Last December we reported on the Advocate General to the European Court of Justice`s opinion in the referred case of ZJR Lock v British Gas that, in order to comply with the Working Time Directive, holiday pay should include commission payments that would otherwise have been earned had the individual not been on holiday. As anticipated, the ECJ, in issuing its full judgment, has confirmed this a...
UNISON has been granted permission to appeal the High Court`s rejection of its application for judicial review challenging the introduction of employment tribunal fees. The challenge had originally been brought on various grounds including excessively limiting the exercise of rights conferred by EU law and the level of the fees being discriminatory. As we noted in February, the High Court dismi...
The number of people unemployed in the UK has fallen to a five year low according to recent statistics released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The number in both full and part time work increased and there was also a large rise in the numbers of self employed. The statistics show increasing signs of confidence and recovery in the economy, however as 868,000 young people (aged betwe...
The Premier League chief executive, Richard Scudamore is not to face action from the Premier League or the FA, for sexist comments contained in private emails, leaked to the media by a temporary PA. He has since apologised and described the email content as an "error of judgement". The premier league clubs said the emails contained inappropriate remarks but declined to take disciplinary action...
A survey 1,800 small firms conducted by the Federation of Small Businesses and BBC1`s Fake Britain reveals that 17% had discovered job candidates with fraudulent references. The survey found that fraudulent references are most common for entry level positions and mid-level positions, although 12 per cent were for management positions and two per cent were for director level positions. It is o...
ACAS say that around 1000 people have contacted ACAS about Early Conciliation every week since its launch on 6 April and that 100 employers have also got in contacts to try ACAS Early Conciliation. ACAS Chairperson, Sir Brendan Barber, said, "Early Conciliation has got off to a very good start and has given us the chance to help more people resolve their disputes early as well as save taxpayers...
You have probably heard already that from 6 May 2014, conciliation via ACAS becomes mandatory for claimants wishing to bring employment tribunal claims. If so, you may have heard of the new rules being referred to as "mandatory conciliation" or "early mandatory conciliation". As an employer, you may be wondering how a conciliation process can be mandatory. Mandatory for whom you may ask and also, what happens if you do not like what is being proposed in the conciliation process?...
Zero hours contracts have always been a hot topic and not necessarily for the right reasons. Whilst they offer a flexible approach for employers as there is no obligation to provide work; individuals who are engaged under these contracts have little protection and fewer employment rights than employees. Those who oppose these contracts believe that they provide little stability and security to...
Thank you to everyone who completed the last Buddy Quiz, posted throughout April. We have posted the answers to the questions below so you can check how you did. 1. It is becoming increasingly easier for employees to secretly record disciplinary, appeal and grievance meetings, but, when are these recordings allowed as evidence before an employment tribunal? Secret recordings are never allowed...
The University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD) recently announced that it had conceded claims for sex discrimination and equal pay for a group of its male caretakers and maintenance staff. UWTSD merged with Swansea Metropolitan University in August 2013 to become the men`s employer and in so doing also became liable for the consequences of contractual changes implemented by Swansea in 2007...
In the case of Ashworth & Ors v The Royal National Theatre, the High Court dismissed an application which would force the Theatre to re-engage musicians who were replaced with pre-recorded music for the production War Horse. The court concluded that to do so would interfere with the Theatre`s "artistic freedom". Originally the Theatre used live music during its productions of War Horse. Howe...
If an employee "blows the whistle", any subsequent disciplinary action taken can result in a detriment claim or an automatically unfair dismissal claim (if the employee is dismissed). There is no upper limit on the amount of compensation that can be awarded in these cases. This can present difficulties for employers when managing an employee who raises multiple grievances and/or raises a grieva...
The EAT in Allen v Morrisons Facilities Services Ltd has confirmed that the obligations to inform and consult employee representatives under Reg 13(2) of Tupe are vertical obligations between an employer (whether Transferee or Transferor) and its own employees. As such, any claims for failure to provide the required information must also be brought vertically by employees against their respective...
Zero hours contracts allow employers to hire staff with no guarantee of work. Under such contracts, workers only work as and when they are needed by employers, often at short notice, and are only paid for the hours that they work. On 19 December 2013, BIS launched its consultation on zero hours contracts, which sought evidence on the use of such contracts and views on possible options. The co...
The case of IBM UK Holdings Ltd v Dalgleish shows that when it comes to making fundamental changes to employees` benefits and terms and conditions, the employer`s ethical standards and principles in dealing with its workforce can be relevant when considering whether the changes were lawfully made. IBM altered its pension arrangements to address a large deficit in the scheme. The changes...
In the recent case of Crime Reduction Initiatives (CRI) v Lawrence, the EAT held that a procedural error did not undermine an employer`s justification defence to a disability discrimination claim. However, it did make the dismissal unfair. Mrs Lawrence worked for CRI and, whilst on long-term sick leave, was assessed by Occupational Health as suffering from post-natal depression. This was consid...
In a landmark case brought by the RMT union against the UK in the European Court of Human Rights, the Court has ruled that the UK`s laws banning secondary industrial action do not violate the right to freedom of association under the European Convention on Human Rights. RMT v UK. The judgment is not final as the decision could be referred to the Court`s Grand Chamber....
The national minimum wage (NMW) is a set minimum hourly rate of pay to which most workers are entitled. All employers are obliged to pay NMW, irrespective of their size. Despite being in place since 1999, it is hard to believe that some employers still do not pay NMW. Interestingly, HMRC has revealed the 10 worst excuses given by employers, which include: "I don`t think my workers know an...
In a landmark case brought by the RMT union against the UK in the European Court of Human Rights, the Court has ruled that the UK`s laws banning secondary industrial action do not violate the right to freedom of association under the European Convention on Human Rights. RMT v UK. The judgment is not final as the decision could be referred to the Court`s Grand Chamber. The case arose after the R...
In our recent employmentbuddy survey, we asked employers how they calculate holiday pay. First, we asked whether when paying their staff, they pay additional sums to basic pay, in particular overtime, commission and other payments and enhancements such as shift allowance. Then we asked whether those sums are included in the calculation of holiday pay. It has long been understood that where emplo...