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Employment e-news

Overtime and holiday pay

Napthens - July 23rd 2018

Last month ACAS issued new guidance on overtime. The guidance focuses on the three types of overtime, these being: voluntary, compulsory guaranteed and compulsory non-guaranteed.

Does misconduct need to be ‘gross’ to make a dismissal fair?

Napthens - June 22nd 2018

Where an employee is dismissed with notice for ‘serious’ misconduct is this fair or does the misconduct have to be ‘gross’ to justify dismissal?

Discrimination arising from a disability

Napthens - June 22nd 2018

Can dismissal amount to discrimination if the employer did not know that a disability was connected to their misconduct?

Mental health in the workplace

Napthens - May 23rd 2018

Research suggests that two thirds of us experience a mental health issue within our lifetime, yet mental health is often overlooked within the workplace. Mental Health Awareness Week has taken place this month aimed at raising awareness, especially within the workplace, in order to highlight the impact it has on staff of all ages and in any sector.

When does notice of termination take effect?

Napthens - May 23rd 2018

The recent case of Newcastle Upon Tyne NHS Foundation Trust v Haywood has confirmed when notice of termination is deemed to take effect when an employer serves notice on an employee, should the contract of employment be silent on the matter. The Supreme Court determined that it must choose between three possibilities.

Is time spent travelling between home and a temporary workplace working time?

Napthens - April 25th 2018

In a case surrounding working time, the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) Court has recently considered whether the time spent by a police inspector, based at a particular police station, who was travelling to and from temporary workplaces for specific assignments was classed as working time.

Is a pre-cancerous condition deemed to be a disability?

Napthens - March 21st 2018

Under the Equality Act 2010 (EqA), a condition which affects a person’s ability to carry out day-to-day tasks for a significant period of time is deemed to be a disability. A significant period of time is typically at least 12 months. Whilst cancer will always be deemed a disability, what if the condition is described as being “pre-cancerous?”

National minimum wage

Napthens - March 21st 2018

Where a worker is paid National Minimum Wage (NMW), certain deductions to their salary are allowable by law and do not reduce their wages below NMW. However, calculating such deductions and differentiating between those allowed and not allowed, can sometimes be complex and some big names, such as Wagamama and TGI’s, have recently fallen foul of these rules.

Sexual harassment by third parties in the workplace

Napthens - February 19th 2018

Following the recent waves of sexual harassment allegations in both Hollywood and Westminster, awareness has been raised surrounding allegations of sexual harassment within the workplace. Last month the Fawcett Society issued a review with a focus on sex discrimination, notably looking at sexual harassment from third parties within the workplace.

Perceived disability claim upheld

Napthens - January 31st 2018

Disability is a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010 and as such an employee, or potential employee, should not be discriminated against due to their disability. It is generally understood that a claim for disability discrimination can be brought where an employee does not have a disability, but the alleged discriminator perceives them to have a disability. The EAT shone light on such a scenario in the recent case of Chief Constabulary of Norfolk v Coffey.

‘Workers’ must be able to carry over paid annual leave

Napthens - December 19th 2017

Back in June we reported how the European Court of Justice (ECJ) called upon the Advocate General to advise them on the case of The Sash Window Workshop and another v King. Mr King worked as a self-employed, commission-only, salesman for Sash for 13 years and did not receive holiday or sick pay. Upon termination of his contract he bought a claim for unpaid holiday leave, arguing that he failed to take his full entitlement on the basis that it was unpaid and would consequently be out of pocket.

Morrisons liable for employee’s data breach

Napthens - December 19th 2017

In a worrying case for employers the High Court has recently found in Various Claimants v WM Morrison Supermarkets (WMMS), that WMMS are vicariously liable for the criminal actions of a rogue employee, who disclosed personal information of around 100,000 colleagues, in breach of the Data Protection Act (DPA). It was found that although the breach was outside of his working hours and was from his personal computer, there was still a sufficient connection between his employment and the wrongful conduct, to hold WMMS liable.

Mental health at work

Napthens - December 5th 2017

Last month the independent Stephenson-Farmer review on how employers can better support the mental health of employees was published. In total 40 recommendations were made, focusing on mental health problems and poor well-being.

Metropolitan Police v Denby

Napthens - December 5th 2017

Where another person influences a decision-maker in a discriminatory way, does this result in them being a joint decision-maker? According to the EAT in Metropolitan Police v Denby the answer is yes. The Claimant, Mr Denby, was a male police officer in charge of the Territorial Support Group. A new Deputy Assistant Commissioner (DAC), Maxine De Brunner, was brought in to drive discrimination out of the police service.

Union launches legal action over redundancies

Napthens - October 30th 2017

In the wake of the collapse of Monarch Airlines, the Union, Unite are launching legal action on behalf of over 1,800 members of staff who were consequently laid off. In August this year the administrators, KPMG, were called in to look at...

Top 10 updates for 2017

Napthens - July 27th 2017

2017 has been an active year for employment law and we have outlined some of the current and anticipated changes for 2017: National Living Wage: Following the Queen’s Speech on 21 June 2017, it was established that the National Living...