In this month’s instalment, our team summarises the latest UK case law and developments in employment law – and their implications for employers. 1. The Government has published the new annual statutory rates which apply to...more
Happy New Year! In our first monthly alert for 2025, we report on whether comments on an employee’s accent are unlawful harassment, on ‘gig economy’ worker rights – plus guidance on employers’ duties to prevent sexual...more
The Employment Rights Bill is currently working its way through Parliament and is expected to be implemented in 2025. One of the key changes our clients are most concerned about is the plan to make the right not to be...more
Cette newsletter présente quatre décisions de jurisprudence rendues au cours des derniers mois: L’employeur peut utiliser le contenu de clés USB personnelles pour prouver une faute grave (Cass. soc., 25 septembre 2024,...more
This newsletter presents four case law decisions handed down over the past few months: The employer can use the content of personal USB drives to prove gross misconduct (Cass. soc., September 25, 2024, No. 23-13.992)...more
The Employment Rights Bill, published on October 10, 2024, has been making its way through Parliament and is currently going through the Commons Committee Stage, where a detailed examination of its provisions has been taking...more
In just over a month, employers will risk having to pay higher protective awards for collective redundancy consultation breaches where they also unreasonably fail to follow the Code of Practice on Dismissal and Re-engagement....more
This week we look at a case that covers the issue of what constitutes proper lawful consultation in smaller scale redundancies (fewer than 20). In particular, the case looks at whether there a need for group consultation, and...more
This week we mark the introduction on 26 October of the duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, and consider a few recent cases showing that this is a workplace issue that refuses to go away Last Saturday...more
After a slightly extended summer break, we return with a summary of the new sexual harassment rules due to come into force in just over two weeks....more
More than 3,500 workers have won a legal fight for equal pay against major UK retailer Next Retail Ltd. Following a six-year legal battle, the Employment Tribunal ruled that Next had failed to demonstrate that the lower basic...more
This week we consider a new EAT decision that emphasises the difficulties of making assumptions about tribunal time limits, particularly the date from when time starts to run....more
This week we focus on a new case looking at the difficulties between balancing protections of religious belief with the rights and protections of LGBTQI+ individuals....more
Our June update includes a new gender critical philosophical belief case exploring some new areas (such as the nature of the workplace), a case on redaction of disclosure documents and whether the redacted material was...more
A recent British legal case, which could impact U.S. and other international companies, has reinforced the complexities of cross-border employment, particularly where group companies are involved. The fact that a US company...more
April was a smorgasbord of developments, with a UK Supreme Court case on detriments and industrial action and two EAT decisions on international jurisdiction. In Parliament, another family-friendly bill is proceeding with...more
New statutory guidance has been published about controversial “fire and rehire” practices, where an employer dismisses a worker to then rehire them on different terms — a tactic typically used to compel an employee to accept...more
New right to take carer’s leave - The Carer's Leave Act 2023 and The Carer’s Leave Regulations 2024 give employees in the UK a new right to take “carer’s leave” with effect from 6 April 2024. An employee who has a...more
In March the government confirmed that changes to paternity leave, additional redundancy protection for pregnant employees and new parents and the right to carer’s leave will come into force in April as planned. We’re...more
A recent decision by the Watford Employment Tribunal in Richardson v West Midlands Trains Ltd saw a train driver reinstated and awarded £40,000 after he was found to have been unfairly and unlawfully dismissed for performing...more
Our March update includes a case on whether a theatre and agency could dismiss an actor playing a lesbian role because of her devout Christian beliefs, and a case looking at whether an employee who spends virtually all her...more
At the end of January 2024, the UK Government set out a surprise proposal to introduce a £55 fee for individuals to bring proceedings in the Employment Tribunals (ET) and Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT). This would be a...more
Although major employment changes in the UK are largely on hold until the general election later in 2024, there are a number of specific changes impacting daily planning and policies, which need to be on Legal and HR’s action...more
Since companies began their return to the office post-pandemic, there has been an increasing polarization between those which feel the future is to ‘work anywhere’, versus those which see remote working as a COVID aberration...more
In Wilson v Financial Conduct Authority, the Employment Tribunal (ET) has found that the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) was entitled to refuse an employee’s request to work entirely remotely, despite the fact that she was...more