The EAT has upheld a decision of the ET in Lyons v DWP Jobcentre Plus that a woman, who was dismissed having been off sick for several months after the end of her maternity leave, had not been discriminated against because of pregnancy or sex. s18 of the Equality Act 2010 sets out that pregnancy […]
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News – Discrimination
Illegality and discrimination
An employee working under an illegal contract may be prevented from relying on statutory or contractual employment rights. As far back as 1978, it was held that it was against public policy for employees with illegal contracts to pursue an unfair dismissal claim. The position as to discrimination claims is less clear. The cases are […]
Caste discrimination
There has been discussion around the proposed amendment to the Equality Act 2010 and whether this needed to be amended to include expressly that caste is an aspect of the protected characteristic of race. The Government had not yet amended the Act but intended to make the inclusion clear. The Employment Tribunal in Tirkey v […]
Sunday working
The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal from an employee who was Christian and claimed indirect discrimination on the grounds of religious belief by being required to work Sundays. The requirement was found to be potentially discriminatory but on this occasion the employer could justify the requirement to work on Sundays. The employer ran […]
Responding to discrimination questions
The statutory discrimination questionnaires under the Equality Act 2010 will be replaced from 6th April 2014 with an informal approach to dealing with questions regarding discrimination in the workplace. ACAS has issued non-binding guidance for best practice on this area which can be found here
Avoiding discrimination claims
Discrimination law has a purpose and is designed to: Ensure equality of opportunity at work Protect employees’ dignity Ensure that complaints can be raised without fear of reprisal Most employers want to do the right thing but some can get it wrong or not have this same ethos. What are the consequences for failing to comply with […]
Philosophical belief
The Employment Tribunal has found that the Claimant’s political belief in democratic socialism qualified as a philosophical belief under the Equality Act 2010. Whilst his mere support in the Labour Party was not enough, his political belief in democratic socialism as enshrined by the Labour Party’s core values was qualified. This was because he had […]
Is a consultant a worker or an employee or neither?
Whilst fact sensitive, the EAT has upheld the Tribunal’s decision in Halawi v WDFG UK Ltd (t/a World Duty Free) and another 2013, that a beauty consultant was not in employment under the Equality Act 2010 s83. The Claimant provided her services through a limited company to an agent who then supplied staff to a […]
Unlawful discrimination in the provision of services
The widely reported case of the Christian hotel owners who refused a double room to civil partners, as they had a policy to only provide these rooms to heterosexual married couples, has hit the headlines again following the decision of the Supreme Court last week. This case has received much media attention partly because it […]
Disability and long term sickness
It is possible in some circumstances with long term sickness to adopt the doctrine of frustration and say that the contract has been frustrated, thus bringing the employment contract to end without dismissing the employee in unfair dismissal terms. This is something I have done in practice on a few occasions for employers but it […]
(Our news section brings you the latest news on published judgments and cases which are all in the public domain. We only comment on these published cases and not cases of our actual clients. Publication of the case or comments is a public service designed to make the courts and tribunals more accessible and ensures justice is seen to be done. This is why court and tribunal judgments are published publicly.)