May 2021 - Didlaw

Latest furlough judgment – furloughed agency worker accrued holiday pay

28 May 2021

The trend for furlough claims in the Employment Tribunal is going nowhere but up. Expect them to last for a number of years. The latest case involves a temp worker, Ms Healy, who joined Start People, an employment agency, in February 2020. On 25 March whilst undertaking her first assignment for the agency she was […]

another health and safety dismissal – this time it was unfair

27 May 2021

Employees are entitled to raise their concerns of health and safety at work and if they are dismissed for doing so, they may have a claim for automatic unfair dismissal under section 100 of the Employment Rights Act 1996. In this recent case, Ms O’Harris worked as a nanny for Domitille Rambaud for just over […]

post lockdown return to the workplace – part 3: mental health

26 May 2021

The third in the series of our return to the workplace blogs, this week we shine an important spotlight on mental health and well-being. Of course, even before the COVID-19 pandemic mental health was a key concern for employers. One in four people are impacted by mental ill health at some point in their lives, […]

ACAS’s report estimating the costs of workplace conflict

25 May 2021

This month ACAS issued a report which was prepared by the University of Sheffield Management School and Professor Peter Urwin of the Centre for Employment Research, University of Westminster looking at the workplace landscape pre-Covid between 2018 and 2019. The headline of the report is startling – the costs of workplace conflict to UK organisations […]

Did the Queen’s speech indicate that new employment legislation is in the pipeline?

21 May 2021

No, despite it being anticipated that the government would be introduced a unified employment bill and reform apprenticeship levies. Instead, the government’s focus has turned to putting “skills” on centre stage rather than introducing new employment legislation. It is no surprise that the Queen’s speech concentrated on recovery for the pandemic. But rather than looking […]

post lockdown return to the workplace – part 2: health concerns

20 May 2021

Welcome to part 2 in the series of these return to the workplace blogs. This week we focus on the physical health-related issues that are likely to arise as employees are invited (or ordered) back to the work. Whilst the current government advice remains to work at home wherever possible, this is likely to change […]

Fired. Rehired. Ignored.

19 May 2021

Last week the Guardian reported that 76% of respondents to a GMB poll said that ‘fire and rehire’ tactics should be unlawful. A previous blog by my colleague, Mark Alaszewski, set out the worrying trend for employers to use fire and rehire tactics. More employers are using this unpopular practice and the bitter and very […]

NMC v Somerville: Can legal professionals be classed as workers?

18 May 2021

A few weeks ago I reported on the Supreme Court’s decision in the Uber taxi drivers case which found that 3 Uber drivers had the legal status of workers and were therefore entitled to holiday pay and other basic employment rights. At the time of the decision there was a good deal of pontificating amongst […]

another reminder about tribunal time limits – this time for employers!

14 May 2021

Last month I discussed the matter of Adedeji v University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust. This case was an important reminder to claimants that they should file their claim at the tribunal within the tribunal time limits. Now we have a reminder to respondents that tribunal time limits apply to them too in the case […]