Duty Of Good Faith: Engendering ‘reasonable expectations’

Employers must be wary how they communicate their intentions to the workforce in light of a recent ruling, warn Annabel Gillham and Jemima Coleman ‘IBM could have wide ramifications in the employment context as it could give rise to a more general fetter on an employer’s ability to take action.’ Employers engaging in consultation with …
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Employee Rights: Referee’s claim gets the red card

As the World Cup reaches its climax, Kenny Scott looks at a recent ruling on whether a referee was an employee of the Scottish Football Association ‘The SFA asserted that Mr Conroy was not an employee but rather a self-employed contractor and that therefore he did not have the right to bring the unfair dismissal …
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Employment Law Reform: The ‘ban’ on exclusivity contracts

The Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill fails to give zero-hours workers any enforceable rights, contends Catherine Rayner ‘As currently drafted, the bill does not give zero-hours workers any enforceable rights. Unlike other areas of the ERA, a complaint about a prohibited contract term does not attract protection from detrimental treatment.’ The Small Business, Enterprise …
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Industrial Relations: No right to strike

Guy Lamb comments on the RMT’s failed challenge to the UK’s strike laws ‘The ECHR’s findings on the general application of the UK’s balloting rules relate to the specific facts of the RMT’s case but nevertheless are welcome news for employers.’Employment law has often been the battlefield on which socio-political issues have been played out …
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Working Time Regulations: Holiday pay should include commission

Calculating holiday pay has just become even harder, thanks to the latest in a line of ECJ cases on the issue, reports Stefan Martin ‘The English courts will need to determine how to apply the ECJ’s decision in practice. Any clarification they provide could result in changes to the Working Time Regulations.’ The Working Time …
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Data Protection: Employers search for answers after Google ruling

Steven Lorber discusses a recent ECJ decision showing the difficulties the EU’s data protection regime causes employers ‘What the regulation does not do is address the issues that data controllers face in trying to cope with a legislative structure which, as the digital economy develops, is becoming increasingly outmoded.’Responses to the European Court of Justice …
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Disability Discrimination: EAT puts its finger on the trigger point

Louise Mason examines a recent ruling on whether employers need to adjust absence policies to avoid treating disabled staff unfairly ‘It was acknowledged that the policy made special further provisions for those with disabilities, but the EAT did not consider that it was necessary to apply these in order to discharge the duty to make …
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Employment Status: New rights for partners

A recent Supreme Court ruling has finally laid to rest the difficult issue of whether an LLP member is a worker, explains Sarah Ozanne ‘The concept of “worker” under the ERA includes both employees, being those employed under a contract of employment, and a sub-category of individual who personally undertakes to provide work for another …
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