Level 5 restrictions: What do employers need to know?

About HR Desk

About Us

Having great HR in the workplace is essential to help your business grow, and when HR issues do arise you need to take action to resolve them quickly and effectively. This is where Cyril Keegan from HR Desk comes in.

Cyril, a HR and Health & Safety Professional with 22 years’ experience provides businesses with the expert support they need to resolve issues and make sure that they’re getting the most out of their people. Owners and managers of SMEs often don’t have the time or resources to spend on issues that distract them from growing their business, the practical straightforward advice they get from HR Desk is therefore something they can really act upon.

Our Services are affordable and come at a fraction of the price of having a dedicated and costly in-house HR Department within your organisation. We are here to support you through whatever HR issues that you face and through our expert advice, in-depth consultations, custom business audits, bespoke in-person training and fully online, CPD approved courses.

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Client Testimonials

Wilton Waste Recycling worked very closely with HR Desk and Cyril Keegan during a twelve month period where they served as Health & Safety Consultants. The company offers high quality service and we can say we have always been satisfied with their assistance in both HR and health & Safety advice. We were highly impressed by the knowledge HR Desk brought to our business which were both practical and implementable.

Marcel Haynes, Wilton Recycling

I can highly recommend Cyril for the service he has provided. His comprehensive work assisted us in getting Health and Safety approval on the largest cleaning job we have ever undertaken. As a HSE project for Cavan General Hospital it was high profile and therefore it attracted a great deal of attention. Cyrils document was so comprehensive it was accepted without amendment by the HSE and we went on to complete the job successfully.

Emmet Fidgeon, ACE Cleaning

Dealing with HR issues on a day to day basis is very time consuming and if not handled correctly could be very expensive. We felt we needed the help and knowledge HR Desk provided. Cyril is an experienced HR professional who brings a sense of integrity and professionalism when dealing with the HR aspects of our business. I would highly recommend his services.

Ruth King, Silo Clean

The feedback from the candidates on the courses that Cyril provided was extremely positive and has resulted in improved company performance in many areas. Cyril has provided this company with an excellent service and our investment in training has certainly paid off. I therefore highly recommend Cyril for HR training for any company who wishes to see an improvement in their companies performance from a HR perspective.

Darragh Eliott, Elliott Building & Civil Engineering

The company has received very positive feedback from the training sessions and a number of individuals have commented on Cyril's delivery style as very personable and effective. Further to this Cyril's knowledge of the area of HR is exceptional and his experience really adds to the training sessions he delivers. We are extremely happy with the training Cyril has delivered and expect to avail of more training in HR related areas in the future.

Stephen Lyons, GEM Group

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Online Training Courses

A wide range of staff training and development courses are available from HR Desk, including but not limited to, the following topics. Working From Home (Lone Working) Managing Conflict, HR Strategy Management, Effective Team Management, Disciplinary and Grievance, Appraisal Training for Appraisers, Dealing With Workplace Bullying, Conflict Resolution, Communicating with Employees, Conducting an Investigation, Harassment, Induction, Interviewing, Misconduct Presentation and many more.

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Level 5 restrictions: What do employers need to know?

The Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS) came into effect at the start of September to replace its predecessor, the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS).

The EWSS has been amended to support businesses and their employees through the recently imposed Level 5 restrictions in Ireland.The Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) and COVID Restrictions Support Scheme (CRSS) have also been amended to reflect recent events.

Changes to support schemes.

The rate of wage subsidy provided to affected employees under the EWSS has been enhanced to €350 per week. This matches the increase also applied to the PUP.

For the COVID Restrictions Support Scheme, eligibility criteria have changed to allow more businesses to make use of the support.

Qualifying turnover criteria to apply for the scheme is now 25% of the turnover for the corresponding period in 2019.

Working from home

Advice is to stay at home and only leave home for specific reasons. Employees may attend a COVID-safe workplace if providing an essential service. See Government guidance for a full list of essential services.

Most schools and childcare services are still accessible, which will be a relief to the working parents on your team. If you’re able to offer flexible hours this can really help for school drop off and pick up times, even when staff are working from home.

Many businesses that can operate remotely will have trialled this by now. However, if you are setting employees up to work from home for the first time, a homeworking risk assessment is advised.

Managing mental health and well-being

If you haven’t already done so, we advise prioritising 121s with employees to see how they are coping with the current situation. This also presents a good opportunity to signpost any well-being support available to them such as an Employee Assistance Programme if you have one.

You could also highlight outstanding holiday allowance if it won’t leave you short. They may not be able to go anywhere, but it could be a welcome reminder if they need a break.

Government guidance clearly states that leaving your home for exercise outdoors is allowed. Make sure employees take their breaks to make the most of the daylight hours. A walk and some fresh air can do wonders for stress management.

Deciding next steps

Recent events may mean that you need to make some essential changes to your business.

This may mean reducing hours, lay-offs, or, as a last resort, redundancies.

Do you require assistance updating your HR policies and procedures in order to encompass Coronavirus implications?

Do you require assistance updating your Safety Statement or Risk Assessments in order to encompass Coronavirus implications.?

Coronavirus news is dominating the headlines, but employment law still applies and certain processes carry risk if not conducted correctly. If you have questions about this or how best to manage your team at this time, please call us.

For more on this or any other Health and Safety or Human Resources issues you require assistance on please do not hesitate to contact the HR Desk.