Legal news: Employment update

Jo Broadbent rounds up recent developments affecting employers and their advisers To establish a defence under the Equality Act, employers have to show that they have taken all reasonable steps to prevent employees from committing acts of discrimination or harassment. Agency workers not entitled to apply for vacancies, just to be told about them Under …
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Employment status: Supreme Court reframes the approach for determining worker status in Uber case

Alan Lewis highlights the key points to come out of the Supreme Court’s long-awaited decision in Uber In the Supreme Court’s view, it would be inconsistent with the purpose of the legislation to treat the terms of a written contract as the starting point to decide whether an individual falls within the definition of a …
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Covid tests: Workplace lateral flow testing – avoid the legal and practical pitfalls

Emily Battcock considers the practical issues involved in workplace coronavirus testing and how employers can minimise the risk of claims for breaches of employment or data protection laws Any information relating to health is classified as special category data under the GDPR. Even if employees agree to be tested, employers still need to comply with …
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Coronavirus: Is long Covid a new form of disability?

Michelle Chance, Chris Warwick-Evans and Louisa Hartley discuss how to reduce the risk of successful discrimination claims from employees with ongoing or intermittent Covid-19 symptoms We can expect to see far more clinical diagnoses of long Covid and related employment tribunal claims in the future. A study conducted by researchers at King’s College London estimates …
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Sex equality: Managing the impact of the pandemic on working women

Helen Burgess explores why women have been disproportionately affected by the government’s response to Covid and how employers can redress the balance It is undeniable that Covid has been a major setback to women in workplaces and its impact may be felt for years to come. Organisations are at risk of becoming less diverse and …
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Electronic surveillance: Monitoring home workers – getting the balance right

Innes Clark looks at the legal limits on employee monitoring and at whether privacy protections need strengthening in response to the ‘new normal’ For monitoring to be lawful, the employer has to find the right balance between its interests in monitoring employees and employees’ rights to privacy. March 2020 saw one of the biggest changes …
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Immigration: Business travel in the post-Brexit landscape

Samar Shams explains when employees are permitted to travel between the UK and EU without needing a visa When travelling on business without a visa, it is best for employees to carry a letter setting out exactly what activities they intend to undertake and how these fit within the UK or EU restrictions, as applicable. …
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