Category Archives: Uncategorized

Is the Government about to rip up workers’ rights?

Posted on January 15, 2021 by Darren Newman

Last night the Financial Times reported that the Government is planning a post-Brexit overhaul of the labour market that would involve ‘ripping up’ workers’ rights ‘enshrined in EU law’. Specifically: The main areas of focus are on ending the 48-hour … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Early Retirement and the Exit Pay Cap

Posted on October 30, 2020 by Darren Newman

Well this might seem a bit niche. But if you’re in the public sector – especially local government – there is one major issue that you will be concerned with. That is the introduction of a £95,000 cap on public … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Should we ban ‘firing and re-hiring’?

Posted on September 15, 2020 by Darren Newman

Keir Starmer addresses the TUC today and – such is the nature of these events – we already know what he is ‘expected to say’. Starmer will condemn employers (recent examples include British Gas and British Airways) that have fired … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | 3 Comments

New Starters and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

Posted on April 6, 2020 by Darren Newman

UPDATE: Wednesday 15 April 2020 In a major change to the Job Retention Scheme the Treasury has announced that the cut off date of 28 February has been moved to 19 March. The guidance now says this: Employees you can … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronavirus, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Sleepover shifts and the minimum wage

Posted on February 6, 2020 by Darren Newman

Next week the Supreme Court will hear argument in two cases involving care workers. At issue is whether a care worker who ‘sleeps over’ in the care home should be regarded as working for that whole shift so that each … Continue reading →

Posted in national minimum wage, Uncategorized, Wages | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Forstater v CGD Europe – what the Tribunal actually found

Posted on December 19, 2019 by Darren Newman

Debating transgender issues can be really difficult. It is one of those areas where you cannot really articulate a position without using vocabulary that at least some people will find objectionable. Writing about it feels like treading through a minefield … Continue reading →

Posted in Equal pay, philosophical belief, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 18 Comments

Workers’ Rights and the EU

Posted on October 28, 2019 by Darren Newman

The annoying thing about the debate that has blown up over the weekend about workers’ rights post Brexit is that it rarely gets down to specifics. Take the Financial Times story on Friday. It referred to the possibility of divergence … Continue reading →

Posted in BREXIT, Equal pay, Equality Act, EU law, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Dominic Cummings and a case of unfair dismissal

Posted on September 2, 2019 by Darren Newman

I have to admit I laughed out loud when I saw this headline in the Guardian Adviser sacked by Cummings may have case for unfair dismissal – expert Oh do you think so? Could it be that calling someone in … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized, Unfair Dismissal | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Reforming NDAs – why it won’t solve the real problem

Posted on June 11, 2019 by Darren Newman

The first thing to be clear about is that almost any settlement of a potential Employment Tribunal claim will include a confidentiality clause. This may be called a non-disclosure agreement or an NDA. If you are a journalist. the term … Continue reading →

Posted in Employment Tribunals, settlement agreements, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

New (and rather modest) proposals on pregnancy and redundancy

Posted on January 25, 2019 by Darren Newman

On a dull and extended train ride home last night I was perked up by a report that the Government was extending the rights of pregnant women. The report from the BBC (based on this Government press release) says: The … Continue reading →

Posted in pregnancy discrimination, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment