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Away from Coronavirus, The Employment Tribunals have today updated the so-called Vento bands for damages payable to a Claimant who has been found to have suffered injury to feelings as a result of unlawful discrimination . The bands, which take their...
Employers are on countdown for new requirements on employment contracts. From April, the statutory requirements around statements of particulars are changing and being extended to include all workers, not just employees. It means that anyone...
COVID-19 CLIENT NOTICE Chattertons are open and we are working hard to provide our usual high standard of service to our clients. We are now able to see clients for essential meetings, by appointment only. Most of our advisors are working...
The Employment Law Team at Chattertons have been busy advising our clients in order to prepare for the impact that the coronavirus pandemic may have on the business and their workforce. We have put together a short guidance booklet to help answer...
Chattertons Solicitors are open for business. However we are following government recommendations and would encourage you not to visit any of our offices except by prior arrangement. We are closely monitoring the developments of COVID-19 and are...
The Employment Rights (Increase of Limits) Order 2020 has been laid before Parliament. From 06 April 2020 , the Order will implement a number of changes to compensation limits, such as: - The limit on a 'week's pay' will be increased from...
IR35 and the off-payroll working reform initially came into force in 2017 for public sector organisations. However, on 6th April 2020 the new IR35 rules will come into force, affecting medium/large private sector organisations. Although often...
1. As an employee, am I entitled to pay if I self-isolate? If the employee chooses to self-isolate but are not instructed to do so by a medical professional: Strictly speaking, no. There is no statutory right to receive pay for time away from work...
Last year the Court of Appeal in the case of Chief Constable of Leicestershire v Hextall held that it is not discriminatory to pay men on shared parental leave less than the enhanced rate of maternity pay paid to women on maternity leave. The Supreme Court...
A Sky engineer who was dismissed following failure to follow health and safety rules is successful in claim of unfair dismissal and disability discrimination . Mr Plowright was employed by Sky-in-Home Services Limited as a Field Engineer from March 2007...
A philosophical belief is a "protected characteristic" under the Equality Act 2010. It is unlawful to discriminate against an individual because of their philosophical belief. There is a five-point criteria to be met in order to...
What is TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings)? The purpose of TUPE is to protect employees in the event that the business they work for transfers over to someone else. It means that the employees' terms, entitlements and rights remain the same with the new...
Workplace mental wellbeing is a top concern among employers, according to European-wide research.* According to the World Health Organisation, in the UK, workplace mental illness is estimated to cost 2% of GDP and the latest statistics from the ...
NEW REGULATIONS REGARDING PARENTAL BEREAVEMENT TO COME INTO FORCE THIS YEAR On 23 January 2020 the Government announced that from 06 April 2020 the rights under the Parental Bereavement Leave Regulations 2020 and the Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay...
In the employment blog on 30 October , we reported on the Equal Pay claim being pursued by Samira Ahmed against the BBC. As reported in the press, the Employment Tribunal has now released its Judgment and has found in favour of Ms Ahmed. Firstly, the...
The government announced the National Living Wage and National Minimum wage increases due to come into effect on 1 April 2020. The increases are as follows: Age of employee Old/Current rate (per hour) New rate from April 2020 (per hour) ...
WHISTLEBLOWING NURSE AWARDED OVER £127,000 IN COMPENSATION FOLLOWING A CLAIM IN THE EMPLOYMENT TRIBUNAL Whistleblowing is a term used for disclosing wrongdoing within your organisation. Workers who make what is known as a 'protected...
The recent case of Jakkhu v Network Rail Infrastructure Limited 2019 shows that a dismissal can be classed as a detriment, even if the claimant has returned to work. The Claimant had a history of sickness absence for both disability and non-disability...
Boris Johnson launched the Conservative Party manifesto over the weekend. The key employment related commitments contained within it are: A general commitment to "Achieve the right regulatory balance between supporting excellent business practice...
NHS Trust Ordered to pay £200,000 in compensation for Age Discrimination Last year the Employment Tribunal in Reading heard the case of Jolly v Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust which related to a claim for unfair dismissal and age...
The Liberal Democrat Party published its 2019 Election Manifesto earlier this week. The noteworthy employment-related commitments include: Amending the Equality Act 2010 to include protection for Gender Identity and Expression; and to prohibit Caste...
The Labour party has published it 2019 Election Manifesto. The employment-related pledges in the document include: A Nation Living Wage of at least £10 for all workers ( including those under 21) The creation of a "Ministry of Employment...
The BBC is facing further Equal Pay problems after the claim last year by the then-China editor Carrie Gracie that she was being paid significantly less than comparable (male) BBC journalists. The presenter Samira Ahmed has issued a claim for Equal Pay in...
In the case of Mackereth v The Department for Work and Pensions and another the Employment Tribunal has held that a Doctor was not discriminated against on the grounds of religious beliefs after he refused to address transgender patients by their...
In the recent case of Pazur v Lexington Catering Services Ltd, the Employment Appeal Tribunal held that Mr Pazur had been subjected to an unlawful detriment when his employer threatened to dismiss him for complying with Regulation 10 of the Working Time...
The Chancellor, Sajid Javid has announced plans to significantly increase the rate of the National Living wages over the next 5 years. The National Living Wage is currently £8.21 for those aged 25 or over, but at the Conservative party conference last...
In the recent case of Raj v Capita Business Services Ltd , the Employment Appeal Tribunal dismissed an employee's claim that he had suffered harassment under s.26 of the Equality Act 2010. Mr Raj claimed that his female manager had massaged his...
At the labour party conference last month, Shadow Equalities Minister Dawn Butler announced plans to introduce new support and protection for Menopausal workers after a CIPD survey found that 60% of menopausal workers reported that their menopause symptoms...
Slow progress at the Employment Tribunals The Employment Tribunal system (in which the large majority of employment-related claims are heard) is still struggling to handle the increased volume of claims that have been issued since the abolition of fees...
I believe…..that I should be protected in Law…. The Equality Act 2010 is the main piece of Anti-discrimination legislation in the UK; protecting employees from less favourable treatment by their employers on a number of "protected...
Holiday Pay and Term Time Workers Almost all workers are legally entitled to 5.6 weeks' paid holiday a year. This includes agency workers; workers with irregular ours and workers on zero-hours contracts. The Court of Appeal in The Harpur Trust v...
RELIGIOUS DISCRIMINATION: Dismissal after comments against same sex adoption was not discrimination on religious grounds The Equality Act 2010 offers protection to individuals from discrimination because of their religion or belief. This law applies to...
When a Claimant is successful in a claim for discrimination, the Employment Tribunal is entitled to award them extra compensation known as injury to feelings. This is to compensate the victim for the hurt feelings they have suffered as a result of the...
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) have held in Federacion de Servicios de Comisiones Obreras (CCOO) v Deutsche Bank SAE that an employer must keep records of an employee’s hours worked to fulfil their obligations under the Working Time...
The new National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage is set to increase from 01 April 2019 onwards. This new rate will apply to the next pay period that begins on or after the date a rate increase begins or an employee reaches a new age bracket. For...
Maternity Rights The Employment Appeal Tribunal have held that sending a female employee an important email to an inaccessible address whilst she is on maternity leave amounts to unfavourable treatment under the Equality Act 2010. In SW Yorkshire...
The principle of ‘open justice’ is to provide transparency and clarity within the course of employment litigation . This principle is used as the focal reason behind online publications of judgements from Employment Tribunal cases....
The experienced solicitors at Chattertons always take a very keen interest in current legal cases. This is especially true when they have the potential to set a significant precedent for future proceedings. A recent case between Asda Stores Ltd and Brierley...
The government have recently published a consultation paper to extend the rights of women who have just returned from maternity leave, giving them priority over other redundant employees when the employer offers suitable alternative employment. ...
Determining your employment status can be crucial as employees will be afforded with certain legal protections that a ‘worker’ or someone who is self-employed will not receive. There are 3 main types of employment status. These are:- ...
The government has today announced that a new Code of Practice is to be introduced aimed at tackling sexual harassment at work. This follows the #MeToo social media campaign and an increasing prevalence of the issue of sexual harassment in the...
These are some of the changes in respect of Employment law that we can expect to see to come into effect within the early part of 2019: Increase in National Minimum Wages Rates Both national living wage and national minimum wage rates will increase...
The Prime Minister recently commissioned the independent Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices to ensure that the UK Labour Market can effectively adapt to the changes in Employment Law whilst ensuring the protection of workers’ rights in the...
Employers have a general duty of care and responsibility for employees’ physical and mental health and to prevent personal injury in the workplace. If an employer is aware of particular health or disability issues relating to an employee, they may have...
Following a three-year legal battle, the former Co-Operative Group HR Director, Sam Walker, has won her claim for equal pay and unfair dismissal. The Employment Tribunal has held that the Co-Op “directly discriminated against Sam Walker on the ground...
As winter sets in, it is timely for employers to consider any ‘winter’ employment issues that can arise. Being prepared for the particular issues that winter brings will ensure employers are ahead of the game and able to manage if...
The Court of Appeal have held that a company is liable for a violent assault by the Managing Director on an employee after the company’s Christmas party. Although the assault happened at a different venue to where the Christmas party occurred, the...
The Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT) recently upheld a Tribunal’s decision that private drivers working for Addison Lee (a private taxi service company) are classified as ‘workers’, rather than self-employed, and are therefore entitled to...
The Court of Appeal has recently upheld a judgment finding that the supermarket chain Morrisons was vicariously liable for a data leak of payroll information by a rogue employee. The case concerned an employee of Morrisons, Mr Skelton, who was an...
New legislation designed to allow time off from work for employees who have lost a child has recently received royal assent. The new Parental Bereavement (Leave and Pay) Act 2018 provides a right to two weeks off work for an employee who has...
