December 01, 2011
Waldrons Employment Team wishes you and all your staff a very happy Christmas and a Prosperous and Successful New Year!
Equal Pay – timing is everything
Even if an employee is out of time to bring an equal pay claim in the Employment Tribunal, the Court of Appeal has said that the employee can still bring a claim in the High Court where the time limit is longer than the 6 months in the Employment Tribunal. Annual pay reviews are an excellent opportunity to review pay scales to ensure that there is equality in remuneration.
Restricting ex-employees
We have seen a rise in the number of employers seeking to enforce restrictive covenants against ex-employees who have gone to work for a competitor, and threatening claim for damages or seeking injunctions. In order to be enforceable a restrictive covenant must be reasonable in duration, geographic location and extent of what it is trying to restrict. The point at which it is decided whether a restrictive clause is reasonable and therefore enforceable is at the point the employer tries to enforce it. As a business or the market changes the enforceability of a restrictive covenant can change. For more information request our Free Fact Sheet by emailing Hannah at h.scott@waldrons.co.uk
Adverse Weather
The weathermen cannot seem to be able to decide whether or not we are going to have snow at the moment. If and when we do have snow it is important that you carry out a risk assessment for your employees. If the risk is such that you decide to close the workplace then employees are still entitled to be paid for that time. If however an employee cannot get into work then they are not generally entitled to be paid – you may wish them to use it as holiday or as unpaid leave. In any event you should establish an adverse weather policy so everyone knows what to expect (even if the weathermen don’t).
It's that time of year again, and we’re so proud of our Christmas ditty that we are going to take a leaf out of TV’s book and show a repeat:
Deck the office with lots of lights
Fa la la la la la la la la
Making sure you’re safe at heights
Fa la la la la la la la la
Getting all the staff together
Fa la la la la la la la la
It should not be a compulsory measure
Fa la la la la la la la la
Party food and drinks galore
Fa la la la la la la la la
Set the ground rules firm before
Fa la la la la la la la la
To make sure that it’s a good time
Fa la la la la la la la la
For no trouble and all being fine
Fa la la la la la la la la
Party all ye lads and lasses
Fa la la la la la la la la
Avoiding all those drunken passes
Fa la la la la la la la la
Keep behaviour right on track
Fa la la la la la la la la
Be sensible avoid the sack
Fa la la la la la la la la
Hannah Scott, Employment Solicitor
h.scott@waldrons.co.uk
Waldrons Solicitors
Wychbury Court
Two Woods Lane
Merry Hill DY5 1TA
Tel: 01384 811811
Fax: 01384 811833
