Paul Doran Have you been harassed by your boss? That’s what happened to Kim Beaney. In April 2017, she took a job at Highways England as a driver and trainee highway inspector. She was interviewed by her line manager, Grant Bosence. Even before she started the job, he initiated unsolicited text messages and phone calls where he …
If you’re an agency worker, you might want to know about your rights under employment law. Here’s a story that helps answer that question. When Royal Mail need extra staff to do mail processing at busy times and during sickness absence, they turn to recruitment partners such as Angard Staffing Solutions. In January 2015, Mr …
Are you in trouble because you’ve broken your company’s social media policy? Read this article to understand the implications. You might be used to sharing your opinions online. You might think it’s natural to want to check your personal emails or social media during working hours. But your employer might not allow that, and you …
Are you overworked to the extent that it’s affecting your mental health? Here’s a story about one employee who experience that situation, and how she won her case for constructive unfair dismissal. Case study In 2013, Elizabeth Aylott joined BPP University in London as a lecturer. At the time, she informed the organisation that she …
Lost your job unfairly? You might be wondering whether you have the right to make a claim for unfair dismissal. In many cases, the answer is Yes. However, as with most legal scenarios, the situation can be complicated and there are some exceptions as detailed below. Are you an employee? If you have a contract …
Some care workers are employed to stay overnight at the house of an elderly, disabled or vulnerable person, just in case their help is required. These shifts are commonly referred to as “sleep-in” shifts. There is an ongoing debate to determine whether sleep-in care workers are actually ‘working’ and therefore entitled to be paid national …
Certain characteristics are protected in law and if an employer treats you differently, you may be entitled to bring a discrimination claim. In alphabetical order, these are: Age Disability Gender reassignment Marriage and civil partnership Pregnancy and maternity Political (Northern Ireland only) Race Religion and belief Sex Sexual orientation As you’ll see, most of these …
If you’re in Northern Ireland, you are protected against being treated unfairly because of your political opinion. It’s trickier to make a similar claim in Great Britain. There, political beliefs are treated as ‘philosophical’ in law. This article explores the issues. What counts as a political opinion? This category includes options about the Government and …
If you want to make a claim for unfair dismissal, here’s an idea of the process to follow. First, you must act promptly, because unfair dismissal claims must be brought within three months from the date you were dismissed. Next, you should go through the early conciliation process. If you’re in Northern Ireland, that means …
I suspect that you will be aware that Boris Johnson made a speech last night in which he set out the government’s initial proposals for a pathway out of the lockdown. I also suspect that, like much of the country, the speech has left you a little bit more confused as to what you are …