Contract workers

Case 16: The facts

Mr Laing worked as an advocacy officer, providing advocacy for patients who had been compulsorily detained in hospital under the Mental Health Act. He was employed by Rethink, the operating name of the National Schizophrenia Fellowship, which had a service agreement with Partnership in Care (PIC) – the company that ran the hospital.

Laing claimed that both Rethink and PIC were guilty of race discrimination towards him. The issue on appeal was whether he met the definition of a “contract worker” under section 7 of the Race Relations Act, which would enable him to pursue his claim against PIC.

The ruling

The Employment Appeal Tribunal held that Laing was a contract worker within the section 7 definition and could bring his claim. It said there is no requirement for a claimant to show that the principal (in this case, the hospital) has managerial control or power over the worker: the question is whether their work is done for the principal.

The tribunal had been entitled to find that Laing’s work had not only been to the benefit of the patients – as the service had been of some benefit to PIC as well – and also to take into account PIC’s direction or control (albeit limited) over where Laing could work.

Partnership in Care Ltd v Laing and another EAT/0622/06