Bribery Act guidance for employers explained by Peninsula

The Government has now published guidance for employers regarding the Bribery Act, which comes into force on 1st July 2011. The Act and its consequences are explained in this guide by Peter Done, Managing Director of Peninsula Business Services.

With the introduction of the Bribery Act, the criminal offence of bribery will begin to have an effect on employment law. From July 1st, if bribery is committed within a company, the employer will be required by law to prove they had adequate preventative measures in place to prevent it from happening in the first instance. Failure to prevent bribery carried out by someone working on behalf of your organisation will itself be a criminal offence.

Should a bribery charge be brought against someone in your company, it is a full defence for employers to prove they had implemented anti-bribery procedures. The Government recently published some guiding principles to assist employers in this matter.

Of course, all measures should be proportional to the risk of bribery within your company; every business is different and circumstances can change, so employers are advised to carry out a regular risk assessment. There should be commitment to an anti-bribery culture at the very highest levels of the company, and this stance should be communicated throughout the organisation. Finally, diligence, vigilance and constant efforts to improve are vital.

For more guidance on the Bribery Act, or any other employment law or health & safety matter, please contact our specialist advisors free on 0800 328 9348 and they will be happy to help. Of course, Peninsula clients can contact the 24 hour employer legal advice line at any time for advice on the Bribery Act or help with the smallest of queries on 0844 892 2772.

If you are a member of the media and need any further assistance, would like to discuss case studies for a particular feature, or be added to our media contact list, feel free to contact Sammual-James McLoughlin, head of media, press and public relations at Peninsula, on 0161 827 8511 or sammualjamesmcloughlin@gmail.com.

Website: http://www.peninsula-uk.com/

Richard Frost

Peninsula is the leading provider of employment law and health and safety services in the UK. Established since 1983, we have around 25,000 businesses who have already integrated Peninsula to work as part of their HR and Health and Safety departments. Headquartered in Manchester, Peninsula employs 900 people across the UK and Ireland. Our sheer size ensures that we can attract, and retain, the very best people from the HR, Health and Safety and Legal Services industries to come and work for Peninsula. Our financial strength allows us to offer the services and skill of our specialist people to work for our clients at an absolute fraction of the real cost.