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In This Issue:
May
2007
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Welcome |
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Be nice to employees |
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Age discrimination |
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Paying salary to disabled employees |
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Bank holiday entitlement |
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Workplace smoking |
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Philosophical belief |
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And some snippets... |
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Featured Links:
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Welcome
A landmark House of Lords victimisation
ruling and the first age discrimination claim to reach an
employment tribunal are among this month's highlights.
And with the May Day break just behind us, there's
clarification on the position of part-time workers who do
not normally work on Mondays when it comes to claiming time
off in lieu for Monday bank holidays.
Among a raft of new support from Acas is guidance on the
smoking ban, now in force in Scotland, Wales and Northern
Ireland and just weeks away in England, and new legislation
includes changes to the regulations governing discrimination
on the grounds of sexual orientation and religion and
belief.
Malcolm Davies
Andersons Solicitors
Be nice to employees
Forceful and intimidating letters sent by an
employer to a group of employees bringing tribunal claims
can amount to victimisation, the House of Lords has ruled in
St Helens Borough Council v Derbyshire.
The Law Lords held that the employer — who had written to 39
equal pay claimants telling them they might be responsible
for costing their colleagues their jobs if they won — had
subjected their employees to a detriment on the grounds that
they had brought a tribunal claim. They will now be awarded
compensation for the victimisation, which is quite separate
from their equal pay claims.
Age discrimination
The Equality Tribunal in the Republic of
Ireland has made an age discrimination ruling on questions
asked during the job interview process.
In Cunningham v BMS Sales, the job application form
included questions such as 'living with
parents/renting/mortgaged accommodation', 'number of
children', 'age', and 'date of birth'.
The applicant responded with incorrect information on the
grounds that the questions were 'irrelevant and invasive'
and despite being suitable for the job was not appointed.
The tribunal held that he had been discriminated against on
the grounds of age.
Paying salary to disabled employees
An employer is not obliged to pay disabled
employees as part of their duty to make reasonable
adjustments, the Court of Appeal had ruled in O'Hanlon v
HM Revenue & Customs.
The decision states that the courts should not interpret the
Disability Discrimination Act 1995 in a way which encourages
employees to stay away from work and it is unreasonable to
expect an employer to subsidise indefinitely long-term sick
staff who qualify as disabled.
Bank holiday entitlement
An employer who does not give a part-time
employee time off to reflect Monday bank holidays is not
discriminating under the Part Time Workers (Prevention of
Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2000, the Court of
Session has ruled in McMenemy v Capita Business Services
Ltd.
The court found that Mr McMenemy — who worked Wednesday to
Friday — had not been treated less favourably because of his
part-time status.
He was not entitled to time off in lieu of Monday bank
holidays because he did not work on Mondays, and a
full-timer working Tuesday-Saturday would have been treated
in the same way as under the company contract of employment
time off in lieu for public holidays was only due 'where
these fall on your normal working day'. Accordingly he lost
his claim.
Workplace smoking
Acas has produced a Q&A sheet
on the impact of the Health Act 2006 which outlaws smoking
in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Acas guide focuses on the impact of the legislation —
already in force in Wales and Northern Ireland and taking
effect on 1 July in England — with a series of questions
including:
- I have been smoking at
work for eight years so doesn't that give me a right to
continue?
- can I claim I suffer from an addiction under the
Disability Discrimination Act?
- how can I get my reluctant workforce to take the new
ban seriously?
- what if customers insist on smoking on my premises?
Visit the
Acas website for more detail.
Philosophical belief
The law has changed, so as to widen the
people protected under the Religion and Belief
discrimination legislation. It replaced the definition of
religion or belief — previously 'any religion, religious
belief or similar philosophical belief' — with 'any
religion, or religious or philosophical belief', so removing
the word 'similar'.
The original definition was interpreted in Baggs v Fudge
— a case in which a BNP member claimed fascism was a
'similar philosophical belief' — as having to mean that the
philosophical belief was similar in nature to a religious
belief. Accordingly, Mr Baggs' claim was struck out.
The new definition may mean that it can be argued that
fundamental political beliefs are now protected by the
discrimination legislation.
And some snippets...
Sexual Orientation and Religious Belief Discrimination
Recent research has shown that two-thirds of sexual
orientation and religious belief discrimination claims are
brought by men.
Trade union membership
The proportion of workers belonging to a trade union fell
again in 2006, down from 29 per cent of the workforce in
2005 to 28.4 per cent, according to figures published by the
DTI. The survey also found that a higher proportion of women
than men were members.
Days lost through 'sickies'
More than 175 million days are lost through employee
sickness, at a cost of £13.4 billion a year, with workers
taking off an average of seven days in 2006, according to a
recent survey. Of these, around 12 per cent were 'sickies',
with 70 per cent of employers saying staff were inclined to
take Mondays or Fridays off to create a long weekend, 68 per
cent finding a link between 'sickies' and holidays, and 39
per cent saying absence was linked to special events such as
sporting tournaments.
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About Andersons
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Andersons offer a comprehensive employment law service to a
broad client base comprised mainly of quoted and private
companies, public authorities, charities and private
individuals, many of whom are household names. Our expertise
covers all aspects of employment law and in particular
matters relating to litigation, re-organisations, severance,
training and general HR advice. We act for clients on a
nationwide basis and represent clients all over the country
in Employment Tribunals, the Employment Appeal Tribunals and
other courts.
If you require advice or assistance in respect of any
particular matter, please contact Malcolm Davies on
Malcolm
Davies . For more information
about Andersons, please see our website
http://www.andersonssolicitors.co.uk .
Disclaimer
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The information and any commentary contained in these
bulletins is for general information purposes only and does
not constitute legal or any other type of professional
advice. Andersons Solicitors do not accept and, to the
extent permitted by law, exclude liability to any person for
any loss which may arise from relying upon or otherwise
using the information contained in these bulletins.
If you have a particular query or issue you are strongly
advised to obtain specific, personal advice about your case
or matter and not to rely on the information or comments in
this bulletin.
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