LRD guides and handbook September 2023

Law at Work 2023

Introduction

Introduction [page 1] (828 words)

The government’s assault on trade union rights has continued over the past year. Its Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023 was bulldozed ...
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Chapter 1

The employment law system [page 3] (94 words)

Employment rights in the UK have two main sources. The first is the employment contract, which sets out the terms and conditions that have been ...
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EU law since Brexit [page 3] (1,414 words)

Enforcing your rights [page 5] (2,481 words)

Chapter 2

Employment status and categories of worker [page 11] (254 words)

Some employment rights, such as the rate of pay and hours of work, are determined by the employment contract. These are contractual rights and are ...
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Employee, worker or self-employed? [page 11] (3,004 words)

Agency workers [page 17] (3,597 words)

Apprentices [page 25] (444 words)

Children [page 26] (200 words)

Fixed-term (temporary) employees [page 26] (1,112 words)

Homeworkers [page 28] (213 words)

Interns [page 29] (353 words)

Part-time workers [page 29] (1,639 words)

Volunteers [page 32] (168 words)

Zero hours contract workers [page 33] (725 words)

Chapter 3

Starting work and the employment contract [page 35] (118 words)

An employment relationship starts when an individual agrees to work for an employer on certain terms. The terms agreed will form a contract and this ...
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Pre-employment checks [page 35] (2,932 words)

The employment contract [page 40] (8,679 words)

Chapter 4

Pay and conditions [page 57] (50 words)

An individual’s pay and conditions are contained in their contract of employment, but they are subject to some minimum statutory rights and ...
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The National Minimum Wage (NMW) [page 57] (4,759 words)

Pay slips and pay intervals [page 66] (269 words)

Wage deductions and shortfalls [page 66] (1,924 words)

Guarantee pay (lay-off or short-time working) [page 69] (652 words)

Paid medical suspension [page 71] (213 words)

Overtime [page 71] (346 words)

Pensions [page 72] (1,026 words)

Working hours and breaks [page 74] (1,545 words)

WTR record keeping [page 77] (2,194 words)

Annual leave and pay [page 81] (3,428 words)

Chapter 5

Sick pay and sickness absence [page 89] (171 words)

Employees who are unable to work because they are sick or injured are not entitled to their normal pay. If they meet the eligibility criteria, they ...
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The Fit Note [page 89] (613 words)

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) [page 90] (374 words)

Contractual sick pay [page 91] (2,069 words)

Keeping in touch with staff on sick leave [page 94] (240 words)

Absence management procedures [page 95] (851 words)

Sickness absence dismissals [page 96] (2,853 words)

Pregnancy-related sickness absence [page 101] (206 words)

Sickness absence during notice period [page 102] (60 words)

Sickness absence and strike action [page 102] (162 words)

Sickness absence and redundancy selection [page 102] (175 words)

Medical reports and records [page 103] (203 words)

Data protection [page 103] (100 words)

Chapter 6

Trade unions and collective organisation [page 105] (558 words)

Most union and collective organisation rights are found in the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (TULRCA), as amended. In ...
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Trade union human rights and international law [page 106] (721 words)

Outlawing of closed shop [page 107] (54 words)

Trade union recognition [page 107] (2,615 words)

Derecognition [page 111] (279 words)

Offers to end collective bargaining (unlawful inducements) [page 112] (731 words)

Time off for union duties and activities [page 113] (2,529 words)

Rights to information for collective bargaining [page 118] (463 words)

Protection of union members from unfavourable treatment [page 119] (2,169 words)

Anti-union blacklisting [page 122] (1,226 words)

Interim relief [page 125] (70 words)

Disciplinary action against union representatives [page 125] (85 words)

European Works Councils [page 125] (178 words)

ICE Regulations [page 125] (570 words)

Internal union matters [page 126] (2,298 words)

Chapter 7

Industrial action [page 131] (381 words)

This chapter outlines the UK’s industrial action laws, which are among the worst in Europe, according to the International Trade Union Congress ...
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The right to strike [page 131] (1,072 words)

The immunities [page 133] (4,805 words)

Ban on using agency workers to replace striking workers [page 142] (322 words)

Picketing [page 142] (1,573 words)

Criminal law [page 145] (171 words)

Injunctions [page 145] (510 words)

Protection from dismissal [page 146] (245 words)

Deducting pay [page 147] (438 words)

Lockouts [page 148] (260 words)

State benefits for strikers [page 148] (131 words)

Annual reporting duty — industrial action [page 148] (139 words)

Chapter 8

Time off and flexible working [page 149] (211 words)

Part VI of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 96) gives individuals the right to time off for various specific purposes and these are explained in ...
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Time off work [page 149] (2,401 words)

Flexible working [page 154] (1,607 words)

Chapter 9

Family leave [page 159] (1,292 words)

This chapter sets out the statutory rights to time off that are available to working parents. These are contained in Part VIII (Chapters 1 to 4) of ...
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Maternity leave and pay [page 161] (2,763 words)

Adoption leave and pay [page 166] (1,402 words)

Paternity leave and pay [page 169] (683 words)

Shared parental leave and pay [page 171] (1,469 words)

Unpaid parental leave [page 174] (441 words)

Parental bereavement leave and pay [page 175] (497 words)

Chapter 10

Discrimination [page 177] (3 words)

...
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Introduction [page 177] (361 words)

The protected characteristics under the EA 10 [page 177] (9,359 words)

Who is protected from discrimination? [page 195] (1,077 words)

Types of discrimination [page 197] (10,425 words)

Where discrimination may occur in a work context [page 217] (4,076 words)

Positive action [page 224] (366 words)

Equal pay [page 225] (4,761 words)

The Public Sector Equality Duty [page 233] (648 words)

Bringing a discrimination claim [page 235] (2,133 words)

Compensation [page 238] (1,465 words)

Chapter 11

Dismissal [page 243] (154 words)

To bring a claim for unfair dismissal the individual must: ...
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Time limits [page 243] (153 words)

Difference between wrongful and unfair dismissal [page 243] (319 words)

What is a dismissal? [page 244] (913 words)

Right to notice and notice pay [page 245] (1,404 words)

Non-renewal of a fixed-term contract [page 248] (170 words)

Constructive dismissal [page 248] (1,839 words)

What makes a dismissal unfair? [page 252] (1,614 words)

Capability dismissals [page 255] (344 words)

Conduct dismissals [page 256] (4,843 words)

Redundancy [page 265] (104 words)

Legal duty or restriction [page 265] (400 words)

Some other substantial reason [page 266] (180 words)

Dismissal for refusing to agree changes to terms and conditions [page 266] (995 words)

Dismissals due to breakdown in trust and confidence [page 268] (121 words)

Dismissals due to third party pressure [page 268] (112 words)

Dismissal for refusing to sign a restrictive covenant [page 268] (94 words)

Dismissal for manifesting offensive political opinions [page 268] (94 words)

Dismissal due to return of original post-holder [page 268] (108 words)

Employees accused of a criminal offence [page 269] (247 words)

Retirement [page 269] (57 words)

Automatically unfair reasons for dismissal [page 269] (1,801 words)

The effective date of termination [page 273] (950 words)

Continuous employment [page 275] (809 words)

Illegality and unfair dismissal rights [page 276] (243 words)

Interim relief [page 277] (574 words)

Reinstatement or re-engagement [page 278] (629 words)

Compensation [page 279] (2,172 words)

Insolvency [page 284] (189 words)

The statutory right to be accompanied [page 284] (909 words)

Covid unfair dismissal claims: some examples [page 286] (634 words)

Chapter 12

Redundancy [page 289] (67 words)

This chapter sets out the individual rights of workers who are made redundant, unions’ statutory rights to collective consultation when more job ...
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Definition of redundancy [page 289] (1,669 words)

Redundancy procedure [page 292] (2,301 words)

Alternative work [page 296] (1,958 words)

Has there been a dismissal? [page 300] (817 words)

Notice [page 301] (266 words)

Unfair dismissal and redundancy [page 302] (2,022 words)

Apprentices [page 306] (287 words)

Redundancy pay [page 306] (2,856 words)

Collective redundancies [page 312] (4,179 words)

Chapter 13

Transfers and service provision changes (TUPE) [page 321] (310 words)

The Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE) protect employees if their employer changes hands. TUPE applies to ...
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Key facts [page 321] (245 words)

What types of employer are covered by TUPE? [page 322] (172 words)

Who is covered by TUPE? [page 322] (206 words)

Relevant transfers [page 322] (2,402 words)

Who transfers? [page 327] (1,091 words)

Objecting to a transfer [page 329] (122 words)

Transfer causing substantial detrimental change [page 329] (324 words)

Workforce reorganisation before a transfer [page 330] (736 words)

Consultation and collective rights [page 331] (2,528 words)

Employee liability information [page 336] (150 words)

Transfers within public administration [page 336] (192 words)

Return of the two-tier workforce [page 337] (217 words)

Effect of TUPE on terms and conditions [page 337] (491 words)

TUPE and pensions [page 338] (669 words)

Public service outsourcing [page 339] (757 words)

Collective agreements and union recognition [page 341] (143 words)

TUPE and contract changes [page 341] (2,560 words)

Unfair dismissal and TUPE [page 346] (1,194 words)

TUPE and insolvency [page 348] (338 words)

Chapter 14

Whistleblowing [page 349] (94 words)

The Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA) introduced provisions in a new Part IVA to the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 96) to protect ...
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What is a protected disclosure? [page 349] (890 words)

Who is protected? [page 351] (572 words)

Who should disclosures be made to? [page 352] (261 words)

Claims and remedies [page 352] (814 words)

Further guidance [page 354] (106 words)

Chapter 15

Data protection, surveillance and monitoring [page 355] (70 words)

Before the Brexit transition period ended on 31 December 2020, the UK had already incorporated the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ...
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Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) [page 355] (205 words)

The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) [page 355] (3,481 words)

Monitoring at work [page 363] (1,010 words)

Privacy, data protection and technology [page 365] (297 words)

Chapter 16

Bringing a tribunal claim [page 367] (37 words)

This chapter summarises the formal steps involved in bringing an employment tribunal (ET) claim (industrial tribunal and fair employment tribunal in ...
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First steps — preparing to submit a claim [page 367] (1,970 words)

Employees outside Great Britain [page 370] (91 words)

Making a claim [page 370] (1,128 words)

The tribunal process [page 372] (3,088 words)

The tribunal hearing [page 378] (1,414 words)

Enforcing ET awards and costs orders [page 381] (199 words)

Appealing to the Employment Appeal Tribunal [page 381] (216 words)

Settling a claim [page 382] (1,919 words)

Tribunal reform [page 385] (251 words)

Sources of legal advice and support [page 386] (52 words)