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With the Euros kicking off on 14 June, people all over the UK and Europe are discussing strikers. While most in England are debating whether it should be Ivan Toney or Ollie Watkins as first-choice deputy for Harry Kane, in the employment law world we have been focusing on the strikers at the heart of an important new Supreme Court decision in Secretary of State for Business and Trade v Mercer.

In Mercer, the Supreme Court was asked to consider whether an employee is protected from retaliation if their employer suspends or disciplines them in an effort to deter them from going on strike, and whether or not section 146 TULRCA 1992 really protects employers rather than employees.Continue Reading Striker! Does UK law adequately protect an employee’s right to strike?

Paternity leave has not been forgotten in the swathe of family related legislative changes taking effect in April 2024. However, anyone hoping for significant changes will be disappointed. The changes are limited to improving flexibility for eligible employees wanting to take the existing right to two weeks of statutory paternity leave. There is no increase…

The practice of fire and rehire has hit the headlines and been the topic of political debate in recent years. While the current UK government has rejected calls to outlaw entirely the practice, in early 2022 it committed to introducing a statutory code of practice to set out expected standards of behaviour and best practice.

Our blog from 13 February 2023 considered the draft code as the consultation was launched. We now provide an update on the content of the new Code and explores some challenges and tips for employers faced with navigating a change of terms and conditions once the Code comes into force, including the punitive sanctions for non-compliance, as well as a look ahead to what might change if we have a change to a Labour party government in the next 12 months.Continue Reading Developments with the UK’s ‘fire and rehire’ clampdown: what’s next?

After years of talk about improving the legal framework to promote more flexibility in the modern working environment, the UK is now on the cusp of changes to its statutory flexible working regime taking effect. Our blog post from August 2023 provides a background to reform and the changes as initially announced. We now provide an update on what is changing and when, and provide our top tips for employers preparing for and managing flexible working requests beginning in April 2024.

What are the current flexible working rules in the UK?

Under current statutory rules, employees with 26 weeks of continuous service have the right to request flexible working, typically seeking changes to their days, hours, pattern or place of work. The request must be made in writing and explain what impact the change would have on the employer and how this can be dealt with. Only one request can be made within a 12-month period, and employers should deal with the request within three months. There is no obligation on employers to accept a request for flexible working but must consider requests reasonably and only reject a request on the basis of one or more prescribed statutory grounds (such as the burden of additional costs, the detrimental effect on the ability to meet customer demand or performance/quality and an inability to reorganise work among existing staff).Continue Reading Flexible working reform in the UK – Are you ready for April?

Employers embarking on redundancy or restructuring exercises need to be aware of significant changes from 6 April 2024 to UK redundancy rules which give priority protection to employees on maternity, adoption and shared parental leave (SPL). The changes from 6 April mean that the period of priority protection will extend to 18 months and will also apply to pregnant employees from the day they notify their employer of their pregnancy. This is important because a failure to give priority protection can result in a redundancy dismissal being both automatically unfair and deemed discriminatory.

This blog explains the upcoming changes and considers issues arising and how employers can manage the impact. It also looks at the practical issues arising from a larger number of employees being given priority status.Continue Reading UK redundancy protection – significant changes from April 2024

One hundred years ago this month, in November 1923, Lord Hewart delivered a famous legal judgment on the principles of open justice, declaring it of fundamental importance that “justice should not only be done, but should manifestly and undoubtedly be seen to be done”. It is in that spirit of open justice that Employment Tribunals (ET) today remain open to the public and the content can freely be reported on in the press and media. As a result, when ET claims are issued, it is not uncommon for the parties to be anxious about who will have access to documentation that is presented to the ET in proceedings, and what they can do with it.

In light of a recent announcement that ET hearings will now be routinely recorded from November 2023, we take this opportunity to explore what “open justice” means in the context of online hearings, and who can see or hear what and when.Continue Reading UK Employment Tribunal: third party access to Tribunal pleadings and documentation

With the 2023 winter work party season upon us, company, location, or team level seasonal gatherings provide a chance for employers to thank staff for their hard work and for everyone to relax, socialise and have some fun with their colleagues. Yet without careful thought and planning, they can be problematic for employers who can find themselves faced with fallout from the festivities.Continue Reading Get the party started: avoiding HR issues at festive events

The tide is turning on employment law at sea. For decades, maritime employment seemed to be governed more by treaty than by specific national regulation. Increasingly, however, the UK has begun to take action – best demonstrated by the new “Seafarers’ Wages Act”, passed in response to recent well-documented controversies.

In this post, we examine…

2023 looks set to be a year of significant change for HR professionals with the progression of new and reformed laws proposed and backed last year. Here are some of the key legislative/policy developments to watch out for:

Flexible working – Changes to the statutory flexible working regime are expected. The new rules will extend the right to request flexible working to all employees from day one of employment. Employees will be allowed to make two requests in a 12-month period (rather than the current limit of one) and employers will have less time to respond (two months, not three). For more information, see our previous Employment Law Watch blog.  

Carer’s leave – A new statutory right for carers to take a week’s unpaid leave per year is proposed. The leave is intended to be used to take planned time off (rather than emergency leave) to undertake caring responsibilities.   

Neonatal leave and pay – A new statutory leave is proposed which will allow parents of sick or premature babies to take up to 12 weeks’ paid leave on top of any maternity or paternity leave entitlement. The leave is proposed to be a day one right for new hires and to apply to those parents whose babies need to be in hospital in the first 28 days post birth with continuous stays of seven days or more. Continue Reading 2023 – All change for UK employment law?