An employer’s expectation that an employee will work long hours may be a provision, criterion or practice subject to the reasonable adjustment duty. This is so even if the employee is not ordered to work them nor coerced in the sense of being deprived of any real choice. The Court of Appeal so held in... Read more »
Diana Kloss’s latest blog considers workers’ rights to ask to see their health data under the new rules. One of the most valuable legal rights given to the subjects of personal data held by data controllers is the right to ask for a copy of their records. This right is currently conferred by the Data... Read more »
The Court of Appeal has upheld the EAT’s decision in Donelien v Liberata that on the facts the employer could not reasonably be expected to know the worker had a disability. Even though the OH reports were insufficient as regards whether the claimant had a disability, the employer had formed its view that there was... Read more »
We have updated our pages on who is a ‘worker’, including some recent cases on the gig economy. ‘Workers’ are an intermediate type of employment status between ‘employees’ and ‘genuinely self-employed, having some employment rights but fewer than employees: Employment status: ‘employees’ and ‘workers’. Our page on ‘Workers‘ now includes the Court of Appeal decision... Read more »
The EU Court of Justice held that failure to carry out an individual risk assessment for a breastfeeding mother in accordance with the Pregnant Workers Directive was direct sex discrimination. In Ramos v Servicio Galego de Saúde (bailii.org) Ms Ramos was a nurse in an A&E unit. She told her employer she was breastfeeding and... Read more »
Where an employer had not allowed a worker paid leave because he was considered ‘self-employed’, the worker could now claim against the employer back to when he started employment in 1999. The EU Court of Justice (ECJ) decision in King v Sash Window Workshop www.bailii.org is important particularly where an employer currently categorises certain people... Read more »
Employment tribunal claimants, and employers ordered by the tribunal to reimburse fees, can now apply for refunds. This government scheme to reimburse fees follows the Supreme Court ruling in July that the system of employment tribunal fees was unlawful. Links to the online claim forms, or pdfs to apply by email or post, are at... Read more »
The Court of Appeal quashed an optometrist’s manslaughter conviction, because it was based on medical evidence she hadn’t (but should have) looked at. In a routine eye inspection, the optometrist failed to notice that a seven year old boy had swollen optic disks. An optical consultant/assistant had taken retinal images which clearly showed a problem.... Read more »
A Bedford based health care provider has been fined after it failed to act on concerns raised by an occupational health nurse. The case concerned Ramsay Health Care (UK) Operations Ltd. Southwark Crown Court heard how in June 2014 an OH nurse raised concerns with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) relating to the running... Read more »
The Supreme Court has held an employment tribunal has jurisdiction to consider a dismissal by a police misconduct tribunal. The claimant had suffered PTSD after being assaulted while serving as a police officer. She was subsequently involved in an incident which led to her arrest. She said her behaviour was related to her PTSD. She... Read more »
