Introduction (1879 words)

Employment law continues to change and expand, with the introduction every year of new legislation and judgments that affect the way the law is ...

1. The employment law system (4493 words)

Employment rights in the UK come from two main sources. The first is legislation enacted by Parliament in the form of Acts of Parliament statutory law (from “statute”, which is another word for a piece of legislation). The second is common law (also referred to as case law), which has developed over the years from decisions made by judges in specific cases. ...

2. Categories of worker (7851 words)

There are legal distinctions between an employee , a worker and someone who is genuinely self-employed . These distinctions are important because individuals have different statutory employment rights according to their employment status. ...

3. Starting work and the employment contract (9495 words)

Most employers require a reference before they will employ someone. Young workers starting work for the first time are likely to come with references ...

4. Rights to pay and conditions (6472 words)

Under the National Minimum Wage Act 1998 , UK workers have the right to a minimum wage , currently set at £5.80 an hour for those aged 22 or over (£5.93 from 1 October 2010 for those aged 21 and over). Young people aged 18 to 21 get a lower rate of £4.83 (£4.92 from 1 October 2010 for those aged 18 to 20 ). Sixteen- and 17-year-olds have a lower rate of £3.57 an hour (£3.64 from 1 October 2010). ...

5. Union and collective organisation (5793 words)

Union and collective organisation rights are principally governed by the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (TULRCA), which was amended by the Employment Relations Act 1999 (ERA 99) and the Employment Relations Act 2004 (ERA 04). In Northern Ireland these rights are found in the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1995 (TULRO), as amended. ...

6. Discrimination (19041 words)

The last few decades have seen the introduction of laws designed to prevent discrimination in employment. At different times, and using different tests, the sex and transsexuality , race and nationality , disability , sexual orientation , religion or belief and age . Discrimination in pay on grounds of sex is covered by equal pay legislation. ...

7. Sick pay and sickness absence (3569 words)

An employer must provide his/her employees with details of their sick pay entitlement as part of the written statement of employment particulars (see “The statutory sick pay (SSP) scheme. Employees who do not benefit from such a scheme but who meet the qualifying criteria are entitled to SSP of £79.15 a week (unchanged from 2009), for a maximum of 28 weeks . To be entitled to SSP an employee must be earning an average of at least £97 a week . SSP is paid by the employer in the same way they would normally pay wages but reclaimed from the state. ...

8. Leave for working parents (5218 words)

The Work and Families Act 2006 introduced a number of new rights for parents and carers from April 2007. These included an increase in paid maternity and adoption leave from ...

9. Industrial action (6535 words)

The law relating to industrial action covers not just strikes but lockouts , go slows , working to rule , and refusing to cross picket lines , regardless of whether or not industrial action is in breach of an agreed procedure. Overtime bans (even where overtime is voluntary) are normally considered as industrial action since the aim of those carrying it out is to put pressure on ...

10. Dismissal (15719 words)

Unfair dismissal accounts for the largest single category of claims coming before tribunals, with thousands of people pursuing claims every year. The right to “employees” (see Chapter 2) and, except for most of those dismissals that are deemed to be “automatically” unfair, the employee must have been continuously employed at least a year . ...

11. Redundancy (7754 words)

An employee is dismissed for redundancy, and may be entitled to redundancy pay, if either of the following occurs (section 139 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 96)): ...

12. Business transfers and contracting out (9172 words)

If a business is sold (other than through a share transfer) or if a service is privatised or contracted out, the employees who work Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE). These replaced the 1981 regulations with effect from 6 April 2006. The effect of the TUPE regulations is to make sure that when employees transfer with it and that their terms and conditions stay the same . However, there are some exceptions — occupational pensions do not transfer, and some changes may be allowed for an economic, technical or organisational ...

Further information (836 words)

Throughout the booklet references have been made to the relevant statutes. Copies of these can be obtained online from the Office for Public Sector www.opsi.gov.uk . In Northern Ireland, legislation is available online from the Labour Relations Agency website at www.lra.org.uk . ...

Employment rights — quick facts (836 words)

Rest break at work of at least 20 minutes (if working day is six hours long or more). ...