In an unusually political case decided this week, the Court had to consider the problem of apparently conflicting non-discrimination rights. In the “Ashers Bakery” case, the Defendents, owners of a bakery, refused to fulfil an order from the claimant, who had requested they make a cake showing a slogan to support same-sex marriage. The claimant[…]
Genuinely held Religious Belief no defence to Sexual Orientation Discrimination
LATEST NEWS May 20, 2015
There’s just a week to go until Election Day. Party manifestos are online for comparison and have been scrutinised via the Leaders’ Debates on TV. Elections bring the economy into sharper focus and inevitably lead to changes in employment rights and responsibilities – so which party has the right approach to ensuring that labour rights[…]
Judgment of the Employment Tribunal in Lock v British Gas (25 March 2015) The Court of Justice of the European Union is clear on the principle behind the calculation of holiday pay which is that: “The purpose of providing payment for that leave is to put the worker, during such leave, in a position which[…]
ACAS have helpfully published a Timetable of Key Events for 2015 Shared Parental Leave For parents of children born or matched for adoption on or after 5 April 2015 Under this new system parents will be able to choose how they share the care of their child during the first year after birth. Mothers will[…]
As Emma Barnett, the Women’s Editor at the Telegraph put it, Silicon Valley just got “darker.” Corporate giants Apple and Google recently announced that they will pay up to $20,000 to their female employees to freeze their eggs. Whilst these measures appear at first glance to be progressive, to be aimed at enabling women to[…]
In Williams v Leeds United Football Club, the High Court has held that an employer was entitled to summarily dismiss an employee, who was already serving 12 months’ notice of redundancy, when it discovered that, five years previously, he had forwarded a pornographic e-mail to a junior colleague and two external contacts. The employer was[…]
The Employment Rights (Increase of Limits) Order 2015 SI 2015/226 has now been made and will increase the compensation limits and minimum awards that apply to a range of employment claims. Among other things, the Order raises the limit on compensation for unfair dismissal from £76,574 to £78,335 and the limit on a week’s pay[…]
In Land Registry v Houghton and ors, the EAT has upheld a tribunal’s decision that a bonus scheme that excluded those who had received a formal warning in respect of sickness absence during the relevant financial year occasioned discrimination arising from disability under S.15 of the Equality Act 2010. The rule clearly gave rise to[…]
The recent case of Stack v Ajar-Tec concerned three shareholders, who were each directors, one of whom was the Claimant, Mr Stack. He had no written employment contract. He also had other business interests. But for three years he devoted approximately 80% of his time on the company’s business. It was common ground that he[…]
In Braithwaite and ors v HCL Insurance BPO Services Ltd and another case, the EAT has upheld the finding of an employment tribunal that an employer’s decision to impose new terms and conditions was not unjustified indirect age discrimination. The employer’s requirement that its employees agree to new terms and conditions or be dismissed was[…]