The Equality Act 2010 and the legislation before it is an attempt to prevent people being subjected to detrimental treatment in the workplace (and elsewhere) on account of a characteristic which they have or which is special to them. Currently the...
Employment Law
We are often asked if such testing is lawful. Like most things if the action is not proscribed by law and the individual consents then the proposed action is lawful. So providing the employer goes about testing in the right way all will be fine. The...
The short answer is maybe! It has long been the staple line in every letter suspending an employee that the suspension is a 'neutral act', it is not a disciplinary act, nor does it imply any evidence of guilt. Where an employee is suspected of...
Recently Non Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) have suffered an extremely bad press. This is particularly the case in the context of the hashtag 'Me Too' movement and the alleged (we use that word advisably) sexual impropriety and attempted cover...
"The Biggest Reform of Employment Law in 20 years"…….. and what to look out for in 2019. The "Good Work Plan", which has recently been published by the Government, has been hailed by some commentators to bring about...
As part of World Obesity Day a campaign has been launched to end the stigma of obesity. Whilst obesity in itself is not specified as a protected characteristic within The Equality Act 2010, the effects or causes of obesity may well result in an...
Most employers are aware of their legal obligations under the Equality Act, and would not blatantly discriminate against an employee who has a disability. When the disability is a physical one, it is usually more obvious to the employer, but mental...
The General Data Protection Regulation came into force on the 25th May 2018 amongst much fanfare and the UK's new Data Protection Act 2018 arrived on the same date with a little squeak. The purpose of the GDPR from Brussels was to update and...
National Living Wage Increase - Great news for employees, but what about employers? Chancellor Philip Hammond recently delivered the Autumn 2018 budget. Within his budget he included measures to follow the recommendations made by the Low Pay...
If you are a hopeless romantic, the prospect of 2 work colleagues getting together, falling in love and living happily ever after is a fairy tale come true. As we spend much of our adult life in work, romantic relationships between colleagues is...
"Tis the season to be jolly" - but can you be liable as an employer for the actions of one of your employees?
The sobering answer to this question is potentially yes. This very issue has recently been tested by the Court of Appeal in the case of Bellman v Northampton Recruitment Limited.
The EU referendum vote on the 23 rd June 2016 was undoubtedly a historic landmark in British political history. Whether you were in the ‘remain’ camp or the ‘Brexit’ camp, the country has made its decision. The...
Last week the European Court of Justice made a ruling that those employing workers who had to travel to get to or from their first or last appointment of the day were required to count time spent travelling as ‘working time’ and as part of their...
The idea behind the National Living Wage is to provide over 25 year olds with a wage that is high enough for workers to have a ‘normal standard of living’. That means being able to afford everyday things like food, transport and paying bills. ...
On the 26 th August 2015, the Court of Appeal dismissed the challenge brought by Unison against the introduction of fees in the Employment Tribunals and the Employment Appeal Tribunal; R (Unison) v Lord Chancellor and another [2015]. Unison argued that the...
First proposed on the 15 th January 2014, today (26 th May 2015) the Government has now increased the maximum financial penalty for underpayment of the national minimum wage from £5,000 to £20,000 per worker. The Government, via HMRC and BIS,...
The much amended and supplemented Employment Rights Act 1996, the cornerstone for UK employment legislation, has grown a bit more with the introduction of Sections 27A and 27B on 26th May 2015 which bring into effect the result of the consultation on...
With the general election on the horizon, we thought it may be interesting to read about what the parties say about the Employment Tribunal system. Employment Tribunal fees were introduced in July 2013. The fees mean that employees who want to pursue a...
Employers looking to retain staff often operate management incentives; the most commonly offered incentives are bonus schemes. The majority of employers operate discretionary schemes dependent on a range of factors; individual or company financial...
Zero hours contracts have been at the source of much debate recently. They could be described as the Marmite of the employment world! Loved for their flexibility, hated for their irregularity. The debate continues, fuelled by the recent news that Sports...
Until the 6 th April last year, under the Statutory Sick Pay Percentage Threshold Scheme, employers were able to claim a refund from HMRC where the Statutory Sick Pay paid in that month exceeded 13% of their monthly national insurance...
Under the Childcare Act 2006 and the Childcare Disqualification Regulations 2009 there is now an additional onus on schools to ask staff who work with children up to the age of 8 to disclose information with regard to a person who lives or works in the same...