The government is to introduce a new watchdog organisation to protect workers’ rights and prevent unfair practices. Responsibility for tackling modern slavery, enforcing the minimum wage and protecting agency workers – currently spread across 3 different bodies – will be brought under one roof, creating a comprehensive new authority, which will ensure businesses that break
The Employment Tribunal has ruled that a manager who spread sherbet on his desk to make it appear like drugs had been “foolish and insensitive” but did not deserve to be dismissed. The case involved Mr D Buchholz, who worked for Geze UK Ltd, a company that supplies products, for door, window and safety technology.
The General Medical Council (GMC) has been found to have racially discriminated against a Muslim doctor of African and European heritage. In giving its ruling, the Employment Tribunal referred to the high number of complaints against ethnic minority staff and said discrimination could be infecting the way the GMC dealt with such cases. The case
The Employment Tribunal has ruled that a company acted unfairly when it dismissed an employee because he went to the pub while off sick from work. The case involved Mr Colin Kane, who worked as a driver for Debmat Surfacing, a company that lays tarmac. Kane suffers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which causes breathing
Age discrimination claims surged by 74% last year following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. It’s thought the figure is likely to keep rising. The research was carried out by Rest Less, the digital community for the over-50s. Rest Less analysed data from the Ministry of Justice and found that the number of age discrimination
Two financial services directors have been disqualified for continuing to trade and take money from clients while their company was insolvent. Paul Rossi was a director of Independent Derivative Traders Ltd. The company traded as ‘Futex’ and provided access to a financial markets trading platform for sub-contracted independent traders. He was joined in the management
A firm of surveyors who secured a business rate reduction for a shop had provided a ‘claims management service’ and were entitled to payment in full as agreed in the contract. The issue arose after Bias Harrogate Ltd engaged RVA Surveyors Ltd to secure a reduction in the business rates it paid to the local
The Employment Tribunal has ruled that the supermarket chain Lidl failed to properly investigate the case of one of its caretakers who caused alarm to colleagues when, among other things, he showed off a swastika tattoo. It ruled that Mr I Horvarth, from Hungary, was unfairly dismissed following various complaints against him. In one incident,
The government is continuing its support for tenants to protect them from being evicted during the Covid-19 pandemic, even though lockdown restrictions have now been eased. As part of a phased approach back to normality, notice periods – previously extended to 6 months as an emergency measure during the pandemic – are now set at
The government is introducing new legislation to target company directors who dissolve their businesses for their own gain and leave staff or taxpayers out of pocket. The Insolvency Service will be given powers to investigate directors of companies that have been dissolved, closing a legal loophole and acting as a strong deterrent against the misuse