both proactive and effective, using a combination of methods such as noticeboards, internal memos, in-house magazines and the company intranet. Consider appointing an expert to channel queries and maintain a consistent approach.
Consistency. Avoid inconsistency by the use of standard application forms, pro-formas and model letters, discouraging such practices as informal notes or memos. Work out trigger dates in advance and use them as the basis of a project plan to ensure that everything happens according to plan. Lastly, ensure consistency and equality of treatment between male and female employees.
Family Friendly = Employer Friendly? A matter of opinion. Many countries in the European Community are now racing to catch up on discrimination laws that the UK have been accustomed to since the mid 70’s. In turn, we are now racing to catch up on family leave issues that have been a matter of course for many years with our European neighbours. Choice is not an option – but a forward thinking, proactive approach is. There’s no doubt that the next few months or years, will be challenging. The gauntlet has been thrown down. I believe that we will rise to the opportunity.
This article is presented by BrainyBusiness.com. For more information visit www.brainybusiness.com, or e-mail mail@brainybusiness.com.
Founder and Managing Director of Derian Keyms Consulting Ltd Human Resources Consultancy.
Adopt Your Next Dog From a Rescue or The Pound
John Schwartz
When I was a kid, dog adoption meant buying a puppy from a store in the mall. I’d never even heard of such a thing as an animal rescue shelter. It’s something I truly regret every day now that I’m all grown up and dogs are such a central part of my life. I wouldn’t even consider dog adoption from any place other than an animal rescue organization or the local pound now.
My enlightenment about ethical dog adoption is a sad tale. Sparing the details, I met people involved in animal rescue when I picked up a stray running along the highway by my home. The poor thing was just about dead from starvation. When I took her to the local humane society location, I was informed that she would almost certainly be put down within a few days. Incredulous, I asked why. Their response: ‘She’s black and big, and large breed black dogs are a dime a dozen, so they rarely get adopted.’
Needless to say, I took the stray with me. No way was I going to give up on getting a dog adoption success story out of the mess. After doing a little research, I discovered that animal rescue shelters are all over, in every state.
That’s how I learned about a local group that not only worked on dog adoption for strays, but they also operated under a “no kill” philosophy. This type of animal rescue organization, surviving primarily on donations from the public, provides puppies and dogs with a good place to live while they await a loving family to take them home. And if they’re never adopted, then they live out their natural lives in comfort and with human companionship, albeit from volunteers at the shelter.
I learned that dog adoption of strays from these animal rescue facilities saves thousands of lives every year, nationwide. And most of the groups are overwhelmed with the numbers of stray dogs and people wanting to dump them for whatever reason (usually for their own convenience). The ultimate fault lies with so-called puppy mills, which crank out litter after litter to sell in your local pet store. And of course, the fault also lies with people not getting their dogs spayed or neutered. Bob Barker was right all along! If even 50% of owners got their animals fixed, the situation would improve dramatically.
So began my own journey to the good side of dog adoption. I ended up marrying a woman who owns an animal rescue organization that uses the “no kill” philosophy. We share our lives with many dogs, all mixed breeds, and all of whom we love completely.
Oh, and that stray I mentioned earlier who started my dog adoption odyssey? Her name’s Cookie, and when I first found her she was skin and bones. That was before a loving family that lives near a large park adopted her from that animal rescue group. The last time I saw her, she was almost fat from all the food and having the time of her life playing in the park. I cried. Happy tears.
Next time dog adoption is on your agenda, please consider looking at an animal rescue shelter near you. Or go to the local pound. Save a life!
John Schwartz is the owner and webmaster of http://puppies-dogs-supplies.com. He lives in East Texas with his wife, Shannon, who owns a dog rescue 'no kill' shelter.
