Alcohol and Work Events – are they a good mix?
Employers have a duty of care towards their staff whilst they are at work. What many employers fail to recognise is that this duty of care is not just limited to the physical place of work; it is a much wider definition. It can include any event that takes place in connection with one’s employment. We all know that alcohol reduces a person’s inhibitions, but what if one of your employees...Read More
0
Employee’s right to request Predictable Hours – What do you Need to Know
In 2017, in the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices it was identified that there was an imbalance in flexible working; employers used it to their advantage, often without considering the effects on workers. Workers on zero hour contracts were required to be available for work at short notice but were not guaranteed any work in return. As a result of that review, the Workers...Read More
0
Part 1 Working Time Regulations – Is rolled up Holiday Pay now legal?
In 2006, the European Court of Justice ruled that rolled up holiday pay was illegal. It directed all EU countries to implement measures to ensure such practices stopped. The Government drafted guidance for employers that stated rolled up holiday was illegal but never gave any time frames for employers to phase it out. The result being many workers are still paid rolled up holiday pay. Fast...Read More
0
The Online safety bill – will it keep us safe?
The online safety bill will have its third reading in the House of Lords in the coming days. The bill is incredibly broad in its scope and the intention is that it will make a number of internet services safer for individuals, particularly young people. The bill introduces a duty of care for online platforms that have a significant number of users in the UK; which target UK users; or where...Read More
0
McScandal: the McDonald’s guide on how not to handle sexual harassment in the workplace
Sexual harassment in UK workplaces is frequent. A 2020 CIPD study found that 4% of all employees claimed to have been sexually harassed at work in the last 3 years. That number was twice as high for people aged between 18 and 34. A recently high-profile exposé BBC accused McDonald’s of enabling a “toxic culture of sexual assault and harassment”. With 75% of their employee base being...Read More
0
Employment law: What changes are coming down the track?
The UK formally left the European Union on 31st January 2020. In the past three years, the UK government has had much to deal with (Covid, three Prime Ministers, and the passing of the UK’s longest reigning monarch to mention just a few). But it has now prepared plans to start using its “Brexit freedoms” to make changes to UK employment law. Working Time Regulations The government plans...Read More
0
Restrictive covenants; how to protect your business
Following on from our earlier dental bulletin there have been some developments in recent case law regarding the enforceability of restrictive covenants in employment contracts. What is a Restrictive Covenant – why is it used? A restrictive covenant is a clause found in most employment contracts for senior employees, or employees that deal directly with a company’s clients. They...Read More
0
Third-Party Harassment Bill – An Employer’s Duty to Protect their Staff
In 2013, David Cameron’s Conservative government repealed Section 40 of the Equality Act, which made employers liable for harassment by third parties such as customers, clients and service users, against their staff. Ironically, the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Bill, which has now completed its third reading, now seeks to reinstate the section 40 protections....Read More
0
Data Protection; what changes are in the pipeline?
Background and context The backbone of data protection law in the UK for the last five years has been the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Implemented in UK law through the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA), GDPR is widely viewed as a pioneering piece of data protection legislation.But the government has been eyeing up potential changes to GDPR since Brexit came...Read More
0
Government Announces Changes to Flexible Working and Increases in Rates of NMW
Flexible Working Rights – What are the changes and when will they come into force? Old Flexible Working Rights: In April 2003 the UK Government introduced the ‘right to request flexible working’. Initially, in order for an employee to benefit from this right they had to have a minimum of 26 weeks’ continuous employment. Although the right to request flexible...Read More
0