As many as 96% of all UK businesses employ 20 or fewer people - which seldom include a personnel specialist. Yet effective staff management poses a major challenge for the small employer. This comprehensive series, produced in collaboration with the Federation of Small Businesses, provides clear, practical and positive guidance on preventing problems, staying within the law and getting the very best from every employee. Things can go wrong in any organization but common sense and a few basic procedures can prevent - or quickly clear up - most ordinary problems. In this volume John McManus lays down the principles of "hazard avoidance" and explains how to: prepare the essential mimimum paperwork; devise policies on absence, sickness and holiday pay; comply with the law on pregnancy and maternity leave; respond effectively to incompetence or misconduct; discipline - or fairly dismiss - unacceptably poor performers; assemble an appropriate redundancy package.