In the case of Opalkova v Acquire Care Ltd, Ms Opalkova was employed as a carer to deliver care to adults in their homes, travelling to service users homes throughout the day. Following the interview she was told that she had been successful and would be offered the post provided that she undertake an online training course prior to starting work. Ms Opalkova completed the test and passed and was then given her contract of employment.
Article by: Makbool Javaid, Partner - Simons Muirhead & Burton 14 October 2021
In the case of Mrs R Malone v The Chief Constable of the Police Service of Scotland a tribunal has ruled that a firearms officer was the victim of a sexist culture. The Tribunal accepted in evidence the examples of the ‘absolute boys club’ or ‘horrific’ culture given by Mrs Malone’s witnesses. There was also a WhatsApp Group which was used to send both work and leisure related messages including images of topless women. An Inspector was overheard calling one of the female Police Investigators ‘a wee lassie’. Two other female officers transferred out of the division because they were not confident that the sexist culture within the ARV division was going to change and felt that their sex was always going to be a barrier to promotion.
Article by: Makbool Javaid, Partner - Simons Muirhead & Burton 13 October 2021
New research made up of leading gender equality organisations, shines a light on sexual harassment in UK workplaces.
Article by: Makbool Javaid, Partner - Simons Muirhead & Burton 12 October 2021
In the case of Moore v Phoenix Product Development Ltd, Mr Moore was the inventor of a water-efficient toilet and the CEO of the company he founded for 16 years at which time he was replaced by Dylan Jones but remained an employee and director. He found it very hard to accept that he was no longer in charge of the company he considered to be his.
Article by: Makbool Javaid, Partner - Simons Muirhead & Burton 11 October 2021
In the case of Daly v BA Cityflyer Ltd, Chloe Daly was a senior flight attendant with British Airways CityFlyer. Following the birth of her daughter, she put in a request for flexible working after being unable to find suitable childcare arrangements. This was made more challenging by the fact that her work rota was unpredictable and changed from week to week.
Article by: Makbool Javaid, Partner - Simons Muirhead & Burton 8 October 2021
In the case of R (Cornerstone Fostering) v Ofsted, an independent Evangelical Christian fostering agency which places children in need with foster carers, has been found to have breached unlawful direct sexual orientation discrimination legislation to require that people who want join a foster agency as carers refrain from "homosexual behaviour".
Article by: Makbool Javaid, Partner - Simons Muirhead & Burton 7 October 2021
The government has unveiled plans to overhaul tipping practices. Most hospitality workers – many of whom are earning the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage – rely on tipping to top up their income. But research shows that many businesses that add a discretionary service charge onto customer’s bills are keeping part or all of these service charges, instead of passing them onto staff.
Article by: Makbool Javaid, Partner - Simons Muirhead & Burton 6 October 2021
Currently British law states that employees can only request to work flexibly after 26 weeks of employment and are limited to one request a year. The CIPD has been campaigning for employees to be given the right to request flexible working from day one.
Article by: Makbool Javaid, Partner - Simons Muirhead & Burton 5 October 2021
In the case of Kong v Gulf International Bank (UK) Ltd, Ms L Kong was employed as Head of Financial Audit. A draft audit report prepared by her raised concerns that a legal agreement relating to a certain financial product did not provide sufficient protection against certain risks. It was accepted by her employer that her observations constituted whistleblowing disclosures.
Article by: Makbool Javaid, Partner - Simons Muirhead & Burton 4 October 2021
In the recent case of Simoes v De Sede UK Ltd, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) confirmed that an employee can bring a claim for automatic unfair dismissal under s104 Employment Rights Act 1996 if they are instructed to infringe their statutory rights, even if the infringement has not actually occurred.
Article by: Makbool Javaid, Partner - Simons Muirhead & Burton 1 October 2021
