On 10 October 2024, the government published the text of its Employment Rights Bill (the Bill). The Bill, which was announced in the King’s Speech over the summer, includes sweeping changes to the employment law landscape in...more
After winning the general election last month, the new UK government has started to focus on the implementation of its manifesto pledges, as discussed in our previous alert. The King’s Speech, which took place on 17 July...more
At a Glance -
The UK government has passed three family-related Acts that employers should be aware of: the Neonatal Care Act; the Protection from Redundancy Act; and the Carer’s Leave Act....more
Clarification on Worker Status -
In Nursing and Midwifery Council v Somerville [2022] EWCA Civ 229, the Court of Appeal (CoA) considered whether an obligation on the part of a worker to perform a minimum amount of work was...more
Tesco Restrained From ‘Firing and Rehiring’ Employees In USDAW and ors v Tesco Stores Ltd [2022] EWHC 201 (QB), the High Court (HC) granted an injunction to restrain U.K. supermarket giant, Tesco, from ‘firing and rehiring’...more
Recent Employment Tribunal (ET) decisions have shed light on the risks that can arise for employers where employees refuse to attend the workplace because of COVID-19 concerns. We consider below how ETs have dealt with claims...more
Many employers will be hoping to return to the workplace in 2021 and the newly approved vaccines are likely to play a major role in this push. In the U.K., the National Health Service (NHS) has begun its rollout of the...more
In the case of Duchy Farm Kennels v. Steels, the High Court considered whether a term of confidentiality in a COT3 settlement agreement was a condition of the agreement, in which case a former employee’s breach of that term...more
The coronavirus pandemic has led to unprecedented changes and challenges for employers. In response, the U.K. Government has announced various measures to assist U.K. employers, who must now navigate a new array of U.K....more
Statutory Changes to U.K. Employment Law -
National Minimum Wage 2020 -
The minimum hourly wages will increase from 6 April 2020:
•The National Living Wage for those aged 25 and above will increase from £8.21 to...more
Holiday Pay for Part-Year Workers -
In Harpur Trust v Brazel [2019] EWCA Civ 1402, the Court of Appeal considered how the holiday pay of a part-year worker should be calculated.
Ms Brazel was employed as a visiting...more
Was an Employer Liable for an Employee’s Discriminatory Acts on Social Media?
In Forbes v LHR Airport Ltd UKEAT/0174/18/DA, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) considered whether an employee’s discriminatory acts on...more
If Accrued Holidays Are Not Used, Will They Be Lost?
In the cases of Kreuziger v Berlin (C-619/16) EU:C:2018:872 and Max-Planck-Gesellschaft zur Forderung der Wissenschaften eV v Shimizu (C-684/16) EU:C:2018:874, the...more
The U.K. government has published its Good Work Plan. The report’s proposals seek to implement most of the recommendations in the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices, which we reported in 2017 and 2018. The government...more
Was an Employer Liable for an Assault Committed by one of its Employees on Another?
In Bellman v Northampton Recruitment Limited [2018] EWCA Civ 2214, the Court of Appeal considered whether an employer was liable for an...more
Collective Redundancies: What Is an “Undertaking Controlling the Employer?”
In Bichat v Aviation Passage Service Berlin GmbH & Co KG [2018] C-6117, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) considered the meaning of an...more
Did a Temporary Break in Activities Prevent the Transfer of an Undertaking?
In Colino Sigüenza v Ayuntamiento de Valladolid (C-472/16), the European Court of Justice (ECJ) considered whether a five-month break in...more
A Year on: The Continued Rise of Employment Tribunal Claims -
The U.K.’s Ministry of Justice has published its quarterly Employment Tribunal statistics for April to June 2018. These quarterly statistics are of particular...more
When Is Notice of Termination Effective?
In Newcastle Upon Tyne NHS Foundation Trust v Haywood [2018] UKSC 22, the U.K. Supreme Court upheld last year’s Court of Appeal decision, reported by us here, that where an...more
All Things Brexit -
Earlier this month, as the latest formal development concerning Brexit, the U.K. government published a White Paper entitled ‘The Future Relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union’...more
U.K. Supreme Court: The Latest on Employment Status in the “Gig” Economy -
In the latest high profile “gig” economy decision, the U.K. Supreme Court has held in Pimlico Plumbers Ltd & another v Smith [2018] UKSC 29 that Mr...more
Court of Appeal: Disability Discrimination & Reasonable Adjustments -
In United First Partners Research v Nicolas Carreras [2018] EWCA Civ 323 the Court of Appeal considered whether an expectation (rather than a...more
In Hale v Brighton & Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust UKEAT/0342/16/LA the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) considered whether a disciplinary process was a one-off act or an ongoing act in the context of U.K....more
In Donelien v Liberata UK Ltd [2018] EWCA Civ 129, the Court of Appeal considered whether an employer had constructive knowledge of an employee’s disability.
Ms Donelien was employed by Liberata UK Limited (Liberata) as a...more
The Vento bands for “injury to feelings” awards in discrimination claims have been increased. The new figures, applicable to claims issued on or after 6 April 2018, are as follows: -
Lower band, for the least serious...more