The government has published draft  Regulations, which will increase the maximum financial penalty for employers who flout the national minimum wage from £5,000 to £20,000. This change is expected to come into force in February 2014. In addition, the government also wants to introduce legislation as soon as possible so that the maximum £20,000 penalty can apply in respect of each underpaid worker.
Read More

The Employment Appeal Tribunal decided that the Agency Workers Regulations 2010 did not apply to a group of agency workers who were assigned to one hirer for periods ranging between six and 25 years. Each worker was employed by the agency and had a written statement of particulars which contained many of the features of a permanent contract of employment. The Regulations define “agency worker” as “an individual who is supplied by a temporary work agency to work temporarily for and under the supervision and direction of a hirer”. “Temporary” in this context mean not permanent. For employment purposes, a
Read More

In this case the occupational health adviser had stated that the employee, who had been signed off work for depression caused by work-related stress, was not “covered” by the disability discrimination legislation. The employer argued that because of this OH statement, it could not have known that the employee was in fact disabled. The employer therefore believed that this was sufficient to avoid the obligation to make reasonable adjustments as required by disability legislation. However, the Court of Appeal said that the employer should have gone further. While occupational health assessments or other medical advice may be helpful, a responsible
Read More