Discrimination Law: Uncharted territory

Three recent decisions have pushed the boundaries of who can bring discrimination claims, write Tabitha Georghiou and Matthew Ramsey ‘A new era has dawned for discrimination law. Employment practitioners must learn to focus primarily on why the offending conduct took place.’ Discrimination law has traditionally been seen as a means of protecting individuals who fall …
This post is only available to members.

Descent-Based Discrimination: Caste doubt

A recent ruling has raised questions about the need for specific protection from caste discrimination and the effectiveness of the Modern Slavery Act, reports Chris Milsom ‘Tirkey […] represents the employment tribunal’s ability to provide an informal setting for adjudication, in which those who provide a credible account of employment that breaks every basic norm …
This post is only available to members.

Termination Payments: Taxing proposals

Will the government’s plans to simplify the tax treatment of termination payments really make the system easier to understand, asks Rachel Farr ‘The government says that its aim is to create a simple, easy to understand, certain, easy to administer and fair system. However, this claim has attracted criticism because the main purpose seems to …
This post is only available to members.

Recruitment: Why it’s not so easy to say, ‘You’re hired!’

Following new guidance from Acas, Gurpreet Duhra and Gemma O’Boyle consider some of the legal traps posed by the recruitment process ‘While Acas guidance is not legally binding, employment tribunals consider it to be good practice and… deviation from such guidance is likely to be subject to scrutiny.’The recruitment process presents several legal risks for …
This post is only available to members.

Intermediaries Legislation: What next for IR35?

Kate Kelleher sets out the government’s proposals on how to improve the rules that govern the taxation of personal services companies ‘Unless the legislation is significantly revised and simplified, the likelihood is that engagers of PSCs will cease to contract with them if they are required to determine and collect the related tax liabilities.’ The …
This post is only available to members.

Disciplinary Procedures: How to ensure that fairness is not dismissed

In light of recent case law, Michelle Tudor explains how to avoid some of the main pitfalls when disciplining employees ‘The Employment Appeal Tribunal held that the decision on culpability should have been reserved for Mr Goodchild and that there was an inference of improper influence by the HR advisers. Accordingly, it deemed Mr Ramphal’s …
This post is only available to members.

Health And Safety: The road to reform

Recent high-profile transport tragedies provide a reminder of the importance of pre-employment health questions and highlight the need to change current requirements, suggests Ross Hutchison ‘The most disappointing aspect of the duty to report medical conditions which affect an individual’s ability to hold a licence is that it is a duty on the individual alone.’ …
This post is only available to members.