These simple steps can help ensure you are complaint as well as maximising the opportunity to support your employees’ wellbeing and boost productivity.
The new rules apply to ‘workers’ as well as ‘employees’. If you employ casual or temporary staff, these workers are likely to now be entitled to a Day One Statement as well. Make sure you distinguish clearly between ‘employees’ and ‘workers’. Ensure you give each person the correct statement to avoid any confusion.
As you develop your new statement, it’s a good idea to make sure your company’s policies are updated so the information is consistent. You might also need to insert information into the statement that you have not written down formally before. You may also need to update your recruitment processes or checklists.
As well as including the more routine information, such as start date and place of work, the new Day One Statement can cover a range of areas that will make a real difference to your staff’s wellbeing and health at work – like sick leave and pay, holiday entitlement, flexible working policies, or enhanced parental leave, as well as any other benefits you offer. Remember, the information in a Day One Statement lets workers know where they stand – but it’s also a great way to show new and existing employees the range of benefits or support you offer as an employer.
Although the legal requirements relate to employees starting work, you can update statements when your offerings change – you may need to do this in any case. You may want to provide this information, including about employee benefits, on an annual basis. Doing this could help employees improve their own financial resilience – and boost their engagement and productivity.
Letting the new law work for you and your employees Presenting new employees with an easy-to-understand document that lets them know the key details of their employment can benefit you – and them – from day one. See it as a powerful and effective way to build a great working relationship and employee trust from the beginning.
If you have an existing statement of written particulars that works well for you, then it may make the most sense to update this with the additional information you now need to include. If you haven’t prepared a statement like this before, then you might like to use a template to make sure you have all the headings you need, and don’t miss anything out.
You can download this template to help you quickly build a Day One Statement that complies with the law and also showcases your employee wellbeing support. Acas also has some minimal templates available on its website suitable for both employees and workers.
Even if you use a template, there is plenty of scope for you to tailor the information to highlight the benefits you offer employees. As every employer is different, there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution and the new legislation does not limit the format that your statement should take. The majority of the required information must be provided in a single, clear document, but beyond you can be creative and truly engage employees from day one.
