Topic: UK

Testing employees for COVID-19, self-isolation and sick pay

On 10 September the Department of Health and Social Care published guidance for employers on the legal obligations and matters that they need to consider if planning to introduce their own testing for COVID-19. With current infection rates increasing this is ever more important for employers to help protect business continuity. In addition, employers need to be up to date with guidance and legislation regarding self-isolation and sick pay.

Government guidance on testing

The guidance clarifies that employers should not be using the NHS Test and Trace service for testing their employees. That service is for those who display symptoms … Continue Reading

Transfer of undertaking to multiple transferees

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on August 4, 2020 Posted in Contracts, General, UK

In a recent case, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has considered what happens to the employment contract of a transferring worker where there is a transfer of an undertaking to multiple transferees. The ECJ held that the contract should be split in proportion to the tasks performed by the worker of the time devoted to those tasks. However, if the division of the contract is impossible or results in a deterioration in the working conditions and rights of the worker, the contract may be terminated.

The case involved an employee of ISS Facility Services in Ghent. ISS was responsible … Continue Reading

Talking Turkey – Salvation for Investors from UK Defined Benefit Schemes?

By Lesley Browning on August 3, 2020 Posted in UK

The UK Pensions Regulator has offered some comfort to investors and funds which may have been deterred from investing in UK companies with historic defined benefit liabilities.

It is unusual, as a matter of English law, for the corporate veil to be capable of being pierced – normally the liability incurred by one group company will not, as a matter of course, taint others in its group. Liability for defined benefit pension liabilities is a notable exception – provided certain conditions are met, the Pensions Regulator can look to other group companies or controlling shareholders to provide cash or guarantees … Continue Reading

New law to ensure furloughed employees receive full redundancy payments

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on July 31, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

The UK Government has published legislation, which will ensure that all furloughed employees receive statutory redundancy pay based on their normal wages, rather than a reduced furlough rate.

The Employment Rights Act 1996 (Coronavirus, Calculation of a Week’s Pay) Regulations 2020 (the Regulations) ensure that various statutory entitlements based on a week’s pay and connected with the termination of employment are not reduced as a result of an employee being furloughed under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. The entitlements included in the Regulations are:

redundancy pay for those with more than 2 years’ continuous service who are made redundant and

Professional Cyclist held not to be an employee or a worker

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on July 17, 2020 Posted in Contracts, General, UK

The EAT has held that an employment tribunal was entitled to conclude that a professional cyclist was not an employee or a worker of the British Cycling Federation. In Varnish v British Cycling Federation (t/a British Cycling) the claimant had commenced proceedings before an employment tribunal claiming, amongst others, unfair dismissal and discrimination. The preliminary consideration for the employment tribunal was whether the claimant was an employee or a worker within the meaning of s230 Employment Rights Act 1996.

The claimant had entered into a series of written “Athlete Agreements” with British Cycling (the respondent), the last of which was … Continue Reading

UK points-based immigration system: Further details announced

By Charlotte Emmerson on July 16, 2020 Posted in General, UK

On 13 July 2020, the Home Office published further details on how the UK’s points-based immigration system will work from 1 January 2021. As set out in the Policy Statement published in February, anyone coming to the UK for work, including EU citizens, will need to demonstrate they meet a specific set of requirements for which they will score points. There is no overall cap on the number who can apply under the Skilled Worker route.

The key change to note is that any employer wishing to employ EU citizens will need to have a sponsor licence and pay the … Continue Reading

UK Government: Plan for Jobs

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on July 13, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, General, UK

On 8 July, the UK Chancellor announced proposals to help UK businesses have the confidence to retain and hire staff. The Government announced that the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme has helped employers pay the wages of 9 million employees across the UK. However, the scheme will come to an end on 31 October 2020 and as the economy is now beginning to reopen, the summer economic update looks at the Government’s second phase of its response to the Coronavirus with a targeted Plan for Jobs.

The Plan includes the following proposals to support employers:

A Job Retention Bonus. This will

New Guidance published for flexible furlough scheme

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on June 15, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

On 12 June the UK Government issued details of the flexible furlough arrangement which will operate from 1 July 2020. The new scheme will allow employees to work for their employer during some of the period and the employer will still be able to claim under the scheme in respect of the time where employees are on furlough.

Existing guidance has been updated and new guidance notes and examples have been published to cover the new flexibility.

What restrictions are there to an employer’s use of the scheme?

From 1 July employers can bring furloughed employees back to work for … Continue Reading

Furloughing new employees – deadline 10 June 2020

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on June 8, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

As set out in our previous blog post here the UK: Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) is changing. This means that the CJRS is closing to new entrants form 30 June. Any new employees who an employer may wish to furlough and who have not already been furloughed, must be placed on furlough on or before 10 June.

The new flexible furlough scheme means that employees will be able to return to work on a part time basis without affecting their employers’ right to claim under the CJRS in respect of the non-working days.

Full guidance regarding the amended scheme … Continue Reading

Flexible Furlough –Changes to the UK Job Retention Scheme

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on June 1, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

On 29 May, the UK Chancellor provided details of the proposed changes to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS). The changes require employers to start sharing the cost of the furlough arrangement and allow a more flexible approach to working while on furlough.

New Flexibility

The Government is introducing a more flexible furlough arrangement. Employers will be able to bring previously furloughed employees back to work part time from 1 July, a month earlier than previously announced.

Employers will have flexibility to determine the hours worked and the shift pattern for their employees. They will then pay the full wages … Continue Reading

UK Pensions: DB Funding Statement 2020: NRF survey gives the Pensions Regulator a thumbs-up

By Lesley Harrold on May 29, 2020 Posted in UK

DB Funding Statement 2020: NRF survey gives the Pensions Regulator a thumbs-up

Sophy Lelliott, a trainee in our pensions team writes: the UK Pensions Regulator published its annual funding statement later than usual on 30 April 2020. The Statement is aimed at trustees and sponsoring employers of defined benefit (DB) schemes with valuation dates between September 22, 2019, and September 21, 2020. Our previous blog examining its key elements can be viewed here.

On 28 May 2020 Lesley Browning, Phil Jelley and Sabrina English from our London pensions team hosted an interactive webinar discussion focusing on the … Continue Reading

UK: Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme extended until end of October

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on May 14, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

The Government has announced that by 12 May 7.5 million jobs in the UK have been furloughed under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (the Scheme). Previous briefings on the details of the Scheme can be found here. The Scheme was due to end on 30 June 2020. However, following the Government’s announcement regarding the phased return to work the Government made it clear that the Scheme would not simply fall away. On 12 May, the Chancellor announced that the Scheme would remain open until the end of October. The Scheme will be amended as follows:

The Scheme will run

Preparing to return to the workplace – what should employers be doing?

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on May 12, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

As the UK Government has published the Plan to Rebuild – the UK Government’s COVID-19 recovery strategy to transition England from lockdown, one of the key areas is how to get people back to the workplace safely. The Government has also published guidance covering eight workplace settings which are allowed to be open, intended to make workplaces as safe as possible and to give people confidence to go back to work during the coronavirus pandemic. The guidance was developed in consultation with businesses, unions and industry leaders.

The guidance sets out five key points which should be implemented by employers … Continue Reading

EU rules on worker status

By Aida Geragusian on May 4, 2020 Posted in Contracts, UK

The ECJ has ruled on the definition of worker status under the EU Working Time Directive in the case of B v Yodel Delivery Network Ltd – is this good news for businesses? Time will tell.

Background

The Working Time Regulations (1998) (WTR) transposes the EU Working Time Directive (WTD). Regulation 2 of the WTR, provides that a ‘worker’ means an individual who enters into or works under a contract of employment or any other contract, whether oral or in writing or express or implied, whereby the individual undertakes to perform personally any work or services for another party. The … Continue Reading

UK Pensions: Regulator’s annual DB funding statement urges collaboration to meet COVID-19 challenges

By Lesley Harrold on May 1, 2020 Posted in UK

On April 30, 2020, the Pensions Regulator published its 2020 funding statement for defined benefit (DB) schemes with valuation dates between September 22, 2019, and September 21, 2020. However, these COVID-19 times are challenging for all businesses, and the effects of the pandemic are relevant to all DB schemes.

The statement urges collaboration between trustees and employers to manage scheme funding impacts and to maintain a focus on the long term, particularly regarding planning and risk management. With the uncertainty of the COVID-19 crisis, effects will be marked on both the short-term business impact of the lockdown … Continue Reading

UK Pensions: Regulator’s warning that member transfer requests during the pandemic may be a poor decision

By Lesley Harrold on April 29, 2020 Posted in UK

UK Pensions: Regulator’s warning that member transfer requests during the pandemic may be a poor decision

Adding to its already impressive haul of Covid-19 related publications to date, on 29 April 2020, the Pensions Regulator published further trustee guidance Communicating with members when they request a transfer or to access benefits.

Pension scheme members seeking a transfer from a defined benefit (DB) to a defined contribution (DC) pension during the Covid-19 crisis will be warned by trustees that such a move is unlikely to be in their best long-term interests. They are also reminded that where a DB transfer value … Continue Reading

Administrators – adoption of contracts and the Job Retention Scheme

By Catrina Smith (UK) and Amanda Sanders (UK) on April 27, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, General, UK

In two recent cases the High Court has considered the adoption of contracts by administrators in the context of applications under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS).

When an administrator is appointed to a company it is necessary to consider whether the administrator has adopted the contracts of employment under the Insolvency Act 1986 (IA 1986). Under that act, nothing done within the first 14 days will amount to adoption. However, outside of that 14 day breathing space, case law has held that an administrator will generally be considered to have adopted the contracts of employment if they continue to … Continue Reading

UK Pensions – Covid-19: top tips for virtual trustee meetings

By Lesley Harrold on April 27, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

The current situation is constantly evolving and here we look at some useful pointers for pension scheme trustees to enable the smooth running of their virtual meetings.

Do the scheme’s rules allow virtual meetings?

With face-to-face meetings being impossible, governing provisions on virtual meetings need checking. Do your scheme rules, and the articles of association for any trustee company, allow for meetings by telephone conference or video link? It’s also important to ensure any meeting you hold is quorate if individuals are unable to attend, so that decisions taken are valid. Any questions, ask your legal adviser – that’s what … Continue Reading

Managing Immigration Remotely

By Aida Geragusian on April 23, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK, Uncategorized

The current situation is presenting a number of practical difficulties for employers regarding right to work and other immigration matters that may arise amongst their employees. The Home Office has been proactive in relaxing many of its strict requirements to assist, however some areas remain uncertain:

Right to work checks – a valid right to work check is required in order to obtain a statutory excuse against illegal working. Right to work checks must be conducted by an employer before the employee commences work and to ensure any time limited leave to remain is validly extended. Those checks must

UK Job Retention Scheme open for applications

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on April 20, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

The UK Job Retention Scheme (JRS) opened for online applications on 20 April 2020. Access to the online portal can be found here.

The Government has also published a separate guidance note here which provides details of how to calculate 80% of the employee’s wages to claim through the JRS and some helpful worked examples of how to calculate the amounts for different pay periods. The guidance provides further details of how details will be entered on to the system depending on the number of staff being furloughed.

On 15 April the UK Chancellor made a Treasury Direction under … Continue Reading

Vicarious Liability – the UK Supreme Court hands down two important decisions.

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on April 2, 2020 Posted in Data privacy and GDPR, UK

The Supreme Court has now delivered its judgements on two important cases involving the concept of vicarious liability. In both it has upheld the appeals holding that the employer was not vicariously liable.

The first case is WM Morrison Supermarkets plc v Various Claimants. The case concerned a data breach by a disgruntled employee of payroll data relating to some of the workforce. Despite immediate steps being taken by the employer to protect the employees, and the individual being found liable, some of the affected employees brought proceedings against the employer on the basis that it was vicariously liable … Continue Reading

The UK Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme – An Update

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on March 27, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

As we noted in our previous blog post here the UK Government announced the new Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme by which employers can apply to HMRC for a grant to cover most of the wage costs (up to 80%) of salary of workers who are temporarily not working but kept on the payroll (furloughed workers) for up to a total of £2,500 per worker each month. The Government has now published further guidance on the scheme.

Which employers can apply under the scheme?

Any employer (regardless of size or sector type) who operates PAYE will be eligible for the scheme. … Continue Reading

UK Government support to self-employed individuals

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on March 27, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

On 26 March the UK Government announced a package of support to self-employed individuals. The main points of the proposal are:

Self-employed individuals can apply for grants of up to 80% of their profits up to £2,500 per month
The level will be calculated on the basis of the average monthly trading profit over the last three years.
The Scheme will be open to those with a trading profit of less than £50,000 in 2018/19 or an average trading profit of less than £50,000 from 2016-17,2017-18 and 2018-19. The chancellor has indicate that this accounts for 95% of the self-employed.

UK Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on March 23, 2020 Posted in Coronavirus, UK

The UK Government is setting up a new Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme which will help employers pay their workers’ wages. Any employer (regardless of size or sector type) will be eligible for the scheme. Employers can apply to HMRC for a grant to cover most of the wages (up to 80%) of salary of workers who are temporarily not working but kept on the payroll (furloughed workers) for up to a total of £2,500 per worker each month. The scheme will be backdated to 1 March and will run for three months, but the Chancellor will extend it if required.… Continue Reading