Age Discrimination - Be Prepared
There are currently 20 million people aged 50 and over in the UK and the figure is expected to reach 27 million by 2030. On 1 October 2006, the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations came into effect. This legislation makes it unlawful to...Can We Stop Them
Restrictive covenants (clauses which are normally found in contracts of employment and partnership agreements, which restrict the right of a person to compete with his or her firm) have always been a difficult area of law. The courts are able to...Changes to Family Friendly Legislation
The Work and Families Act introduces measures intended to give more choice to families attempting to balance work and caring responsibilities. It imposes significant new obligations on employers. The period of statutory maternity...Changes to Statutory Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures
The Government is keen to promote alternative ways of settling workplace disputes. Since October 2004, employers and employees have been required to follow statutory minimum procedures to make sure that disputes are discussed at work. Not only...Compromise Agreements - Tax Position Clarified
A compromise agreement is an agreement made between an employer and an employee who is having their contract of employment terminated. It sets out the terms under which the termination will take place and contains a provision that the employee will receive a...False Claims on a CV - What to Do
According to research by the Risk Advisory Group, more than half of CVs submitted by job applicants contain lies or inaccuracies. These range from gaps in employment history to false claims regarding qualifications and failure to mention fraud committed...Fuel Rates Down
HMRC announced on 29 Jan that the rates payable for car fuel (where a mileage rate is paid to company car users for business travel) was to be reduced from 1 February 2007. The mileage rates are payable when an employee uses a...Immigration and the Points-Based System
Under the Points Based System (PBS) for immigration most people applying to come to or remain in the UK to work or study who are not nationals of the European Economic Area (EEA) or Swiss nationals will require a certificate of sponsorship from a...M&S Whisleblower Dismissal - Who is Right?
In early September Marks & Spencer (M&S) dismissed an employee who had disclosed the company's redundancy plans to "The Times" two weeks earlier. The employee's union, the GMB, confirmed that the man had been dismissed for gross misconduct...Pension Scheme Deficits Action Plan
In accordance with the Pensions Act 2004 all defined benefit schemes must have regular actuarial valuations to ensure that the scheme meets the ‘Statutory Funding Objective’ (SFO). To ensure SFO compliance, the...Pension Schemes and Age Discrimination
The parts of the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 that apply to pension schemes came into force on 1 December 2006. The Regulations prohibit age-related discrimination and harassment, allowing discriminatory treatment...Recruitment - Preventing Illegal Working Without Discrimination
Hardly a day goes by without there being some mention of illegal immigration in the news. The number of people discovered working here unlawfully has risen sharply in recent years. There has been much talk of the possible introduction of a...Statutory Maternity, Adoption and Paternity Pay Rates
The standard weekly rate of Statutory Maternity Pay, Statutory Adoption Pay and Statutory Paternity Pay increased...Tackling Work-Related Stress
Research commissioned by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) indicates that about half a million people in the UK experience work-related stress at a level they believe is affecting their health. In addition, up to five million people feel "very"...The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006
Owners and managers of commercial premises, employers whose workers use, install, remove, maintain or demolish premises that may contain asbestos and businesses providing construction or building services are all affected by the Control...Unfair Dismissal and Illegality
It is an established principle of law that illegal contracts are unenforceable. In a recent case, the Sheffield Employment Tribunal (ET) refused to allow a claim for unfair dismissal brought by a woman who had been employed for three years as a chef in a Thai...When Overtime Can Mean More Pension Entitlement
Employers who are relying on the fact that overtime is not taken into account when assessing the pension entitlement of their employees should check the implications of a recent Court of Appeal case. The case involved a caretaker employed by Newham Borough...
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