Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
Employment legal update #39: August 2020
Our Employment & HR team brings its monthly review of new legislation, guidance and case law.
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What employers need to know before shielders can return to work on 1 August
Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
As lockdown eases, the government has announced that from 1 August shielding guidance in England will be paused (although this will continue in Wales until at least 16 August). Gemma Ospedale explains the key information employers need to consider.
Employment legal update #38
Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
Our Employment & HR team brings its monthly review of new legislation, guidance and case law.
Returning to work in the coronavirus world: Part 3 – Working from Home
Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
In this third and final part of our “Returning to work” series, we examine the pros and cons of working from home and issues employers need to consider if staff continue to work from home on a longer term basis.
New guidance on flexible furlough issued
Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
The Government has today (26 June 2020) issued a Treasury Direction concerning the new flexible furlough scheme which comes into force on 1 July 2020.
Returning to work in the coronavirus world: Part 2 – Staff
Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
In this second part of our return to work series, we examine some of the issues which employers may experience in asking people to return to work and risks of which they need to be aware.
Employee hot spots: can you take the temperature of your staff?
Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
Employers across the UK are thinking about how to get staff back to work safely, and part of that plan might include taking temperature checks of employees before they enter the office. But what are the legal implications of this apparently simple process?
What are the latest changes to the UK furlough scheme?
Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
With approximately 8.4m jobs furloughed, roughly ¼ of the total jobs in the UK, and 1m employers furloughing, costing the Government £15b, it was inevitable that some changes would have to be brought into the furlough scheme. However, the announcements on Friday are less draconian than many had feared.
Key changes to the Job Retention Scheme
Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
Recently, the Chancellor made a further Treasury Direction in relation to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.
Returning to work in the coronavirus world: Part 1 – Workplace
Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
Part 1: Work stations and premises
Now that the Government has relaxed some of the lockdown restrictions and advised that people may, under certain circumstances, return to work, there are a number of issues about which employers need to think carefully to ensure the workplace is suitable and appropriate for a return of employees and workers bearing in mind social distancing and the need to protect health. In this first of a three-part series, we look at what needs to be done in the workstation and premises to ensure health and safety is protected.
Charity chief executive wins unfair dismissal case
Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
The former boss of Britain’s best-known HIV charity was unfairly dismissed because she had blown the whistle about the alleged misbehaviour of a trustee, an Employment Tribunal has concluded.
Territorial Jurisdiction test
Posted by Gemma Ospedale, Partner
In R (on the Application of Hottak and Another) v Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and Another, the Court of Appeal has confirmed that employees who work abroad and wished to bring claims under the Equality Act in the UK must satisfy the same territorial jurisdiction test as that established in the House of Lords (as it then was) in Lawson v Serco Limited in relation to unfair dismissal claims under the Employment Rights Act. In doing so, the Court dismissed an appeal against the Divisional Court’s decision that Afghan nationals who were employed by the British Government to work as interpreters for British military forces in Afghanistan could not bring Equality Act claims.