LRD guides and handbook August 2024

Law at Work 2024

Introduction

Law at Work 2024 (1,019 words)

Introduction ...
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Chapter 1

1. The employment law system [page 3] (54 words)

An individual’s employment rights arise from a combination of contractual rights, which come from the terms and conditions in their employment ...
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EU law since Brexit [page 3] (1,240 words)

Enforcing your rights [page 5] (2,707 words)

Chapter 2

2. Employment status and categories of worker [page 11] (255 words)

Some employment rights, such as the rate of pay and hours of work, are determined by the employment contract. These are contractual rights and are ...
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Employee, worker or self-employed? [page 11] (3,070 words)

Agency workers [page 17] (3,743 words)

Apprentices [page 25] (467 words)

Children [page 26] (200 words)

Fixed-term (temporary) employees [page 26] (1,165 words)

Homeworkers [page 28] (213 words)

Interns [page 29] (356 words)

Part-time workers [page 30] (1,682 words)

Predictable hours [page 33] (465 words)

Volunteers [page 33] (556 words)

Zero hours contract workers [page 34] (768 words)

Chapter 3

3. Starting work and the employment contract [page 37] (120 words)

An employment relationship starts when an individual agrees to work for an employer on certain terms. The terms agreed will form a contract and this ...
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Pre-employment checks [page 37] (2,949 words)

The employment contract [page 42] (8,755 words)

Chapter 4

4. Pay and conditions [page 59] (51 words)

An individual’s pay and conditions are contained in their contract of employment, but they are subject to some minimum statutory rights and ...
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The National Minimum Wage (NMW) [page 59] (4,765 words)

Pay slips and pay intervals [page 67] (269 words)

Wage deductions and shortfalls [page 68] (2,204 words)

Guarantee pay (lay-off or short-time working) [page 72] (659 words)

Paid medical suspension [page 73] (212 words)

Overtime [page 74] (346 words)

Pensions [page 74] (1,004 words)

Working hours and breaks [page 76] (1,567 words)

WTR record keeping [page 79] (2,118 words)

Annual leave and pay [page 83] (3,435 words)

Chapter 5

5. Sick pay and sickness absence [page 91] (173 words)

Employees who are unable to work because they are sick or injured are not entitled to their normal pay. If they meet the eligibility criteria, they ...
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The Fit Note [page 91] (684 words)

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) [page 92] (362 words)

Contractual sick pay [page 93] (2,074 words)

Keeping in touch with staff on sick leave [page 97] (240 words)

Absence management procedures [page 97] (850 words)

Sickness absence dismissals [page 99] (2,853 words)

Pregnancy-related sickness absence [page 104] (206 words)

Sickness absence during notice period [page 104] (60 words)

Sickness absence and strike action [page 104] (135 words)

Sickness absence and redundancy selection [page 105] (107 words)

Medical reports and records [page 105] (203 words)

Data protection [page 105] (79 words)

Chapter 6

6. Trade unions and collective organisation [page 107] (565 words)

Most union and collective organisation rights are found in the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (TULRCA), as amended. In ...
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Trade union human rights and international law [page 108] (721 words)

Outlawing of closed shop [page 109] (54 words)

Trade union recognition [page 109] (2,693 words)

Derecognition [page 113] (279 words)

Offers to end collective bargaining (unlawful inducements) [page 114] (731 words)

Time off for union duties and activities [page 115] (2,510 words)

Rights to information for collective bargaining [page 120] (484 words)

Protection of union members from detriment [page 121] (2,773 words)

Anti-union blacklisting [page 125] (1,310 words)

Interim relief [page 128] (71 words)

Disciplinary action against union representatives [page 128] (85 words)

European Works Councils [page 128] (205 words)

ICE Regulations [page 128] (570 words)

Internal union matters [page 129] (2,302 words)

Chapter 7

7. Industrial action [page 135] (334 words)

This chapter outlines the UK’s industrial action laws, which are among the worst in Europe according to the International Trade Union Congress ...
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The right to strike [page 135] (1,059 words)

The immunities [page 137] (4,776 words)

Minimum service levels [page 146] (599 words)

Ban on using agency workers to replace striking workers [page 147] (367 words)

Picketing [page 147] (1,775 words)

Criminal law [page 151] (171 words)

Injunctions [page 151] (510 words)

Protection from dismissal [page 152] (262 words)

Deducting pay [page 152] (438 words)

Lockouts [page 153] (260 words)

Annual reporting duty — industrial action [page 154] (139 words)

Chapter 8

8. Time off and flexible working [page 155] (215 words)

Part VI of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 96) gives individuals the right to time off for various specific purposes and these are explained in ...
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Time off work [page 155] (2,401 words)

Flexible working [page 160] (1,551 words)

Chapter 9

9. Family leave [page 165] (742 words)

This chapter sets out the statutory rights to time off that are available to working parents. These are contained in Part VIII (Chapters 1 to 4) of ...
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Priority treatment during redundancy [page 166] (972 words)

Maternity leave and pay [page 168] (2,749 words)

Adoption leave and pay [page 173] (1,401 words)

Paternity leave and pay [page 176] (1,098 words)

Shared parental leave and pay [page 178] (1,668 words)

Unpaid parental leave [page 181] (443 words)

Parental bereavement leave and pay [page 182] (500 words)

Carer’s leave [page 183] (772 words)

Chapter 10

10. Discrimination [page 187] (494 words)

Equality law in England, Wales and Scotland is regulated by the Equality Act 2010 (EA 10). For the most part, equality law in Northern Ireland ...
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The protected characteristics under the EA 10 [page 188] (9,448 words)

Who is protected from discrimination? [page 205] (1,112 words)

Types of discrimination [page 207] (10,721 words)

Where discrimination may occur in a work context [page 227] (4,145 words)

Positive action [page 235] (367 words)

Equal pay [page 236] (5,596 words)

Bringing a discrimination claim [page 245] (2,136 words)

Compensation [page 249] (1,499 words)

Chapter 11

11. Dismissal [page 253] (201 words)

The right to claim unfair dismissal is contained in Part X of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 96). Similar provisions are contained in part XI of ...
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Time limits [page 253] (173 words)

Difference between wrongful and unfair dismissal [page 253] (315 words)

What is a dismissal? [page 254] (915 words)

Right to notice and notice pay [page 256] (1,397 words)

Non-renewal of a fixed-term contract [page 258] (170 words)

Constructive dismissal [page 258] (1,838 words)

What makes a dismissal unfair? [page 262] (1,606 words)

Capability dismissals [page 265] (342 words)

Conduct dismissals [page 266] (4,840 words)

Redundancy [page 275] (104 words)

Legal duty or restriction [page 275] (400 words)

Some other substantial reason [page 276] (177 words)

Dismissal for refusing to agree changes to terms and conditions [page 276] (1,362 words)

Dismissals due to breakdown in trust and confidence [page 279] (121 words)

Dismissals due to third party pressure [page 279] (108 words)

Dismissal for refusing to sign a restrictive covenant [page 279] (96 words)

Dismissal for manifesting offensive political opinions [page 279] (94 words)

Dismissal due to return of original post-holder [page 279] (108 words)

Employees accused of a criminal offence [page 280] (247 words)

Retirement [page 280] (61 words)

Automatically unfair reasons for dismissal [page 280] (1,907 words)

The effective date of termination [page 284] (958 words)

Continuous employment [page 286] (772 words)

Illegality and unfair dismissal rights [page 287] (243 words)

Interim relief [page 288] (574 words)

Reinstatement or re-engagement [page 289] (629 words)

Compensation [page 290] (2,141 words)

Insolvency [page 294] (189 words)

The statutory right to be accompanied [page 295] (910 words)

Covid unfair dismissal claims: some examples [page 296] (620 words)

Chapter 12

12. Redundancy [page 299] (68 words)

This chapter sets out the individual rights of workers who are made redundant, unions’ statutory rights to collective consultation when more job ...
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Definition of redundancy [page 299] (1,673 words)

Redundancy procedure [page 302] (2,368 words)

Alternative work [page 306] (2,322 words)

Has there been a dismissal? [page 310] (797 words)

Notice [page 312] (266 words)

Unfair dismissal and redundancy [page 313] (1,971 words)

Apprentices [page 316] (287 words)

Redundancy pay [page 317] (2,855 words)

Collective redundancies [page 323] (4,160 words)

Chapter 13

13. Transfers and service provision changes (TUPE) [page 333] (270 words)

The Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE) protect employees if their employer changes hands. TUPE applies to ...
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Key facts [page 333] (245 words)

What types of employer are covered by TUPE? [page 334] (172 words)

Who is covered by TUPE? [page 334] (182 words)

Relevant transfers [page 334] (2,439 words)

Who transfers? [page 339] (1,091 words)

Objecting to a transfer [page 341] (97 words)

Transfer causing substantial detrimental change [page 341] (247 words)

Constructive dismissal [page 342] (88 words)

Workforce reorganisation before a transfer [page 342] (743 words)

Consultation and collective rights [page 343] (2,524 words)

Employee liability information [page 348] (150 words)

Transfers within public administration [page 348] (192 words)

Return of the two-tier workforce [page 349] (217 words)

Effect of TUPE on terms and conditions [page 349] (491 words)

TUPE and pensions [page 350] (671 words)

Public service outsourcing [page 351] (755 words)

Collective agreements and union recognition [page 353] (143 words)

TUPE and contract changes [page 353] (2,555 words)

Unfair dismissal and TUPE [page 358] (1,198 words)

TUPE and insolvency [page 360] (335 words)

Chapter 14

14. Whistleblowing [page 361] (95 words)

The Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA) introduced provisions in a new Part IVA to the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 96) to protect ...
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What is a protected disclosure? [page 361] (891 words)

Who is protected? [page 363] (576 words)

Who should disclosures be made to? [page 364] (261 words)

Claims and remedies [page 364] (897 words)

Further guidance [page 366] (108 words)

Chapter 15

15. Data protection, surveillance and monitoring [page 367] (176 words)

Data protection law regulates the way in which employers can use personal information about their workers. It balances the rights of organisations to ...
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Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) [page 367] (218 words)

The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) [page 367] (3,581 words)

Monitoring at work [page 375] (1,013 words)

Privacy, data protection and technology [page 377] (439 words)

Chapter 16

16. Bringing a tribunal claim [page 379] (38 words)

This chapter summarises the formal steps involved in bringing an employment tribunal (ET) claim (industrial tribunal and fair employment tribunal in ...
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First steps — preparing to submit a claim [page 379] (1,972 words)

Employees outside Great Britain [page 382] (91 words)

Making a claim [page 382] (1,190 words)

The tribunal process [page 385] (3,084 words)

The tribunal hearing [page 390] (1,417 words)

Enforcing ET awards and costs orders [page 393] (199 words)

Appealing to the Employment Appeal Tribunal [page 394] (219 words)

Settling a claim [page 394] (1,918 words)

Tribunal reform [page 398] (251 words)

Sources of legal advice and support [page 398] (54 words)

Further information

Further information [page 399] (1,403 words)

Copies of relevant statutes and regulations are available online at: www.legislation.gov.uk. In Northern Ireland, legislation is published on the ...
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