Clarke and Son News

In the current economic climate redundancies are becoming more and more common. Both employers and employees are having to go through the compulsory redundancy process and although the procedures have relaxed slightly since April they can still cause problems, particularly for employers. In some cases the employer will be prepared to offer a “deal” to the employee so that the employment relationship can end on agreed terms without the stress caused by having to follow lengthy and sometimes overly formal procedures. However such a deal needs to be embodied in what is known as a Compromise Agreement, which is a specific type of Agreement, created and controlled by statute, designed to end employment relationships.

Essentially the Compromise Agreement will provide for the employee to receive a sum of money as compensation for loss of his or her job and in return the employee will agree not to pursue any further claims against the employer arising out of the employment or its termination.

The benefit for the employer is that they will often receive more than their strict legal entitlement, such as the statutory redundancy payment. The benefit for the employer is that the Agreement represents finality and it removes the risk of an expensive Employment Tribunal claim from the employer following termination of the employment.

A crucial part of the procedure for a Compromise Agreement is that the employee must take independent legal advice from his own Solicitor and the Agreement will contain a certificate from the Advisor that such advice has been given. This is designed to prevent employees being pressured into signing Agreements which are not in their best interests or which do not provide them with adequate compensation for the loss of their job.

Since the taking of legal advice is essential for the Agreement to be valid the employer will invariably make a reasonable contribution to the employee’s legal costs.

If you are facing redundancy or if your employer is talking to you about a Compromise Agreement then we can advise you on your position. Contact Nick Bowers, Partner for further information or advice on any aspect of Employment Law.

Over the last decade, there has been a significant increase in employment legislation that has originated from both the EU and the UK.

It’s an established fact that many businesses, and small businesses in particular, find the steady stream of employment legislation extremely challenging.

For employees too, Employment Law can often be viewed as minefield of information beset with potential pitfalls - especially in the area of redundancy which, unfortunately, is an all-too-common occurrence in these changing economic times.

Whether you are a business owner, employee or former employee, there is no substitute for qualified, professional advice to give you all the facts you need under current legislation.

Areas in which our Employment Law specialists can advise our clients include:

• Redundancy, Lay-Offs and Short-Time Working
• Dismissal and Grievance Rules
• Employment Terms & Conditions
• Parental, Paternity or Maternity Leave
• Parental, Paternity or Maternity Pay
• Working Time Regulations
• Flexible Working
• Agency Workers
• Self-Employed
• National Minimum Wage
• Equal Pay and Conditions
• Health & Safety in the Workplace
• Disability Discrimination
• Age Discrimination
• Sex Discrimination
• Race Discrimination
• Employee Holiday Entitlement
• National Minimum Wage
• Employing Migrant Workers.

If you have an issue that needs to be resolved either as a business owner or as a worker, or you’re simply looking for some friendly help and advice, contact us or e-mail Nicholas Bowers direct.

Approximately one million workers will have benefited now that the national minimum wage (NMW) has increased to £5.73 per hour from Wednesday, 1 October, the TUC says.

Two-thirds of the beneficiaries are women, reinforcing the NMW’s positive role in narrowing the gender pay gap.

The increase in the NMW will also save the taxpayer an extra £245 million in reduced payments of in-work benefits. This week’s 3.8 per cent increase in the NMW (from £5.52 to £5.73) will be the ninth increase since it was introduced in April 1998.

Nicholas Bowers, Partner and Head of Employment Issues and Litigation says of the change, “At Clarke & Son, we welcome this move towards wage equality as it improves the financial position of lower-paid workers.”

For more information on Employment Issues contact Nicholas Bowers direct or telephone: 01256 320 555.

Changes to maternity law introduced earlier this month in the UK could see employers lumbered with huge costs in forking out for unforeseen pension payments for women on maternity leave.

Employment experts have warned that under amendments to the Sex Discrimination Act (SDA) introduced on 6 April, employers could now be liable for pension contributions for as long as a female employee takes maternity leave - up to a year in some cases.

The legislation states that an employer only needs to pay pension contributions for a maximum of 39 weeks. But Kate Gater, partner at law firm Berwin Leighton Paisner, warned that even employees who are not eligible for statutory maternity pay because they have insufficient service could now be entitled to extended pension payments.

Read more at Personnel Today.

Employers could be held liable for the suicides of ex-employees after a landmark ruling by the House of Lords.

Law Lords ruled unanimously that the widow of a man who killed himself six years after a workplace accident should be compensated by his former employers. The decision upheld a previous judgment in 2006 that the company was responsible for the death of a former employee.

In 1996, Thomas Corr was hit on the head by a metal panel as a result of defective machinery. He later suffered from depression, headaches and mood swings. He committed suicide in May 2002.

In the original case, his employer, car manufacturer IBC Vehicles, admitted liability for the workplace accident, but denied that it was responsible for the suicide.

A deputy judge in the High Court awarded his widow £82,520 after finding IBC could not be held responsible for Corr taking his own life. Corr’s widow then appealed that decision and the Court of Appeal found IBC Vehicles was responsible his suicide. IBC subsequently appealed to the House of Lords which confirmed that the company was liable.

Ref. Personnel Today

Employers in the UK will need to tighten up their discrimination and flexible working policies following a landmark disability decision at the European Court of Justice.

This will almost certainly to give rise to new rights for millions of workers in the UK, legal experts have warned. (Personnel Today)

An advocate-general at the Court confirmed last week that Sharon Coleman suffered ‘discrimination by association’ as a carer for her four-year old disabled son, claiming she was forced to quit her job after she requested time off to look after him.

The opinion, likely to be approved by the ECJ later this year, could mean that the millions of workers who care for disabled people will be able to claim unlimited discrimination damages if their employer treats them worse than non-carers in businesses through the UK.

This could pave the way for discrimination claims on the grounds of association with people of different ages, religions, or sexual orientation.

Nick Thomas, senior associate at law firm Jones Day, warned that Employers will need to review their harassment or discrimination policies to ensure they are broad enough to prevent people not only from making comments about the [minority] individual, but about anybody associated with them.

Read more at Personnel Today

Making staff redundant has just become much tougher for UK companies after a landmark ruling moved the UK closer to continental-style employment laws, reports Personnel Today.

A decision by the Employment Appeal Tribunal last week significantly changed employers’ obligations when consulting with staff representatives over collective redundancies.

Legal experts warned that employers will now be forced to involve unions and staff in the decision-making process when they plan to close businesses and make multiple redundancies.

UK employers have not previously needed to consult with unions about the reason for closing a workplace.

The judgment also means unions could demand access to critical business information to challenge the rationale for closures. Firms could be liable for millions of pounds in compensation if they fail to follow proper procedures.

The compensation paid by employers who discriminated against employees fell by almost £1m last year, as the number of successful employment tribunal claims decreased for the second year in a row. (Personnel Today)

But the average tribunal award remained almost unchanged, dropping from £7,567 in 2005 to £7,500 in 2006.

Researchers analysed 313 awards under sex, race and disability discrimination laws and the 2003 regulations covering discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation and religious belief.

In total, employers were ordered to pay a total of £4,150,225, rising with interest to £4,295,160. This is compared with £5.2m in 2005, and £6.2m in 2004.

A flood of age discrimination claims could leave UK employers facing a £12m compensation bill, government figures have revealed, reports Personnel Today.

Statistics revealed from the now-defunct DTI showed about 600 claims had been registered since the introduction of age discrimination legislation last October. The average disability discrimination claim is £20,000.

These figures emerged after a survey by Berwin Leighton Paisner found that . The City law firm questioned 50 firms employing 78,000 workers.

One in 10 respondents to a recent survey by Berwin Leighton Paisner had already received age discrimination claims with more than half of respondents saying that the UK workplace was over-regulated. Experts have issued a stern warning to employers over their responsibilities.

The CBI has claimed that the introduction of 35 new employment rights over the past nine years has cost UK businesses £37bn.

"Employers will have to review their employment practices, but I expect a period
of transition where employers will need to go through what they can and can’t do." said CBI head of employment and employee relations Katja Hall.

Employers could face two years in jail for knowingly employing illegal migrant workers, under a crackdown launched by the government, reports Personnel Today.

The Home Office has proposed the tough sentence, along with other measures, in a document put out to consultation. It would be the first time the law had made a distinction between those employers who deliberately hire illegal migrants and those who do so accidentally.

The new offence would also carry an unlimited fine with penalties of up to £10,000 per worker levied on those employers who are “less than diligent” in carrying out visa checks on their staff.