Man Utd is cutting staff perks. Should, and can, you?

If any of the perks are contractual entitlements, then you will only be able to withdraw them with explicit employee consent. Otherwise, without consent, you will be in breach of contract. Check the terms of employment contracts and staff handbooks carefully. If any perks are contractual, seek employee consent through a process of consultation and negotiation. Employees are likely to be more understanding and give their consent if they see your proposal as necessary for business survival or job security. A compromise here might be to reduce perk frequency, or to replace them with lower-cost alternatives, rather than removing them altogether.

If the perks are not a contractual right but rather you provide them entirely on a discretionary basis, which is likely to be the case at least with free tea and coffee, you should be able to withdraw them without consent. However, as staff may have come to rely on these perks, to avoid breaching the implied term of trust and confidence and to preserve good employee relations, it’s advisable to still consult with staff about your proposals, being honest about the business reasons why you need to cut costs, how you are hoping to achieve this and when your proposal will be implemented, giving adequate notice of the change.

Also be aware that, depending on the circumstances, a discretionary benefit can harden into a contractual entitlement, through custom and practice, if it has been provided consistently over time. So, even if a perk is discretionary, it may now, in fact, have become part of the employee’s terms and conditions of employment.