In Martin v London Borough of Southwark, a teacher had raised a number of concerns with his employer that he and other teachers were working excessive hours. He brought a whistleblowing claim arguing that he had suffered a...more
Employers will have 6 months longer than usual – until 5 October 2021 - to comply with their 2020/2021 gender pay gap reporting obligations which, in contrast to the 2019/2021 reporting period, have not been suspended....more
2/24/2021
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Pay ,
Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) ,
Gender Equity ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Labor Regulations ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pay Gap ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Wage and Hour
Enforcement of the obligation on UK employers of the requisite size to file gender pay gap reports was suspended in respect of 2019/20 due to the Covid-19 outbreak. The obligation to comply with the applicable gender pay gap...more
1/22/2021
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Pay ,
Furloughs ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Equity ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
International Labor Laws ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pay Gap ,
Pay Transparency ,
Reporting Requirements ,
UK ,
Wage and Hour
In the light of the various business challenges posed by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it would be understandable if the incoming changes to the off payroll working rules ('IR35') have not been a primary focus for some...more
Following the recent announcement of the new national lockdown and the closure of schools, there will be many employees who are, again, struggling to juggle the demands of work and home schooling their children. ...more
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme -
On 26 March 2020, the UK Government announced the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (“the Furlough Scheme”). The Furlough Scheme was designed to protect the UK economy by assisting...more
In a move again criticised, as so much recent COVID-19 related legislation has been, as government by decree, the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (Self-Isolation) (England) Regulations 2020 (“the...more
In this OnPoint, we report on the legislation now enacted requiring employers to use an employee’s normal unreduced pay when making statutory redundancy and other payments to those whose employment is terminated while they...more
8/1/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Rights Act ,
Furloughs ,
Hiring & Firing ,
International Labor Laws ,
Job Retention Schemes ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Payments ,
Pay Reductions ,
Redundancy Dismissals ,
Redundancy Payments ,
UK ,
Wage and Hour
Whilst employers are currently putting immense time and effort into making arrangements for the safe return of staff to the workplace following lockdown, they should not lose sight of the importance of consultation with their...more
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) recently issued guidance for employers on the issues they need to bear in mind when considering the introduction of testing as part of their arrangements for returning staff to the...more
5/26/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Privacy Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
New Guidance ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
UK ,
UK Data Protection Act ,
UK ICO ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
Return to workplace – new guidance -
In our recent OnPoint we discussed various issues for employers to consider when planning for the end of lockdown.
Following its announcement on 10 May 2020 that employees should be...more
Employers are now turning their minds to the many and varied issues they need to consider when planning for the end of lockdown - even though of course they will need to wait for details of the precise timing and phasing of...more
5/8/2020
/ Compliance ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Data Protection ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Flexible Work Arrangements ,
Furloughs ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Government Lockdown ,
Holiday Pay ,
Job Retention Schemes ,
Medical Monitoring ,
Mental Health ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Remote Working ,
Remuneration ,
Risk Assessment ,
Social Distancing ,
UK ,
Workplace Safety
The UK Government has issued further detail about its Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. In this OnPoint we report on some of the specific issues relating to the operation of this scheme now addressed in more detail in the...more
4/6/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Furloughs ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Job Retention Schemes ,
Paid Leave ,
Redundancy Payments ,
UK ,
Unpaid Leave ,
Wage and Hour
Reforms to the off-payroll working rules (known as IR35) have been postponed until 6 April 2021 in order to reduce pressure on private sector organisations after the COVID-19 outbreak....more
As home working seems likely to become more prevalent for many workers as employers adjust their arrangements to deal with COVID-19, Dechert’s London employment team has produced this brief reminder of the key practical and...more
At the end of January 2020, the Government raised the UK risk level in respect of the current outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) from low to moderate. Since then the Government has escalated planning and preparation in case...more
3/10/2020
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Medical Leave ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Public Health ,
Sick Pay ,
Traveling Employee ,
UK ,
Workplace Safety
In this OnPoint, we report on two changes to the taxation of termination payments to departing employees of which employers need to be aware – first, the levying with effect from 6 April 2020 of employer’s national insurance...more
2/25/2020
/ Amended Rules ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Income Taxes ,
National Insurance Contributions ,
Payments in Lieu of Notice ,
Post Employment Notice Pay (PENPs) ,
Severance Pay ,
Taxable Income ,
Termination Payments ,
UK
Various changes to employment law are coming into force over the next few months which should prompt employers to consider reviewing and, where necessary, updating their employment documentation and/or processes. Five...more
2/14/2020
/ Amended Rules ,
Bereavement Leave ,
Compliance ,
Consultants ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Holiday Pay ,
International Labor Laws ,
IR35 ,
Parental Leave ,
Payroll Taxes ,
Risk Assessment ,
Self Employed ,
UK ,
Written Agreements
This OnPoint reports on the guidance recently issued by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) on the use of confidentiality agreements. Whilst it does not have statutory force, the EHRC guidance provides further...more
10/18/2019
/ #MeToo ,
Confidential Information ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) ,
New Guidance ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Sexual Harassment ,
UK ,
Whistleblowers
The debate continues in the United Kingdom as to how non-disclosure and confidentiality agreements should be regulated to combat their abuse, particularly in cases of harassment and discrimination. In this OnPoint we consider...more
9/10/2019
/ #MeToo ,
Best Practices ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Contract Terms ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Modification ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Severance Agreements ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Trade Secrets ,
UK
The UK Government recently published its Good Work Plan, a package of labour market reforms proposed in response to the review conducted by Matthew Taylor into the changing British labour market and which published its...more
1/7/2019
/ Agency Relationship ,
Breach of Contract ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Derogation ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Tribunals ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Gig Economy ,
Holiday Pay ,
Labor Reform ,
Notice Requirements ,
Penalties ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Sweden ,
Temporary Employees ,
UK ,
Written Agreements
The UK Government today announced its response to “Good Work: the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices.” This was an independent review commissioned by the Government and published in July 2017 into the changing British...more
2/8/2018
/ Employee Benefits ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Tribunals ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Flexible Work Arrangements ,
Gig Economy ,
HMRC ,
Holiday Pay ,
Independent Contractors ,
International Labor Laws ,
Minimum Wage ,
National Insurance Contributions ,
Sick Pay ,
UK ,
Wage and Hour
In this OnPoint we report on the Equality and Human Rights Commission's proposals for its approach to enforcing employers’ gender pay gap reporting obligations....more
This OnPoint reports on the Court of Appeal judgment in Dawson-Damer & Ors v Taylor Wessing LLP, handed down on 16 February 2017, which addresses two key aspects of the legislation enabling individuals to lodge subject access...more
This OnPoint reports on the judgments handed down by the Employment Appeal Tribunal today confirming that under UK law the calculation of holiday pay must include overtime and taxable travelling time payments, that the...more