HR for shops and retail

For independent shops with 1 to 49 staff. On top of the HR every employer needs, shops have rules of their own on Sunday work, till shortages and young workers, and a duty to protect staff from harassment by customers. We build each one into your contracts and policies.

Extra rules we handle: Sunday work, till shortages, young workers, harassment by customers
Health and safety add-on: From summer 2027
Who it’s for: 1 to 49 staff in England, Scotland and Wales

The extra rules in your industry

Each one switches on from what you tell us when you join, and goes into the same contracts, policies and records as the rest of your HR.

The rule
Shop workers can opt out of Sunday work

What it means for you
Shop staff can opt out of working Sundays at any time, even if their contract includes it, unless Sunday is the only day they’re employed to work. They give 3 months’ notice. You must tell them about the right in writing within 2 months of their start; if you don’t, their notice falls to 1 month.

What we do
Each new shop worker gets the written Sunday working notice in their starter documents: the version for England and Wales, or for Scotland, where the same rights come from the Sunday Working (Scotland) Act 2003.
The rule
Till shortages: only if the contract says so, and at most 10%

What it means for you
You can only take a till shortage from someone’s pay if their contract says they’re liable for it, and each deduction can be no more than 10% of their gross pay on that pay day.

What we do
We put the clause in the contract. When a shortage happens, we write the deduction agreement, with a repayment plan that keeps each deduction within the 10% limit.
The rule
Young workers have tighter limits

What it means for you
Staff under 18 can work no more than 8 hours a day or 40 a week, need a 30-minute break once the day is longer than 4.5 hours, and can’t work between 10pm and 6am, or 11pm and 7am if their contract allows work after 10pm. Retail can use them until midnight or from 4am when needed, but only if no adult is available and it won’t harm their education or training. No one under 18 can work between midnight and 4am, and children below school leaving age normally need a permit from the council.

What we do
We check their limits against the hours you enter, never offer them the 48-hour opt-out, and draft their risk assessment for your HR expert to sign off.
The rule
Harassment by customers

What it means for you
From 30 October 2026, you’re liable when customers harass your staff over age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation, unless you took all reasonable steps to prevent it.

What we do
We write a notice for your shop or website telling customers how staff must be treated, and a risk assessment that covers lone working and late shifts. Staff do the training, and can report harassment in the app, anonymously if they need to.

What we ask when you join

A short form about your business and your staff picks your contracts, policies and the shop sections. Founding members fill it in during December, and you can type your staff in or upload a spreadsheet.

Your shops, and the nation each one is in, for bank holidays and the right Sunday working notice.
Each person’s role, hours and type of contract.
Your shift patterns, including nights and weekends.
How pay works: hourly, salary, commission or overtime.
A date of birth for everyone, so the limits for under-18s apply.

The contracts we write

Part-time: pay, holiday and benefits pro rata.
Fixed-term: an end date and the reason for it, with the same pay and conditions as permanent staff unless the difference is justified. Ending one counts as a dismissal in law, so your HR expert checks it first.
Zero-hours or casual: the same holiday and minimum wage rights as everyone else, holiday built up at 12.07% of hours worked, and no clause stopping them working elsewhere.
Apprentices: an apprenticeship agreement, with pay at least the apprentice rate.

The rest of your HR

Everything else works the way it does for any other business.

Questions

Can I make Sunday work part of the job?

You can include it in the contract, but shop staff can still opt out, unless Sunday is the only day they’re employed to work. While their notice runs, they keep working Sundays if you ask them to.

Can I take a till shortage from someone’s final pay?

Yes, if their contract says they’re liable for shortages. The 10% limit applies to each pay day while they work for you; from their final pay, you can take the full amount owed.

What counts as all reasonable steps against harassment?

In practice: a policy, a risk assessment, training refreshed regularly, a way for staff to report it, and telling customers how staff must be treated. All five are in the plan. How harassment prevention works

Your HR team, from January 2027.

Start with the free checklist. Reserve your founding price, and we set you up in January. It’s refundable until launch.

Reserve your founding price Book a 15-minute call

Not ready yet? Get the free 1 January 2027 checklist.