Entries by Neil Spectrum

Budget

There were a number of measures of importance to employers in the budget, including a small change to the taxation of termination payments, following a government consultation last year. From April 2018, termination payments (for redundancy, for example) in excess of £30,000 which are already subject to income tax will also be liable for employer […]

National living wage

From 1 April the new National Living Wage (NLW) is payable to workers aged 25 and over. The introductory rate is set at £7.20 an hour and is expected to rise to over £9 by 2020. BIS guidance on ‘Calculating the minimum wage’ has been updated to reflect the new wage. The Low Pay Commission […]

Recent case law on monitoring, dismissal and references

Recent case law on monitoring, dismissal and references A Romanian case on Yahoo messaging at work prompts a flurry of press reports, constructive dismissal is tested in the EAT, and an adverse verbal reference leads to successful disability discrimination claims against both former and prospective employers Online monitoring A recent decision of the European Court […]

Landmark cases for HR in 2016

Landmark cases for HR in 2016 The following cases are due to be considered by the UK courts and at a European level during 2016. They deal with current HR issues such as calculating holiday pay correctly, religious dress and discrimination at work, whistleblowing and unfair dismissal claims, the transfer regulations, collective redundancy consultation requirements, […]

Prominent cases in 2015

Discrimination law has been growing in scope, while travel to work time, holiday pay, employee misdemeanours on social media, and collective consultation obligations have all featured in claims before courts and tribunals this year – and some of these are still running. Working time The Court of Justice of the European Union decided in the […]

April enforcement dates…

April enforcement dates, new legislation, and the latest case law from courts and tribunals This month the shared parental leave rules reached the ‘expected week of childbirth’ trigger, the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 became law just before Parliament shut down for the general election, an employment tribunal released the first part of […]

Spring employment law changes

Regulations, statutory amendments, and case law continue to push forward developments in employment law Compensation rates rise, first shared parental leave babies are born, and ‘vaping’ reaches the tribunal system Tribunal awards New tribunal compensation limits have been announced. The capped award for unfair dismissal increases from £76,574 to £78,335; the maximum basic award for […]

Holiday pay back in the spotlight, collective redundancy consultation rules assessed, and statutory pay rates rise

Holiday pay back in the spotlight, collective redundancy consultation rules assessed, and statutory pay rates rise The Lock case returns to a UK tribunal and the European advocate general decides on the meaning of ‘establishment’ in the Woolworth’s case Holiday pay The case which looked at whether commission should be included in holiday pay, Lock […]

‘Fit for work’ website and helpline goes ‘live’

‘Fit for work’ website and helpline goes ‘live’, prohibition on forced subject access requests is delayed, and no appeal yet on holiday pay overtime case Fit for work      Assessment and advice service aimed at speeding ‘return to work’ for employees on long-term sick leave begins this month The government is beginning to implement […]