Temps win right to redundancy

Four education advisers working on fixed-term contracts for the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) have successfully claimed the right to receive redundancy payments.

All four are currently on contracts that are due to expire in March 2006. The judgment of the South London Employment Tribunal means they will be entitled to redundancy if their contracts are not renewed.

Supported by the FDA public service managers' union, they brought their claims under the Fixed-term Employees (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2002, which make it unlawful for employees on fixed-term contracts to be treated less favourably than comparators who do similar work but on a permanent contract.

The regulations also outlawed the practice of waiving redundancy rights through a contractual term. Such terms are now invalid.