March

Oh lay member, lay member, wherefore art thou?

The Government has released details of its proposals to develop a fast-track system for employment tribunals to deal with simple monetary claims involving unlawful deductions from wages, breach of contract, redundancy pay, holiday pay and the national minimum wage, where employment judges will sit alone without the assistance of lay members.

National minimum wage increases for October 2008

The Government has announced increases in the national minimum wage which will take effect on 1 October 2008. The adult rate will rise to £5.73 per hour, and the new development and young workers' rates will increase to £4.77 and £3.53 respectively, but the Low Pay Commission's recommendation that 21 year olds should be entitled to the adult NMW rate was rejected.  

Big Brother - appearing in a workplace near you, shortly 

Microsoft is developing a Big Brother-style software programme capable of remotely monitoring a worker's productivity, physical well-being and competence. The system would allow managers to monitor employees' performance by measuring their heart rate, temperature, movement, facial expression and blood pressure. 

Ill health is costing the country £100 billion a year

A vision of a healthier Britain has been unveiled by the National Director for Health and Work, including proposals for radical changes to work-related health services making them available to all, as the cost of ill health in the UK is £100 billion a year.

Joint statement on executive contracts and severance

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) and National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF), have published a statement of best practice setting out the expectations of shareholders that boards must avoid inappropriate termination provisions incorporated in contracts for senior executives which result in rewarding failure. 

Classic case of how not to deal with contract change

In Robinson v Tescom Corporation, the EAT held that an employee who agreed to work in accordance with new terms of employment under protest, but who then insisted on working under his old terms, was fairly dismissed. Having agreed to work under the new terms, the employee could not subsequently refuse to do so.

Limited investigation sufficient where misconduct was admitted

In Millbrook Proving Ground Ltd v Jefferson the EAT held that the tribunal had been wrong to consider that a reasonable employer could not base its conclusions on the evidence it had, without further investigation, as the employee had admitted all along that he had made offensive racialist comments.

Employer liable for suicide following accident at work

In Corr v IBC Vehicles Ltd, the House of Lords held that IBC was liable under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976 for the suicide of an employee who suffered from severe depression having being seriously injured in a work accident caused by the employer's negligence. Suicide was a foreseeable result of the injuries.