Queries surrounding business law are dwarfing all other workplace issues, according to a study by a leading trade organisation.
Recruiter.co.uk reports that The Forum of Private Business's (FPB) legal helpline has experienced a huge influx in callers claiming that murky employment laws are leaving bosses confused about their responsibilities.
In a five-week period between September and October, 65 per cent of calls made to the helpline concerned employment law, whereas general business queries accounted for just 14 per cent and questions regarding business contracts, just 10 per cent.
The FPB's chief executive, Phil Orford, conceded that changes to employment law, such as those surrounding the legal rights of contract employees, can leave many business owners feeling completely lost, especially those who are struggling running a family business.
"As with much of the legislation affecting small businesses, employment law can be a huge minefield and one of the main problems is that it is constantly changing, with new regulations coming in all the time," he says.
"For example, some of the biggest recent changes came with the Agency Workers Regulations Act, which came into force in October along with a raft of other legal developments."
The Act Orford refers to gives temporary workers the same rights as permanent staff and is one significant law that may have not been made aware to all businesses.
To address the legal pitfalls that small businesses may face, Fresh Business Thinking reports that the FPB is publishing an Employment Guide that covers every aspect of employment law.
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