Topic: UK

CMA Advice on how to avoid anti-competitive behaviour

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on February 22, 2023 Posted in General, UK

On 9 February the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) published a short guidance note for employers on how to avoid anti-competitive behaviour. The aim of the guide is to boost compliance with the rules regarding anti-competitive behaviour and to remind employers of their legal obligations. The CMA points out that anti-competitive agreements can negatively impact … Continue reading

Employment Law – What to expect in 2023

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on January 10, 2023 Posted in General, UK

Last year saw little legislative changes in the UK with regard to employment law. However, there may be changes of interest for employment lawyers over the coming year. This blog post looks at what changes employers can expect in relation to employment law this year and what steps they should be taking to prepare for … Continue reading

Employment law – Government backing of Private Members Bills

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on December 13, 2022 Posted in General, UK

In the Queen’s speech in December 2019 the Government announced its intention to bring about changes to employment laws in a new Employment Bill. These changes included provisions relating to carers leave, extension of protection for employees on maternity leave, rights regarding tips and gratuities, the right to request a more predictable and stable contract … Continue reading

“Quiet quitting” has been included in Collins Dictionary’s top 10 words of the year for 2022 – but what is it?

By Safwan Afridi on November 21, 2022 Posted in Contracts, UK

For most, a contract of employment (or similar written terms of employment) and job description will set out the terms and conditions of the working relationship with their employer. Among other things, it will include the individual’s contractual hours of work and may include the scope of their duties. So what is the issue if … Continue reading

EAT decision reminds employers of the need for genuine consultation and reasonable selection criteria when carrying out redundancies

By Joanna MacKenzie on November 1, 2022 Posted in General, UK

In the recent case of Mogane v Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2022] UKEAT 139, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) found that the redundancy dismissal of a fixed term employee was unfair due to a lack of genuine consultation and the use of arbitrary selection criteria. The Claimant, Ms Mogane, was employed as … Continue reading

Can an employer settle future statutory claims in a settlement agreement?

By Amanda Sanders (UK) and Safwan Afridi on October 31, 2022 Posted in General, UK

Employees may have claims against their employer that can arise during the recruitment process, the employment or on termination. In this case, the parties may enter into a formal settlement agreement to settle most statutory employment claims. In order for any such agreement to be binding it must satisfy certain conditions. The extent of these … Continue reading

UK Government to reform or revoke retained EU law

By Amanda Sanders (UK) and Joanna MacKenzie on October 12, 2022 Posted in UK

On 22 September 2022, the UK Government introduced the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill, pursuant to which all EU law introduced into the UK legal system following the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union on 31 January 2020 (Retained EU Law) must be reviewed and either replaced with new domestic legislation or automatically … Continue reading

Right to Work Checks – reminder of changes from 1 October

By Aida Geragusian on October 5, 2022 Posted in General, UK

During the pandemic, the Home Office relaxed the requirement for employers to see physical documents as part of manual right to work checks, permitting the checks to be conducted via a video call with the document holder in possession of their original document and the employer holding a scanned copy. Following a series of extensions, … Continue reading

Part Year workers holiday not pro-rated

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on July 26, 2022 Posted in Contracts, UK

The UK Supreme Court has unanimously dismissed the appeal in the case of Harpur Trust v Brazel which considered the holiday entitlement of those workers who are on permanent contracts but only work for part of the year (part year workers). The claimant was a part-time music teacher who worked variable number of hours during … Continue reading

Philosophical and religious beliefs: Balancing the issues

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on July 20, 2022 Posted in General, UK

Two recent employment cases regarding “gender critical” beliefs have highlighted the difficulties in this area and whether such beliefs are capable of protection under the Equality Act 2010. Religion or belief is one of the nine protected characteristics covered by the Equality Act 2010. The Act prohibits direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation in … Continue reading

Global Employment Law – Work from Anywhere: Leadership Challenges – Transforming Workplace -#17

By Jason Noakes on June 28, 2022 Posted in Australia, Canada, China, Colombia, France, General, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Luxembourg, Middle East, Poland, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, The Netherlands, UK, United States, Venezuela

This is the 17th paper in our Transforming Workplace series. In our earlier article, we explored why employees’ expectations of their leaders have changed and why organisations need to upgrade leaders’ skills and behaviours. In this paper we now examine ow organisations can upskill their leaders to meet the specific leadership challenges arising from ‘work … Continue reading

Calling a man “bald” can amount to harassment related to sex

By Safwan Afridi on June 8, 2022 Posted in General, UK

The Employment Tribunal (ET) has found that an employee that was called “a bald ****” by a fellow male colleague was harassed based on his sex. The Claimant presented a number of other claims against the Respondent, including unfair dismissal, wrongful dismissal, victimisation and health and safety detriments; however, this post focuses on the Claimant’s … Continue reading

The High Potential Individual visa is now live

By Charlotte Emmerson on June 1, 2022 Posted in UK, Uncategorized

As of 30 May 2022, a new immigration route into the UK is now available via the “High Potential Individual” (HPI) visa. This route is aimed at attracting highly skilled foreign graduates who have obtained an eligible university degree within the last 5 years, with the intention to grow the UK as a leading international … Continue reading

Global Employment Law – Work from Anywhere: The end of the office? – Transforming Workplace – #16

This is the 16th paper in our Transforming Workplace series. In our previous paper, we discussed how to make ‘work from anywhere’ work better. In this paper we now examine whether the day of the office, as we know it, has ended Work from Anywhere: The end of the office? – Transforming Workplace – #16 This … Continue reading

Global Employment Law- Work From Anywhere: Make it work better – Transforming Workplace -#15

This is the 15th paper in our Transforming Workplace series. In this paper we examine how ‘work from anywhere’ can be made to work better. Work From Anywhere: Make it work better -Transforming Workplace – #15 This article is part of our Transforming Workplace series. Other articles exploring the opportunities, challenges and risk of the transforming … Continue reading

UK Pensions: Use of reasonable [en]force[ment] – unnerving for those on the receiving end?

By Julia Chirnside on May 19, 2022 Posted in General, UK

Speaking to banking colleagues recently about what the Pensions Regulator’s stronger powers mean for them reminded me just how much turns on the Regulator’s view of what is reasonable. There has been a great deal of discussion about the wide range of circumstances in which the Regulator could use its various powers (what the Regulator … Continue reading

The Employment proposals in the Queen’s Speech: Absence of the Employment Bill

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on May 16, 2022 Posted in General, UK, Uncategorized

On 10 May at the State Opening of Parliament, the legislative intention of the Government for the next parliamentary session was set out in the Queen’s Speech. Despite the speech containing proposals for 38 new laws, the long awaited Employment Bill was omitted. The Employment Bill, which was first proposed in 2019, was intended to … Continue reading

UK: New guidance for employers on living safely with respiratory infections, including COVID-19.

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on April 21, 2022 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

On April 1st, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) issued guidance for employers on living safely and reducing the spread of respiratory diseases such as COVID-19 to replace the previous ‘Working Safely Guidance’ after the relaxing of COVID-19 measures in the UK. The guidance outlines ways employers can aim to reduce the spread of respiratory … Continue reading

Global Employment Law – The Decline (and Fall?) of the Five-Day Workweek – Transforming Workplace -#14

By Jason Noakes on April 19, 2022 Posted in Australia, Canada, China, Colombia, France, General, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Luxembourg, Middle East, Poland, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, The Netherlands, UK, United States, Venezuela

In our previous article in the Transforming Workplace series we outlined the benefits of short-term “work from anywhere”. In this article, we focus on the advantages of introducing flexible hours and days. The Decline (and Fall?) of the Five-Day Workweek This article is part of our Transforming Workplace series. Other articles exploring the opportunities, … Continue reading

Global Employment Law: Work From Anywhere: Short Term – Transforming Workplace -#13

In our previous articles in the Transforming Workplace series we examined the challenges of “work from anywhere”. In this article, we consider the best options for introducing “work from anywhere” on a short-term basis in your organisation. Work from Anywhere: Short-Term This article is part of our Transforming Workplace series. Other articles exploring the opportunities, … Continue reading

UK Pensions: Is nature next on the governance agenda for pension schemes?

By Sophy Lelliott on April 8, 2022 Posted in UK

As many trustees begin to finally get to grips with the requirement to align their management and reporting of climate-related risks and opportunities with the Taskforce on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) framework, they may have to find a little bit more room on the governance agenda. Speaking at the PLSA ESG Conference 2022, the Co-Chair … Continue reading

UK: Changes in employment law current rates and limits

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on April 7, 2022 Posted in General, UK

April 2022 marks the annual increase in the current statutory payments and other employment limits, employers should ensure they are aware of these changes and make adjustments where appropriate. From April 2022, there will be increases to statutory payments for time off work: Maternity and adoption pay at the maximum prescribed rate will be increasing … Continue reading

Global Employment Law: Work From Anywhere: Benefits & Challenges – Transforming Workplace -#12

In our previous article in the Transforming Workplace series we examined the hybrid model of work. In this article we discuss the benefits and challenges of “work from anywhere”, including on a hybrid work mode. Work From Anywhere: Benefits & Challenges This article is part of our Transforming Workplace series. Other articles exploring the opportunities, … Continue reading

Global Employment Law: Work from anywhere: Hybrid model – Transforming Workplace -#11

Our previous articles in the Transforming Workplace series discussed some of the important issues relating to the worldwide trend of working from anywhere. In this article we examine the hybrid workplace, where employees combine some level of “work from anywhere” with some time attending their worksite. Work from anywhere: Hybrid model This article is part … Continue reading