Pay and prices

Inflation overtakes pay settlements (222 words)

The latest figures from LRD's Payline database, covering the three months to June, show no change from last month's figures. Settlements are running at ...

Labour Research Department three-monthly pay figures (219 words)

Percentage increases on lowest basic rates (by agreements covered) ...

Other pay analysts (23 words)

Industrial Relations Services (median, three months to end June 2006) 3.0% ...

Average earnings indices (including bonuses) (157 words)

Mar 2005 (r) 120.0 3.7% 3.9% 3.8% 3.7% 4.2% ...

Full-time weekly average earnings (28 words)

All workers £538.80 ...

Prices (56 words)

May 2005 192.0 2.9% 2.1% ...

Inflation forecasts (26 words)

Fourth quarter 2006 ...

Bargaining news

Signallers turn up the heat on Network Rail (372 words)

The threat of strikes on the railways during this month's heatwave has proved sufficient for the RMT transport union to secure a deal with ...

Dental workers are all smiles over pay deal (240 words)

Dental-floss manufacturer Perident has reached an agreement with the T&G general union on an improved two-year settlement which guarantees an above-inflation pay increase next ...

Construction workers get inflation-plus (152 words)

Workers in the construction industry are to receive above-inflation pay rises under new national agreements. ...

Three-year deal leaves air cabin crew on cloud nine (484 words)

A three-year settlement delivering pay increases of up to 10.6% plus a bonus scheme has been agreed at budget airline easyJet, removing the threat ...

BBC postpones pension proposals (390 words)

Unions representing BBC employees are to ballot their members on a new pay package which will also delay changes to the retirement age and ...

Equality news

Stonewall and TUC update guidance (118 words)

The Welsh branch of lesbian, gay and bisexual charity Stonewall has updated its employee guide to sexual orientation in the workplace. ...

Victimising ex-staff has a high price for employers (435 words)

Two recent tribunal cases have taught employers that tarnishing the reputation of former staff, or relying on a previous employer's character assassination to deny ...

Amicus gets tough on unequal pay (420 words)

Professional union Amicus is demanding action - and even threatening to "name and shame" guilty employers - to secure equality for female staff in ...

Recruitment and organisation news

Asda caves in to demand for collective bargaining (490 words)

Supermarket giant Asda Wal-Mart has agreed to set up structures for collective bargaining with the GMB general union at all its distribution depots. ...

Fort agrees to recognition for Amicus (152 words)

The union had been campaigning for recognition for several years, but earlier efforts had foundered owing to low membership levels among the staff. But ...

GMB reps are crucial to recruitment (290 words)

The GMB general union is to adopt a "radically different strategy on recruitment and organisation", putting membership growth at the heart of its work. ...

Learning and training news

UNISON learns valuable lessons in recruitment (211 words)

Public services union UNISON is reaping the rewards of using workplace learning as a key to involving and recruiting workers. ...

Invest in your workers' skills, TUC tells employers (240 words)

The TUC's new workplace learning organisation unionlearn has signed a co-operation agreement with Investors in People UK, the national body providing "a framework for ...

Mayor will deliver skills in London (198 words)

Education and skills secretary Alan Johnson has announced that London mayor Ken Livingstone is to be given a statutory duty to promote adult skills ...

Amicus learning reps are to the fore in printing partnership (169 words)

A new partnership between manufacturing union Amicus, employers' body the British Printing Industries Federation (BPIF) and the sector skills council Proskills is to promote ...

European news

Pension paper secures Irish agreement (185 words)

As foreseen in last month's Workplace Report, talks on a new national pay agreement in Ireland have been successfully concluded. ...

Minimum wage increase disappoints French unions (420 words)

Unions in France have reacted with anger and disappointment to an above-inflation increase in the country's national minimum wage. ...

Metalworkers publish restructuring handbook (104 words)

The European Metalworkers Federation (EMF) has published a guide on dealing with company restructuring across national borders. ...

VW offers €250k redundancy deal (158 words)

Car manufacturer Volkswagen is offering redundancy payments totalling up to €250,000 as part of its efforts to reduce the size of its workforce in ...

Law - Dismissal

Dismissal law (460 words)

This month's cases cover topics such as procedurally unfair dismissals and calculation of compensation. ...

Mitigation of loss (112 words)

Forbes Johnston was dismissed from his job on an egg farm when he was unable to tell the owner the whereabouts of a box ...

Constructive dismissal (178 words)

Shop worker Marybelle MacLellan considered herself a victim of bullying, harassment and a deliberate attempt to accuse her of theft - another employee's purse ...

Automatically unfair dismissal (191 words)

Emmanuel Danlardy was employed for less than two months before being dismissed for lack of capability. He contended that he had been dismissed for ...

Compensation (301 words)

Tracey Drewett had an ongoing medical condition caused by domestic difficulties, which was made worse by her treatment at work. She resigned and brought ...

Unfair disciplinary hearing (179 words)

Mr Waters was dismissed by his two fellow directors for failing to renew the licence for the nightclub that they ran. They went through ...

Reasonable response (150 words)

Miss Stewart, an assistant manager in a care home, was dismissed after taking two residents to the bathroom at the same time to use ...

Unfair redundancy (197 words)

A group of welders were made redundant following a redundancy selection exercise. They were given their scores in each criteria but not told how ...

Conflict of evidence (271 words)

Catherine Murphy was dismissed from her job as a train service manager following a customer complaint that arose over her refusal to serve a ...

Dismissal or resignation? (111 words)

Betting-shop worker Ms Ally was dismissed for gross misconduct. She appealed and was reinstated by her regional director, who found that she had been ...

Health & safety news

Managers use "draconian measures" on sick leave (296 words)

Punitive sanctions to tackle levels of sickness absence in the public sector are penalising genuinely sick workers, new research for public services union UNISON ...

Civil servants set to strike over bullying and RSI (126 words)

Eight thousand civil servants at Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) have voted for industrial action in a dispute over health and safety risks ...

TUC issues guidance on dermatitis (267 words)

A new TUC leaflet is aiming to reduce the number of victims of work-related dermatitis, which causes pain and discomfort to thousands of people ...

CWU is all fired up at BT (82 words)

The CWU communication workers' union is supporting a national recruitment drive for volunteer fire wardens at telecoms giant BT. ...

New asbestos register (99 words)

Broadcasting union BECTU and union law firm Thompsons have set up a register for members who believe they have been exposed to asbestos. ...

Features

Disability discrimination (307 words)

What does a risk assessment or a diagnosis of disability have to involve to be sufficient? These are among the topics covered in this ...

Compensation (151 words)

In calculating compensation for Kevin Greenhoff after his successful claims of unfair dismissal and disability discrimination (see Workplace Report, January 2006), a tribunal calculated ...

Reasonable adjustments (343 words)

Dr Tarbuck, a business analyst and project manager, was put at risk of redundancy at a time when she was returning to work following ...

Disability-related discrimination (295 words)

Scott Watts, a support worker in a residential home for people with learning difficulties, was dismissed after disclosing to his employer that he was ...

Definition of disability (442 words)

To proceed with his disability discrimination claim, Mr Bayley had to show that his dyslexia was a disability under the DDA. An educational psychologist ...

Failure to make adjustments (385 words)

Sylvia Hay had a degenerative knee condition which amounted to a disability. She was dismissed from her job as mobile library manager when she ...

Disability dismissal (198 words)

Mr Wilson was dismissed after a serious accident at work, for which his employer had admitted liability and been prosecuted, led him to take ...

European campaign targets young workers (101 words)

Young people's occupational safety is the focus of "Safe Start", this year's European Week for Safety and Health at Work. ...

Consultation on workplace transport (101 words)

The Health and Safety Executive is developing a guidance tool, known as the "route map", to help manage the risks involved in the use ...

HSE executes U-turn on "name and shame" data (254 words)

Plans by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to let convicted firms off the hook by destroying records of old prosecutions and notices have ...

Physios reveal worst areas for workplace injuries (213 words)

North Warwickshire is the worst region in Britain for work-related injuries, according to new analysis by the CSP physiotherapists' union. ...

Lung diseases are on the increase (190 words)

A report by the British Thoracic Society has revealed a rapid rise in lung diseases caused by work. ...

Unions boost apprentices' pay, but structural issues remain (3412 words)

Following a radical shake-up two years ago, the apprenticeship system is being promoted by the government as the preferred route into work-based learning for ...

Lack of enforcement weakens impact of new laws on safety (2264 words)

Established last year under the Gangmasters (Licensing) Act 2004, the Gangmasters Licensing Authority (GLA) aims to "curb the exploitation of workers in the agriculture, ...