Professor sues Oxford University after “forced retirement”
A row over forced retirement has hit Oxford University, one of the most famous universities in the world. Famed for their elite facilities and higher-than-high standards, the Oxford University name commands respect for its quality and age. However, a recent breaking story has put the esteemed University into the headlines with a claim that the University has not respected the age of one of...Read More
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Sexual harassment at work
Sexual harassment at work seems to have become an epidemic. According to a recent BBC survey, ‘a third of women are harassed at work.’ For all the progress that has been made on achieving equality, sexual harassment has the potential to undermine it all. Is it really that common? According to the TUC a huge 53% of women are said to have been subject to sexual harassment at work....Read More
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Carers and sleep-ins – an important development
There has been a huge recent development which sleep-in carers across the country will want to be aware of, potentially changing the lives of carers everywhere. The case has even excited the interest of the newspapers. Should carers be paid the minimum wage during sleep-ins? There has been a wide range of academic opinion and conflicting cases. Some have argued that being paid the minimum wage...Read More
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Indirect religious discrimination and BBQs
Recently, indirect religious discrimination has been in the news – with a bit of a twist. With the ever-growing awareness for the environment, there is demand for businesses to be more environmentally-friendly. But it is less clear which strategies cross the line between forcing views on employees and those that encourage employees to make changes to their lifestyle. Recently, a global...Read More
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Disciplinary appeals and reinstatement
It is well established that an employee has a right to appeal the outcome of a disciplinary hearing. We look at some recent caselaw which raises the question of whether a successful appeal following the disciplinary appeal procedure can reverse what was originally a dismissal. Facts Mr Patel (the claimant) started working for Folkestone Nursing Home Limited (the respondent) as a Care Assistant...Read More
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Ken’s dismissal after 35 years
From time to time we tell you about a Birmingham employment law case we have recently dealt with. Our other stories are here. This is the story of Ken’s gross misconduct dismissal from a national supermarket after 35 years of service. Ken was the Store Manager. One aspect of his duties was overseeing the processing of stock, and more particularly the recording of stock that couldn’t be...Read More
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Third of women harassed at work
Being harassed at work is in the news more than ever before following the recent allegations about Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Bill O’Reilly, Morgan Freeman and others. The trade union Prospect recently carried out a study surveying 7,000 workers (40% female, 60% male) across a range of industries. The women reported that: 35% of them had experienced being harassed at work (62% of...Read More
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Employee, self-employed or worker? Pimlico Plumbers lose appeal
Employment status has been the hot topic, particularly on the question of whether staff are employees, self-employed or workers (like the cases of Uber and Deliveroo). Pimlico Plumbers have unsuccessfully appealed to the Supreme Court to overturn the decision that Mr Smith, a plumber, had worker status (rather than being self-employed). Facts Mr Smith had been working with Pimlico Plumbers for...Read More
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Barrister takes law firm to court for monitoring personal e-mails
Robert Jones (an employed Barrister at a law firm) has made a claim for breaching data protection laws, alleging that the firm accessed his personal emails over a period of several months. This article looks into the facts of this case and give an explanation of the law in this area. Facts Mr Jones was an employed barrister at a law firm called Lexlaw. During his employment, he and a colleague...Read More
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Metropolitan Police Force tries positive discrimination
From time to time we are contacted by journalists seeking background information or a legal angle on a news story, such as this one about positive discrimination. We have written about this topic before. We are always happy to help them because it minimises the misinformation about employment law in the media. Even though they generally call us with little notice to meet their publication...Read More
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