I’ve recently returned from a New Year’s break driving an Alfa Romeo around Lake Como. Before that sounds too glamorous, let’s dial it back a bit and state that, firstly, we were in a small (but cute) apartment in a secluded spot next to the lake and, secondly, that we were upgraded for free three…
There has been a sizable amount of space afforded to pregnancy-related discrimination in the media this past year. In fact, that’s one of the reasons for this series of pregnancy-related blogs. As such, it is becoming increasingly difficult for employers to escape accusations of pregnancy-related discrimination when it arises. This being said, there are charitable organisations out there that believe that more needs to be done: one of these charities is Maternity Action.
During the past week, Maternity Action have released a report (named “Unfair Redundancies”) calling on the Government to strengthen anti-redundancy protection for pregnancy employees. The most eye-catching statistics quoted by the charity include that 1 in every twenty mothers are made redundant during their pregnancy, maternity leave or return to work and that 77% of pregnant women felt discriminated against during their period of pregnancy.
Before we continue, let’s just dial down into that first statistic for a moment.
One of the most important and often useful clauses within a contract of employment for employers in any trade is the ‘lay off/short-time working clause’. For those that are not aware, such a clause would usually entitle an employer who suffers a downturn in the work available, to either reduce the hours of the affected…
Mr Donkor was born in 1960 and started his employment with the Royal Bank of Scotland in 1978. He worked through the ranks and, from 2003, was employed as a regional director in retail banking. In 2012 there was a bank restructure which effectively meant that all existing regional directors would have to go through…
Most employers and HR staff with experience of dealing with redundancies are aware of the requirements for collective consultation. Section 188 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 requires employers, where 20 or more employees are proposed to be made redundant within a period of 90 days, to consult with the employees who…
In September last year I wrote about the problem of what have been described as “revolving door managers” in the NHS. Settlement payments have amounted to a shocking £1.6 billion, often paid to employees who were re-employed in virtually the same or similar jobs with weeks or months. Faced with a problem on such a…
In November 2014 I warned that employers should get ready for backdated holiday claims, particularly from those who are now entitled to include average overtime when calculating the rate payable. The Government’s response was to attempt to limit the effect on employers by introducing the Deductions from Wages (Limitation) Regulations 2014. The Regulations are intended…
The case of Wainwright v Sefton Borough Council was initially heard by Employment Judge Robinson in the Employment Tribunals in Liverpool in September 2013. His judgment was that Mrs Wainwight’s claims of automatic unfair dismissal, breach of regulation 10 of the Maternity and Paternal Leave Regulations 1999 (right to be offered suitable alternative jobs) and…
The Employment Appeal Tribunal recently considered in the case of Secretary of State for Business Innovation & Skills v Knight whether or not a business owner can claim a redundancy payment. Mrs Knight was managing director and owned 100% of the shares in Receptors Security Systems (UK) Limited. The Company was incorporated in 1991 and…
In Ashworth and Others v The Royal National Theatre the question for Mr Justice Cranston (sitting in the High Court) was whether to grant an injunction pending trial requiring the Theatre to continue employing musicians, notwithstanding that part of the music for the show has always been recorded and the Theatre wanted to move to…