Employer duties that start as your headcount grows

Key rules

• Time recording: Every employer, even with one employee, must record working hours daily and keep the records for four years.
• 50 workers: At 50 or more workers you must have an equality plan, an internal whistleblowing channel and at least 2% of staff with a disability, or approved alternative measures.
• Counting: Each rule counts part-time and temporary staff in its own way, so count separately for each threshold.
• Whistleblowing deadlines: Acknowledge each report within seven days and resolve it within three months.

Some duties start on day one, others as you grow

Time recording applies to every employer, from the first employee. Equality plans, the whistleblowing channel and the disability quota switch on at 50 workers. Plan for them before you get there, not after.

Duties from your first employee

You must keep a daily record of each employee's working hours, showing the start and end time of each person's day. Keep it for four years. Workers, their representatives and the Labour Inspectorate can ask to see it.

You choose the format within limits. A collective or company agreement can set it. If there is none, you set it yourself after consulting the workers' representatives. Paper or digital both work. A rule requiring a digital system the Inspectorate can access has been proposed, so check with the Ministry of Labour whether it is now in force.

Even below 50 workers, you must respect equal treatment and equal pay for work of equal value. You must also keep a pay register broken down by sex and have a protocol against sexual and gender-based harassment. You may adopt an equality plan voluntarily.

Duties at 50 workers

At 50 or more workers, four things apply:

• Equality plan. You negotiate it with the workers' representatives, base it on a diagnosis, and register it in the REGCON register. It lasts at most four years.
• Whistleblowing channel. You need an internal reporting system with a responsible person, a policy and a procedure. It must keep reports confidential and allow anonymous ones. Acknowledge each report within seven days and resolve it within three months. Some sectors, such as financial services, money-laundering prevention and transport safety, must have the channel whatever their size.
• Disability quota. At least 2% of staff must be workers with a disability of 33% or more.
• Health and safety committee. You also need one at 50 workers, and a works council applies from 50.

If you cannot meet the quota, you can apply alternative measures. These include a framework agreement with a special employment centre or a self-employed disabled person, donations or sponsorship to disability foundations, or setting up an enclave. You first need a certificate of exception from the public employment service. It must be justified by the impossibility of hiring or a lack of suitable candidates. The documents below cover this.

Duties at smaller headcounts

• From 6 workers, workers' representatives may be elected, with delegates of personnel possible from 10 workers.
• Up to 10 workers (25 with a single centre), you may take on prevention duties yourself.
• At 30 or more workers in some cases, a safety delegate acts as the personal representative.
• At 100 workers, some further collective rules apply.
• At 250 workers, large-company prevention rules apply for certain activities.
• At 500 workers, an own prevention service is mandatory.

How to count your workers

Each rule counts differently, so count separately for each threshold. Thresholds are counted per company, not per group.

• Disability quota: count all staff whatever the contract. Fixed-term contracts over a year count fully. Shorter ones count as one worker per 200 days worked.
• Equality plan: use average staff, including part-time, temporary and leased workers, over the last six months.
• Workers' representatives: fixed-term contracts up to a year count as one worker per 200 days worked in the prior year. Longer ones count fully. Part-time workers count as one each.
• Whistleblowing: count all workers, including part-time and temporary.

Pay-transparency rules from the EU also affect employers, so keep an eye on them as you grow. The timeline, documents, checklist and questions below cover the rest.

Timeline and deadlines

• Count your headcount for each threshold using that rule's own method: before you reach 50 workers

• Set up the internal whistleblowing channel once you reach 50 workers, with a responsible person, a policy and a procedure: as soon as you reach 50 workers

• Acknowledge each whistleblowing report: within seven days of receiving it

• Resolve each whistleblowing report: within three months

Documents you need

• Certificate of exception from the public employment service, needed before you apply alternative measures to the 2% disability quota. It must be justified by the impossibility of hiring or the lack of suitable candidates.

• Framework agreement with a special employment centre or a self-employed disabled person for supplies or services, if you choose this alternative measure instead of hiring.

Checklist

• Keep a daily record of each employee's working hours, with start and end times, from your first employee.

• Keep time records for four years and make them available to workers, their representatives and the Labour Inspectorate.

• Agree the record format through a collective or company agreement, or set it yourself after consulting the workers' representatives.

• Count your workers for each threshold, including part-time and temporary staff, using each rule's own counting method.

• Plan ahead for 50 or more workers: an equality plan, an internal whistleblowing channel and at least 2% of staff with a disability, or approved alternative measures.

• Check whether you need workers' representatives or a safety delegate at your current headcount.

Frequently asked questions

Do part-time and temporary workers count towards the 50-worker threshold?

Yes, part-time and temporary workers count towards the equality plan threshold, and each part-timer counts as one worker. For the equality plan, temporary workers count whatever their contract length, and the reference is the headcount of the last six months. For the disability quota, fixed-term contracts of over a year count fully, and shorter ones count as one worker per 200 days worked.

Does a company with fewer than 50 workers have any equality duties?

Yes, every employer must respect equal treatment and equal pay for work of equal value, whatever its size. You also need a pay register broken down by sex and a protocol against sexual and gender-based harassment. A voluntary equality plan is allowed.

What can I do if I cannot hire enough workers with a disability?

If hiring is not feasible, you can apply alternative measures instead of the 2% quota.

How quickly must a whistleblowing report be handled?

You must acknowledge a report within seven days and resolve it within three months. The channel must guarantee confidentiality, allow anonymity if the reporter wants it, and have a responsible person.