Publications

In Miles v Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency the EAT held that the Claimant was not subjected to a detriment or a dismissal for health and safety reasons when he refused to go back to work as a driving examiner during the Coronavirus pandemic.

For every 13 people currently working, one person is long-term sick. It is reported that this increase is being driven by Mental ill health, musculoskeletal injuries (MSK) (possibly as a result of home working environment) and long Covid.

The Government have recently published guidance on how employers who choose to use positive action can help people who share a particular protected characteristic to overcome certain barriers under the measures.

We discuss the recent case of Boydell v NZP Ltd, in which the Court of Appeal upheld a High Court decision to apply the ‘blue-pencil’ principle and delete wording from a non-compete clause in order to make it enforceable.

In Cook v Gentoo the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) found that an Employment Tribunal should not have dismissed a direct age discrimination claim resulting from a decision to hurry through the redundancy process for an employee, in order to avoid making an enhanced pension payment.

ACAS have launched new guidance on reasonable adjustments for mental health at work with the aim of providing support and practical steps for both employers and employees.

In Cope v Razzle Dazzle Costumes Ltd the ET held that an employee who handed in her keys and said "I'm done" with a hand gesture did not resign.

Last week was the deadline for organisations to submit their 2022/2023 Gender Pay Gap data. The UK’s latest data is being reported as showing the average gender pay gap at the same level as five years ago.

Following the announcement of the new Returnership Programme in the Spring 2023 Budget which is targeted at over 50s, the Government has now published employer guidance on how they can help individuals return to work.

In McQueen v General Optical Council the EAT considered whether an employee’s inappropriate conduct in the workplace was something arising from his disability and therefore protected under Equality Legislation.

As the start of a new tax year approaches there will be an increase to the statutory rates payable for certain employment rights that will apply from April 2023. We have detailed these in this week’s blog below.

In the last week headlines have been dominated by Gary Lineker, having been suspended by the BBC due to a comment he made on his personal social media account about the Government’s asylum policy.