25 April 2012
The Supreme Court today handed down its judgment in two long-awaited age discrimination cases – Seldon v Clarkson, Wright and Jakes and Homer v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police.
30 March 2012
It has been six years since the 2006 TUPE regulations came into force and their scope widened to cover "service provision changes". As a result, it was generally thought that nearly all outsourcing or supplier changes would give rise to a TUPE transfer. However, more recently tribunals seem more willing to find that TUPE does not apply to a change in provider.
27 March 2012
When does the obligation to carry out collective redundancy consultation arise and can you justify indirect discrimination on the grounds of cost?
26 March 2012
Automatic Enrolment begins on 1 October 2012 and will affect all employers by 1 April 2017. Employers have each been assigned a ‘staging date’ during this period based on their PAYE scheme size as at 1 April 2012 from which they will need to comply with the new duties.
16 March 2012
On 6 April 2012, the qualifying period for unfair dismissal claims will increase from one year to two years for new employees. This change only affects employees whose employment starts on or after 6 April 2012 and will not affect employees whose continuous employment began before 6 April 2012.
15 February 2012
With cost-cutting exercises continuing to be a priority for many businesses, redundancy programmes remain high on the agenda. Employers in this difficult position may take some solace in a recent decision of the Employment Appeal Tribunal.
06 January 2012
It has been announced that the new maximum compensatory award for unfair dismissal will increase from £68,400 to £72,300. This will apply where the effective date of termination occurs on or after 1 February 2012.
06 January 2012
Increases to the rates of statutory sick pay (SSP) and the prescribed rate for statutory maternity pay (SMP), statutory paternity pay (SPP) and statutory adoption pay (SAP) have now been announced and will apply from April 2012.
29 November 2011
The government has announced proposals for what it describes as "the most radical reform to the employment law system for decades".
10 November 2011
In the lead up to Remembrance Day this Sunday, FIFA has brought into the spotlight the question as to whether an employer can prevent an employee wearing a poppy at work.
09 November 2011
Employees who fail to request holiday when off sick could now lose their entitlement to holiday pay for previous years.
02 November 2011
What should HR directors do if they find themselves faced with an employee refusing to do as they've been instructed?
20 October 2011
This month the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development published the results of its annual Absence Management Survey. The survey found that, for the first time, stress is now the most common cause of long term sick leave for employees.
11 October 2011
If you are an employer and have an employee on your hands who is refusing to follow an instruction, what steps can you take?
05 October 2011
The Chancellor, George Osborne, has announced that the qualifying period for the right to bring an unfair dismissal claim will be increased from one year to two years with effect from 6 April 2012.
04 October 2011
Statistics suggest the recent surge in cases is over but employers should remain vigilant as law changes take effect.
04 October 2011
On 1 October 2011 the Agency Workers Regulations 2010 ("the Regulations") came into force.
13 July 2011
Following the recent Stringer case, which decided that workers on sick leave continue to accrue their statutory holiday, it seems that uncertainty concerning the relationship between holiday rights and long-term sick leave has not just been causing headaches for British employers.
06 July 2011
A recent decision of the Supreme Court on the interpretation of the TUPE regulations may lead to important implications for any employer involved in outsourcing, particularly from the public sector.
18 May 2011
When it comes to giving a reference, most employers are well aware of their duty to take reasonable care in preparing a reference. However, a recent case illustrates that a duty of care to a former employee when passing on information about him or her extends to non-reference situations too.
18 May 2011
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has issued a consultation document entitled "Consultation on Modern Workplaces", which proposes to introduce a new system of flexible parental leave and to extend the right to request flexible working to all employees. The consultation will run for 12 weeks until 8 August 2011.
06 April 2011
The Government has now published draft guidance on the Agency Workers Regulations 2010, which are due to come into force on 1 October 2011.
31 March 2011
Following delays due to heavy criticism from British business, the Ministry of Justice has published Guidance on the "adequate procedures" that all commercial organisations will need to put in place in order to protect themselves against committing the controversial "corporate offence" under Section 7 of the Bribery Act 2010.
28 March 2011
The 2011 Budget and the Government's accompanying "Plan for Growth" contain a number of employment-related measures.
28 March 2011
The tax position for post-P45 payments to former employees is changing from 6 April. Under the new rules, it may not be possible to deduct basic rate tax only from payments to former employees. This will affect some payments made under compromise agreements that are entered into before that date.
08 March 2011
At the end of last week, the Government commenced a public consultation on the future of the "Fair Deal" pensions policy.
07 March 2011
The Government has now published an updated version of the draft regulations removing the default retirement age. The new version remedies the confusion that arose when the original draft regulations were published in mid-February and adds some further detail regarding an employee's right to request to work beyond retirement.
21 February 2011
The government has published its proposed changes to Tier 2 of the points-based immigration scheme. In addition to the imminent closure of parts of Tier 1, these changes, which are expected to come into force on 6 April 2011, will make it harder for businesses to employ overseas nationals in the UK.
21 February 2011
The Government has announced that it will not extend the right to request time off for training to all employees in April 2011.
21 February 2011
The Employment Appeal Tribunal has held that administrations are not capable of amounting to insolvency proceedings instituted with a view to the liquidation of the assets of the seller. This means that, in a sale of a business by a company in administration, the employees of the seller will transfer to the buyer and will have the usual protection against unfair dismissal under TUPE.
21 February 2011
At the end of last week the Government published the draft regulations removing the default retirement age. However, these regulations have done nothing but cause confusion. Whilst the general premise, that the default retirement age is being phased out, still holds good, the detailed drafting of the transitional provisions has thrown up unexpected implications for employees who are or will reach 65 before 6 April 2011.
01 February 2011
The government has announced that the controversial Bribery Act 2010 will not now be implemented in April, as originally planned. The government declined to provide a revised implementation date, simply saying that the Act will come into force three months after the Ministry of Justice's guidance on the "adequate procedures" defence has been published. While this guidance was due to be published early this year, it is now not clear when this will happen.
31 January 2011
As part of its comprehensive review of employment laws, the Government has issued a consultation document "Resolving Workplace Disputes".
14 January 2011
The Government has confirmed that the Default Retirement Age (DRA) of 65 is to be abolished. From October 2011, employers will not be able to retire employees as a matter of course when they reach 65.
16 December 2010
The Cabinet Office has announced the immediate scrapping of the 2005 Code of Practice on Workforce Matters in Public Sector Service Contracts (commonly referred to as the "Two-Tier Code").
16 December 2010
It has been announced that the new maximum compensatory award for unfair dismissal will increase from £65,300 to £68,400.
14 December 2010
With the Christmas party season upon us, most employers will be aware of the risks posed by alcohol, 80's music and dodgy dance moves, but this year we may see a new guest at Christmas parties in the shape of the Equality Act 2010.
03 December 2010
If you use agency workers, you will be pleased to hear that a recent decision of the Court of Appeal should make it harder for agency workers to argue that they are employees of the end-user of the services.
24 November 2010
On Tuesday, the Government announced new details of the cap on the migration of skilled workers from outside of the EEA into the United Kingdom.
20 October 2010
The three Equality Act Codes of Practice have now been published and were laid before Parliament on 12 October 2010.
29 July 2010
The Government today announced its plans to abolish the default retirement age.
09 July 2010
On 30 June 2010, the Tribunal Service produced its annual statistics identifying an increase of 14% in single employment claims in the last 12 months. If multiple claims (i.e. those where a number of cases arise from the same set of facts – e.g. TUPE cases) are included, this figure rockets to a staggering 56% increase in claims in 2009/10.
25 June 2010
A revised UK Corporate Governance Code has been published by the Financial Reporting Council and will apply to official list companies with a premium listing, for accounting periods beginning on or after 29 June 2010. The new Code will also be of interest to companies listed on AIM or the PLUS-quoted market.
23 June 2010
Our employment team has been placed 'runner up' at The Lawyer Awards 2010.
09 June 2010
With the World Cup now well under way, are you suffering more absences and disruption to your business than usual?
26 May 2010
The new coalition Government has now published its programme for government and set out, in the Queen's Speech, the bills that it hopes to achieve in the next 18 months.
14 April 2010
The Bribery Act has now become law and will soon be in force. It has wide reaching implications, especially for business, with the introduction of a new corporate offence and prosecutions for bribery made easier. All businesses need to ensure that they review existing procedures and put in place adequate anti-corruption measures to avoid potential liability.
08 April 2010
On 6 April 2010 some significant changes to Tiers 1 and 2 of the UK's points-based immigration system took place. These changes follow on from a limitation of the working hours of foreign students that the Government introduced in March 2010.
07 April 2010
The Equality Act 2010 will have wide-reaching effects. To help you understand the implications of the Act for your organisation, Burges Salmon has prepared a suite of briefings outlining its key provisions.
23 March 2010
As of April 6, employees have the right to request time off for study or training.
23 February 2010
A recent decision by the ECJ held that a worker who was sick whilst on annual leave had the right to take that leave at some other time after his recovery.
04 February 2010
A new medical fit note will come into effect on 6 April 2010 to replace the current sick notes used by doctors. Click on the link to read more.
18 December 2009
For the first time ever, the maximum compensatory award for unfair dismissal is to be reduced following the annual review of compensation limits.
04 December 2009
For many employers at the minute the bonus question is: do we really have to pay? James Green, from our Employment Unit considers the point. This article originally appears in Director of Finance online.
07 October 2009
Does your organisation, like most, have a retirement age of 65? Although this is lawful for now, it may need to change in the near future. The High Court has held that the default retirement age of 65 is lawful and rejected the challenge by Age UK, known as the Heyday challenge.
07 October 2009
The rules controlling when skilled workers are allowed to take jobs in the UK under the points-based system are to be tightened up. The Government has accepted recommendations of the Migration Advisory Committee to make it harder for skilled overseas workers to take up jobs in the UK.
22 September 2009
The ECJ has ruled that a worker who was sick during a period of annual leave had the right to take his annual leave at some other time after his recovery.
17 September 2009
The maximum amount of a week's pay for statutory redundancy purposes is to increase from £350 to £380, effective from 1 October 2009.
17 September 2009
The Government has announced that it is to consult on new regulations that will allow a mother, who returns to work after 6 months, to transfer the last 6 months of her maternity leave to the father so that he may look after their baby.
26 August 2009
Do you use contract workers in your organisation? If so, do you know that you may be liable if one of your contract workers is discriminated against by one of your employees?
26 August 2009
The Department for Transport has issued a consultation document as part of its review of the UK Domestic Drivers' Hours Rules.
18 August 2009
Do you use contract workers in your organisation? If so, do you know that you may be liable if one of your contract workers is discriminated against by one of your employees?
12 August 2009
HMRC has recently published a new consultation document entitled false self-employment in construction: taxation of workers. This outlines the Government's proposal for addressing the problem of false self-employment in construction.
02 July 2009
An employer's duty to make reasonable adjustments under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 applies as much to job applicants as existing employees. Click on the link to read more.
22 June 2009
A cross-firm team recently supported Milk Link in its acquisition of the Llandyrnog cheese creamery in North Wales.
19 June 2009
We have been selected to work with the London Development Agency.
10 June 2009
In April 2009, Alistair Darling announced that the maximum amount of a week's pay for statutory redundancy payment purposes was to increase from £350 to £380. The Government has just announced that this increase will come into effect on 1 October 2009.
02 June 2009
The government has unveiled proposals for a new medical 'fit note' to replace the current sick notes used by doctors when employees are signed off sick from work.
11 May 2009
From 1 October 2009, the Government will introduce legislation to prevent tips being used to "top up" wages to meet the national minimum wage requirements.
08 May 2009
Although there have only been a small number cases of swine flu in the UK to date, this is an issue that employers will have to consider very carefully.
24 April 2009
In last week's Budget, Alistair Darling announced that the maximum amount of a week's pay for statutory redundancy payment purposes will increase from £350 to £380.
14 April 2009
The Employment Appeal Tribunal has recently reminded us that an employer's duty to make reasonable adjustments under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 ("DDA") applies as much to job applicants as existing employees.
09 April 2009
Adrian Martin, one of our Employment partners, explains why employers face 'simpler' workplace dispute rules (Daily Telegraph, 31 March 2009).
27 March 2009
1 April will see the minimum entitlement of paid statutory holiday increase from 4.8 weeks to 5.6 weeks (28 days for someone working a 5 day week).
26 March 2009
A reminder that from 6 April 2009, parents/carers with children under 17 will be entitled to request to work flexibly. Previously this right was only available to those with children under 6. Other provisions remain unchanged.
25 March 2009
The new Code comes into effect on 6 April replacing the well-intended, but ultimately unsuccessful, statutory dispute resolution procedures.
06 March 2009
Those of you with razor sharp memories will recall that we have been waiting, for some time now, for the ECJ to pronounce on whether or not the UK's default retirement age of 65 is lawful. Yesterday the ECJ handed down their decision.
26 January 2009
In a ruling that employers could well do without, the ECJ has ruled on the long-standing issue of whether workers on long-term sick leave are entitled to paid holiday under the Working Time Directive.
18 December 2008
New government proposals to square flexible retirement with the age discrimination regulations will disappoint many pension scheme trustees and employers.
03 December 2008
New financial limits applying to employment tribunal awards and other statutory payments have been announced.
14 November 2008
The Code has been revised in preparation for the repeal of the statutory dismissal and grievance procedures, which is anticipated to take effect in April 2009.
17 October 2008
Details of the first of a series of seminars run by our Employment Unit.
14 October 2008
The EAT has held that an employee was entitled to take time off work to care for a child even when she was given two weeks' notice of her childminder's unavailability.
30 September 2008
Advocate General's opinion gives initial comfort to employers.
16 September 2008
The government has introduced a new points based system (PBS) to replace the existing work permit system. This means that employers will have to hold a sponsorship licence if they want to recruit non-EEA nationals to work in the UK.
02 September 2008
Last Tuesday the Government published its consultation document on expanding the right for parents to apply to their employers for flexible working.
02 September 2008
Pensions schemes are challenging HMRC over VAT on investment management fees.
17 July 2008
Plewes v Adams Pork Produce Limited.
27 June 2008
The Government's Time to Train consultation will close on 10th September.
11 June 2008
The right to request flexible working is to be extended.
12 December 2007
Update regarding the Employment Bill.
14 January 2007
New financial limits applying to certain employment tribunal awards and other statutory payments have been announced.
The working time opt-out, which allows workers to agree to work more than the maximum 48 hour week prescribed in the Working Time Regulations, is here to stay for the time being.