When a firm makes more than 20 or 100 people redundant such as through closing down a factory site, very special rules apply as to an employer’s obligations to its workforce. Failure on the Employer’s part such as when closures occur out of the blue and almost overnight can lead to employees being able to make a claim even if the company has gone into administration or liquidation and the company no longer exists. Most typically the claim is for what is known as a Protective Award.
Christmas is almost upon us…as are the much awaited office Christmas parties. Whilst no one wants to be the office scrooge and detract away from the positivity of such an event, employers should be aware of their potential liabilities.
The government has been urged to investigate the practice by many employers of forcing employees to repay training costs when they leave employment. In some cases such costs have run into several thousand pounds.
A typical scenario may be where an employee accused of misconduct claims that they were not ‘thinking straight’ or indeed that their behaviour was ‘out of character’, caused by stress or issues with mental health.
The decision of whether or not to suspend an employee suspected of misconduct can be a difficult one for many employers. If an employer suspects an employee of serious misconduct, suspension may be an appropriate step to take but only in circumstances where the employee’s presence at work would either (a) jeopardise the fairness of the ensuing investigation or (b) where their presence could pose a potential threat to the business or other employees.
Anxiety, depression and stress are now the leading cause of sickness absence in the UK and an estimated 70 million working days are lost every year because of mental health. This makes mental wellbeing a central concern for all workers and their employers.
Maternity Action have released a report on how women are being unfairly dismissed while on maternity leave, returning from work and even during pregnancy.
Linder Myers is proud to feature in the Legal 500 legal directory. Each year the Legal 500 directory undertake an independent, full and comprehensive analysis of law firms across the United Kingdom in order to assess the best law firms across the country and by region.
What happens if, during an employee’s absence on maternity leave, an employer discovers that an employee had not been doing the work they should have been doing or, alternatively, finds that their maternity cover replacement is much better at the job?
It is a practice of many employers to suspend employees who they suspect have committed an act of gross or serious misconduct.
However, many employers are unaware that by suspending an employee they may be exposing themselves to claims for constructive unfair dismissal.
Holiday pay legislation is a hot topic for many and as businesses and workers start planning leave for the summer holidays, it is essential to know the basics of holiday rights in employment.
Here are 10 key facts which you should know.
A hot topic within the employment sector is the question of whether ‘sleeping time’ should be classed as ‘working time’ for the purpose of National Minimum Wage Regulations (NMWR).
The aim of this deliberation is to determine whether employees should be paid for hours spent sleeping whilst technically being ‘at work’. Many would declare that their dream job would be getting paid to sleep, but is there a valid argument to support this?
A nine month review into the world of work has been announced, which will hope to set out new employment rights for workers in the gig economy.
Tony Blair’s former policy chief, Matthew Taylor, has called on the Government to close a legal loophole which allows agencies such as Uber and Deliveroo to pay gig economy workers less than direct employees doing the same jobs.
Under the Equality Act 2010, it is common practice for an employer to be held vicariously liable for discriminatory acts that their employees commit during ‘the course of employment’. Imposing strict liability on employers encourages them to maintain standards of “good practice” by their employees.
Under the Equality Act 2010, it is common practice for an employer to be held vicariously liable for discriminatory acts that their employees commit during ‘the course of employment’. Imposing strict liability on employers encourages them to maintain standards of “good practice” by their employees.
When starting a new job, many employees will often overlook the crucial part of reviewing the finer details of their employment contract.
Contracts of employment are important documents as they set out the key terms of your employment with your new company. It is therefore vital to check these terms carefully before you agree to them. In particular, you need to query the following before you sign on the dotted line.
It is always recommended that notifying your employer be done in writing at least 15 weeks before your baby is due. If this is not possible, for example because you did not realise you were pregnant, you should inform your employer as soon as possible.
All employees have a right to 26 weeks of Ordinary Maternity Leave and 26 weeks of Additional Maternity Leave, making 52 weeks in total.
The shifting business environment of the ‘gig’ economy provides a difficult arena to achieve a degree of legal clarity as to the employment status of those within it.
Many employers use freelance and self-employed sub-contractors believing that such workers do not have the same employment rights as ordinary employees. However a flurry of recent cases has illustrated the significant risks that employers run in engaging workers on a self-employed or freelance basis.
The shifting business environment of the ‘gig’ economy provides a difficult arena to achieve a degree of legal clarity as to the employment status of those within it.
Many employers use freelance and self-employed sub-contractors believing that such workers do not have the same employment rights as ordinary employees. However a flurry of recent cases has illustrated the significant risks that employers run in engaging workers on a self-employed or freelance basis.
A Protective Award is an award of compensation of up to 90 days’ gross pay, that can be awarded by an Employment Tribunal, for failure by your employer to collectively inform and consult you where you have been dismissed on the grounds of redundancy. This applies to dismissals of 20 or more employees, within a 90 day period.
If such dismissals should occur, your trade union or employee representatives (if any) can put forward a claim to the tribunal on your behalf. If there is no trade union or elected employee representatives, then you can pursue the claim yourself or in conjunction with your fellow workers.
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