Employment status

Case 2: The facts

Mr Hughes and Mr Beaumont were both full-time branch secretaries – lay officials without written contracts of employment – of the GMB general union. They faced re-election every year, and could be removed from office at any time by the regional committee. Their pay was determined by Congress, and it was possible for them not to be paid at all, although in practice they had been given 10% of the branch fees for many years. Their pay therefore did not relate to the work done or the hours worked, but depended on the number of branch members.

Most of their work involved representation, negotiation and consultation, in addition to their financial and administrative duties under the rule book. They had significant autonomy as to how, when and where they did their work, but were subject to a degree of regional control.

Hughes and Beaumont brought a claim against the union, for which they had to demonstrate that they were employees.

The ruling

The Employment Appeal Tribunal held that, as well as being office-holders, the branch secretaries worked under a contract of employment with the union and so were employees. They worked in return for remuneration and pension benefits which were fixed in advance; the union exercised a sufficient degree of control; and their duties went beyond what the rule book specified as the duties of a branch secretary.

GMB, Kenny & McCarthy v Hughes & Beaumont UKEAT/0288/06