World Cup 2018 – How to support your team whilst staying on-side

With the largest sporting event in the world less than a month away, now seems an apt time to address how to avoid falling foul of your employer’s polices during the World Cup.

On the off chance you haven’t already seen them, the match times have already been released this year and the majority of them fall within normal working hours - starting at 13:00, 15:00, 16:00 and 19:00.  This is obviously not ideal for football fans, but gives the possibility of watching the match in working hours. This can be seen as both a blessing and a curse, and I’ll discuss some of the reasons why below:

1.     Do I have a right to watch my country’s team play?

The short answer is no (unless your contract states otherwise – highly unlikely!). Although some employers will let their employees watch certain games you do not have an express right do to so. However, if, for instance, your employer allows England fans the afternoon off to watch the match but doesn’t give the same offer to supporters of other countries when their teams are playing this could potentially be seen as race discrimination under the Equality Act.  

2.     Can I be disciplined for my behaviour on a staff social?

It’s a fact that a lot of staff social events involve alcohol and sometimes there can be a tendency towards inappropriate behaviour when drinking is involved.  I would suggest this is especially true during the World Cup given the excitement of the event and the high emotions (usually disappointment, for England fans) involved. This gives rise to the question of whether or not your employer can sanction you for your behaviour during a staff social? The answer to this question is yes, they can. If your employer organises an outing or event their normal rules on appropriate behaviour will apply to staff who attend it. There are many examples of staff members acting inappropriately at work events and facing disciplinary proceedings because of this, so it is worth bearing in mind!

3.     Can I show support for my country’s team at work?

The World Cup is one of the largest sporting events in the world, bringing together 64 countries who fight for a spot in the final 32. Many different nations with their own customs and traditions, it is a great chance for employees to share their culture with one another. However, due to the competitive nature of the event some supporters can tend to get a little carried away. It goes without saying that it is a good idea to be respectful about the other countries in the competition. Negative comments and stereotypes are often found to be discriminatory in law, whether they are intended to be or not, and can lead to disciplinary action or even dismissal. It is also worth mentioning that some employers have a “neutrality policy” which may prohibit employees displaying flags and various other national symbols in the office; if in doubt, ask your employer before doing so.

James Battle - Legal Assistant

For further information on Employment Rights please visit our website or call 0033 3344 9603 and ask to speak with our Employment Rights team.

Sexual Harassment at Work – How to Start Fixing the Problem

Last year, a BBC survey revealed that half of British women and a fifth of men have been sexually harassed at work. And with momentum generated by the #MeToo campaign, sexual harassment has been in the spotlight in recent months.

The Equalities and Human Rights Commission has now published its new report, on 27 March 2018. 

The report shares evidence gathered from around 1,000 individuals and employers between December 2017 and February 2018 and shows that some employers simply aren’t protecting their employees from sexual harassment at work. 

The report looks at how sexual harassment is dealt with by employers and recommends several improvements.

The report found a lack of consistent, effective action on the part of too many employers and the EHRC is now calling on the UK Government to show clear leadership and implement their recommendations to eliminate sexual harassment in every British workplace.

So how do they propose that sexual harassment at work is eliminated? They suggest that through transforming workplace cultures, promoting transparency and strengthening legal protections, sexual harassment can be eliminated.  

The key recommendations made by the EHRC for the government to consider are as follows:

• Introduce a statutory code of practice on sexual harassment and harassment at work, with employment tribunals to have the power to apply an uplift to compensation in harassment claims of up to 25% for a breach of any mandatory element of this new code;

• Employers should all have and should publish their sexual harassment policy in an easily accessible part of their external website;

• Legislation should be introduced making any contractual clause which prevents disclosure of future acts of discrimination, harassment or victimisation void;

• Safeguards should be implemented to restrict the use of confidentiality clauses preventing disclosure of past acts of harassment;

• The limitation period for harassment claims in an employment tribunal should be extended to six months from three;

• If a claim is brought out of time, the burden of proof should be on the employer to state why the deadline should not be extended, rather than on the employee as it is currently;

• Interim relief provisions for harassment and victimisation claims should be introduced, similar to those for protected disclosure dismissals;

• Employment tribunals should be allowed to make recommendations about the wider workforce, rather than solely about the employer's treatment of the individual claimant;

• Reinstatement of protection from third party harassment though without the requirement to show two previous incidents;

• Re-introduction of the statutory questionnaire.

The Government has responded to the EHRC's report by condemning all forms of workplace harassment and promising to keep matters under review. 

But will they fix the problem? Or at least try? The recommendations above are a good start however the Government is rather busy at the moment and the EHRC’s recommendations may tumble down the list of priorities. It’s therefore doubtful whether any regulation or other action will come from this report. 

Hannah Boynes - Solicitor

For further information on Employment Rights please visit our website or call 0033 3344 9603 and ask to speak with our Employment Rights team.

Disability Employment Gap

The gender pay gap has been hitting the headlines recently but what about the disability employment gap?

Under the Equality Act 2010 a disability is defined as “a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on [one’s] ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.”

The disability employment gap is the difference between employment rates of disabled and non-disabled people. According to the Labour Force Statistics published in summer 2017, the disability employment gap remained unchanged at 31.3 percentage points.  That means that there is a gap of roughly 30% between disabled and non-disabled individuals in employment. 

Prejudices, coupled alongside a lack of understanding by employers, have contributed to the employment gap. Employers ought to be aware that the Access to Work scheme is available and is a publicly funded employment support program set up to provide funds to help more disabled people start or stay in work.  

Under the Equality Act 2010 there is a duty for employers to make reasonable adjustments for disabled workers. The support provided by Access to Work covers interventions that go beyond this duty, and grants are assessed on an individual basis. On 20 March 2018 the Government raised the cap on funding by £15,000 so that the annual cap is now £57,200.

In 2015 the Government said that they will aim to halve the disability employment gap and this was taken to mean by the end of the Parliament. However, the Government has clarified that there is no specific time period on this pledge but it has talked of a “10 year strategy.”

Rightly so, gender inequality has been brought to the forefront for challenge. However, the disability employment gap is equally as important and ought to demand the same attention for change. In the words of the late Professor Stephen Hawking “we have a moral duty to remove the barriers of participation, and to invest sufficient funding and expertise to unlock the vast potential of people with disabilities.”

In a climate where businesses are regularly highlighting labour shortages or employment skill gaps, let them be reminded that there is an additional 30% potential workforce available to be utilised.

Kamran Sadiq - Solicitor

For further information on Employment Rights please visit our website or call 0033 3344 9603 and ask to speak with our Employment Rights team.

Carillion ‘ruined my life’- The secret blacklisting war with union activist

The UK's second-largest construction company, employing around 20,000 people in the UK, buckled under the weight of a whopping £1.5bn debt pile.

Dave Smith, a successful Engineer who had the pick of engineering jobs throughout London, was employed by Carillion.  In 1998 he was driving a 4 x 4 vehicle but by 2000 he could not even get a job as an Engineer, despite the longest building boom this country has ever known. He even stopped receiving calls from employment agencies.

All this because he was brave enough to complain about the dangers of asbestos on construction sites and attempted to improve health and safety conditions through union activism. Sadly, for Dave this resulted in selling personal belongings, defaulting mortgage payments and borrowing from friends and family.

The Carillion blacklisting scandal was aired on BBC Radio 4. The company had been paying The Consulting Association to keep files on Dave and circulate a blacklist, with his name, among 40 construction companies. The blacklist had thousands of names on it, meaning Carillion had been complicit in one of the biggest industrial scandals in British history. Dave was one of the “lucky” ones to be affected - unfortunately for others this outrageous scandal left hundreds of workers homeless, without family and some sadly took their own lives.

Dave’s ongoing battle with Carillion meant he was able to help found the Blacklisted Support Group and take Carillion to Court but following the demise of Carillion Dave and many others who suffered at the hands of the company may never see the directors face legal action.

Not a penny of public money should be given to the bosses of Carillion -if the government has another magic money tree hidden away somewhere it should bail out the NHS - not Carillion or their bankers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-42853895

Rizzwana Bashir - Trainee Solicitor

For further information on Employment Rights please visit our website or call 0033 3344 9603 and ask to speak with our Employment Rights team.

Lizards, bats and workers' rights

This week’s House of Commons debate on the EU (Withdrawal) Bill illuminates the danger of the current government scrapping or watering down employment laws once we exit the EU. 

Post-exit, there will most likely be a degree of “cherry picking” of employment laws, with the government changing or scrapping many especially where doing so might be seen as “business-friendly” (TUPE anyone?). Without the European Court of Justice or EU to prevent this, it will be down to the government of the day, possibly using Henry VIII-style autocratic power with limited oversight in Parliament.

An unlikely event?  Why?  Whilst Theresa May says she respects workers’ rights, we know many Conservatives don’t and after all who’d bet on Theresa May still being PM in 2019?

Like Kenneth Clarke said in the House of Commons as part of the debate, concerning animal rights and employment protection, “there are members of the present government who are not excessively fond of lizards and bats, or workers’ rights”. He argued for the government to limit what he interprets as a power grab by them for the Henry VIII powers. 

Whatever the outcome of the Bill, workers’ rights need to stay.  In terms of the main world economies, the UK already has the fewest employment law protections of all except for the US and Canada.  Let’s not dumb ourselves down further and let’s look after our lizards, bats and workers.

David Sorensen  - Partner

For further information on Employment Rights please visit our website or call 0033 3344 9603 and ask to speak with our Employment Rights team.

“The Uber hack” – 57 million accounts compromised?

The $68bn company admitted this week that their systems had been hacked and personal information stolen, in October 2016, and that Uber had paid the hackers $100,000 to destroy the information and keep the breach quiet.

The UK’s information commissioner’s office said, “Uber’s announcement about a concealed data breach last October raises huge concerns around its data protection policies and ethics… Deliberately concealing breaches from regulators and citizens could attract higher fines for companies.”

Was Uber right to cave in to the hackers?

I doubt it.

Not only does it send a signal (from one of the world’s biggest companies) that hacking pays – but it positively encourages the hackers to try again, and we can be reasonably sure that if the hackers got away with a mere $100K last time, they’ll be looking to up the ante next.

And Uber’s failure to come clean is surely a major mistake.  Not only is the ICO likely to take a dim view about a cover-up – but customers can rightly be outraged that their personal details, passwords and so on might have been compromised with no opportunity afforded to them to take steps to protect themselves (e.g. by making password changes).  The reputational cost alone is likely to be significant.

And all this as UK organisations are looking to 2018 and implementation of a new set of Data Protection laws to mirror the EU’s “GDPR” (General Data Protection Regulations) – a lot of work needs to be done between now and 25th May 2018 to ensure that effective compliance regimes are in place.

We are already advising a number of Unions about the implications of the new regime.

For professional, confidential advice contact Paul Scholey.

Mental Health at Work

Sadly, I deal with many workplace disability discrimination cases and a high proportion of those involve mental health issues. In my experience, employers find it much more difficult to understand and manage mental health issues in the workplace, in contrast to other disabilities.  

I therefore welcomed Theresa May’s announcement in January this year that an independent review was to be undertaken into how employers can better support all individuals in employment with mental ill health or poor well being to remain in and thrive through work. Last month, the government’s report was released.

As you may have seen in the headlines, the review uncovered some staggering facts and figures:

• 300,000 people with a long term mental health problem lose their jobs each year.
• 15% of people at work have symptoms of an existing mental health problem.
• Poor mental health of employees is costing employers between £33 billion and £42 billion a year, stemming from sick leave, staff turnover and individuals being less productive in their roles (“presenteeism”).
• The cost of poor mental health to the government is between £24 billion and £27 billion, resulting from costs of providing benefits, falls in tax revenue and costs to the NHS.
• And the cost to the economy as a whole from lost output?...between £74 billion and £99 billion a year!   

The “inescapable conclusion” was that it was massively in the interests of both employers and the government to prioritise and invest far more in improving mental health. I wholeheartedly agree with that conclusion.

But what can employers do about it?

The report proposes “mental health core standards”, a framework for a set of actions which could be implemented across all workplaces quickly and at little or no cost. It recommends the following:

• Implement and communicate mental health at work plans;
• develop mental health awareness among employees;
• encourage open conversations about mental health and the support available;
• provide good working conditions and a healthy work-life balance;
• promote effective people management through line managers and supervisors;
• routinely monitor employee mental health and wellbeing.  

Personally, I think the recommendations are a very good start.

So many of my cases result from a serious lack of appreciation and understanding of mental health issues and how to balance them against the employer’s need to achieve results, deal with absenteeism and address perceived performance issues. I therefore believe that implementation of the framework would give employers a very different perspective on these types of cases and, if well managed and well informed, I expect many employers will realise just how much those with mental health issues can thrive at work, as much as anyone else.   

Daniel Kindell  - Solicitor

For further information on Employment Rights please visit our website or call 0033 3344 9603 and ask to speak with our Employment Rights team.