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Legal News: Employment update

Jo Broadbent rounds up recent case law and developments affecting employers and their advisers ‘Where grave allegations have been made that have potentially very serious consequences for an employee who has been employed for a long time without any question about their character, the employer must take that into account in examining what has occurred.’ …
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Religious Discrimination: ECJ sends out conflicting messages in headscarf ruling

A recent European decision does not give employers carte blanche to ban symbols of Islamic faith in the workplace, warns Paul Kelly ‘What the decisions do is provide a framework within which an employer that aims to portray a neutral stance on all political and religious beliefs can achieve that aim by ensuring that it …
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Dress Codes: Lessons from the heelgate inquiry

Following the recent parliamentary inquiry into high heels and dress codes, Jonathan Iyer considers how employers can avoid sex discrimination when drawing up standards for personal appearance in the workplace ‘The law does not prohibit employers from imposing different types of dress for men and women provided they have good business reasons for doing so.’ …
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Industrial Action: A change of tactics?

Although their ability to strike may be curtailed, the trade unions appear to be finding new ways to challenge employers, argue Laura Garner and Will Winch ‘It seems likely that unions will need to adapt their strategy to face the challenges of the modern economy.’ Last month, key provisions of the Trade Union Act 2016 …
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Absence Management: How to deal with travel and weather disruption

Claire Helling examines the potential legal issues for employers when extreme weather or industrial action prevent employees from travelling to work ‘An employer can always decide to exercise its discretion and pay employees for some or all of the days they cannot make it into work where there are extenuating circumstances.’The long-running Southern rail strikes …
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Recruitment: Lies, damned lies and CVs

Phil Allen looks at what employers can do about fraudulent or dishonest job applications ‘In some cases, the line between fraud and embellishment may be hard to draw but trust and honesty are key to the employment relationship in the vast majority of roles.’A senior NHS manager was recently given a two-year prison sentence for …
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Public Sector: New rules on off-payroll working take effect

The government is tightening up the tax arrangements that apply when public authorities hire workers through personal service companies, write Rebecca McGuirk and Anna Scott ‘Where a public authority or agency makes a payment to a worker’s PSC on or after 6 April 2017, it is the public authority’s responsibility to decide if the rules …
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Immigration: Farewell to free movement

Samar Shams considers how employers and their advisers should prepare for Brexit, possible restrictions on travel to the US and higher fees to sponsor migrant workers ‘Employers should encourage EEA national employees and any affected family members to apply for documentation of their rights.’ The meaning of Brexit has changed continuously since the British referendum …
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Settlement Agreements: No ‘one size fits all’ approach

In light of recent case law, Stephen Ravenscroft and Sarah Taylor discuss the importance of using clear wording when drawing up a settlement agreement ‘For a settlement agreement to be considered as fulfilling an employer’s statutory maternity pay (SMP) liability, it must specifically state that any such payment is included to the full extent of …
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Alcohol And Drugs: Calling time on drinking in work hours

Following Lloyd’s of London’s ban on drinking during the working day, Stephen Levinson explains the legal and practical issues surrounding the introduction of a drug and alcohol policy ‘Employers thinking of implementing their own ban on drinking during the working day should ensure they have a reasonable business explanation and have considered the nature of …
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