‘Good Work’ – The Taylor Review
In October 2016, the Prime Minister commissioned Matthew Taylor, a former policy chief to Tony Blair, to look at how employment practices need to change in order to keep pace with modern business needs. The
Car Repair Shop Manager Pays for Health and Safety Incompetence
Health and safety in the workplace must be taken seriously and a failure to do so can have severe consequences. In one case, a car repair shop manager’s woefully inadequate performance in that respect meant
Retirement Can Be a Sensitive Subject – Avoid Age Discrimination!
Employee retirement is a sensitive issue that needs extremely careful handling in the light of age discrimination laws. The point was underlined by one case in which a veteran solicitor claimed that he had been
Personality Clashes at Work? Don’t Deflect the Issue!
Personality clashes at work are sadly anything but rare, but employers are under a duty to take reasonable steps to resolve such issues before they get out of hand. In one case where that signally
Staff Pregnancies – Don’t Let Frustration Lead You into Discrimination!
Staff pregnancies can be disruptive, particularly for small businesses, but it is vital that employers do not allow their decision-making to become infected by discrimination. In one case, a hair stylist who was dismissed after
Acas Advice for Employers on Coping in High Temperatures
On the whole, we are not accustomed in the UK to long periods of hot weather, so when high temperatures do occur employers may not be prepared to deal with situations that arise as a
Office Worker’s Mild Visual Impairment ‘Not A Disability’
The definition of ‘disability’ has been the subject of much legal debate ever since the Equality Act 2010 came into force. However, an Employment Tribunal (ET) has shed some much-needed light on the issue in
Were You Dismissed Or Did You Resign? Context is King
Before accepting an employee’s resignation, it is crucially important to be certain that that is their true intention. In one case, an Employment Tribunal (ET) found that a letter in which a woman asked her
Discriminated Against? You Can Be Compensated for Injury to Your Feelings
If you suffer discrimination in the workplace you can be compensated for injury to your feelings as well as for your financial losses. A £12,000 award was made under that head in one striking case
Social Housing Company Cleared of Age Discrimination
In the context of a redundancy process in which workers competed with each other to keep their jobs, it was reasonable for the employer to expect that each of them would look after their own