Definition of a worker

Case 10: The facts

The broadcasting and entertainment union BECTU applied for statutory recognition for a group of freelance camera operators under the provisions of the Employment Act 1999. The recognition monitoring body, the Central Arbitration Committee held that they were workers because there was a regulatory body covering their profession. This was enough to bring them within the definition of a bargaining unit for the purpose of recognition law. The employer appealed to the High Court.

The ruling

The court held that the test the Central Arbitration Committee had used to decide that the bargaining unit was composed of workers was incorrect. The presence of a regulatory body, while it might be a factor relevant to a finding that certain individuals were workers, it was not an absolute test for the definition of workers.

* R (BBC) v CAC, High Court, 6 June 2003