The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 requires employers, as far as is reasonably practicable, to ensure health and safety at the workplace. Under the act, employers are obliged to ensure that any potential work-related risks to health and safety are eliminated or controlled. Employers with more than five employees are required to draw […]
Qualities That Define A Successful HR Manager
If you were asked to list the qualities that define a successful HR manager, then the list would be long. Some of the things that would be listed include integrity, sympathetic attitude, leadership, patience, quick decision making, social, organised, and excellent communication skills, among others. Here is an overview of each quality that a successful […]
Should HR Managers Understand Employment Law?
More than often enough, most HR professionals didn’t specialise in the field of Employment Law. However, it is still a huge benefit that they have a working idea or more so be knowledgeable within this particular field. Our article goes further into the topic of whether human resource professionals should understand employment law or not. […]
The Qualifications An HR Manager Should Have
HR managers deal with staff recruitment, retention of key staff members, and disciplinary issues. As they are also involved with disciplinary issues, training and development programs, company policies related to staff members, and the regulation of holiday and sick leave, the team at DPH Legal believe they should have some basic employment law knowledge. HR […]
UK Sick Leave Entitlement
In the UK, there is no set limit on how many sick days an employee is entitled to every year. Rather, an employee can take as many sick days as are necessary for them to recover from an illness. However, there are certain rules, policies and procedures that will need to be followed. Consult us […]
What To Do When An Employee Is Off Sick Too Much
Do you have an employee who keeps taking time off of work and you don’t know what to do? Can you fire them? Should you fire them? Read on to learn more. Generally speaking, there are several things you can do when a worker is off sick too much. First, ask them what is going […]
Off Sick For Over 7 Days – What You Need To Do
If you are off work due to illness for a period of 7 consecutive days or more, there are certain procedures that must be followed according to the law and your employment contract with your employer. Read your employment contract carefully to ensure that you understand your obligations in terms of sick leave. Inform Your […]
How Many Sick Days Are Considered Legally Acceptable?
All employees are allowed to legally take sick days. However, you might wonder how many sick days are legally acceptable. While looking at this, you should also consider how proof needs to be provided for these sick days. As always, seek legal advice whenever needed from a trusted law firm. How Many Days Can You […]
What Is An Employment Tribunal?
Employment tribunals also called industrial courts in some countries are special employment courts that deal with work-related legal claims. The tribunal comprises more than three people, whereby one is the judge and two non-legal members are called lay members. Our legal team often represent clients on employment law matters. Initially, employment tribunals were set to […]
Can I Refuse To Use My Personal Phone For Work?
The Pervasiveness of Mobile Phones These days, most people have mobile phones. Their convenience, efficiency, and multifunctionality have made them indispensable in our daily lives. From personal tasks to professional communications, mobile phones support an array of functions. Employer’s Stance on Mobile Usage With that said, some employers have rules governing the use of these […]
How To Handle Arguments At Work
Even if you think of yourself as not ‘close’ with your coworkers, the fact is that you spend more hours with them per week than you do with your friends and loved ones. Due to this, sometimes things can go south and get engaged with brutal arguments, conflicts and fights with those you work next […]
Illegal Workers? How To Check Before You Hire
The number of illegal workers in the UK is a growing problem and employers can face unlimited fines for employing a person who has no legal right to work in the UK. It is therefore essential for employers to check and verify information provided by foreign workers to ensure their legal work status when looking […]
Roles and Responsibilities of a HR Manager
The HR department primarily handles all personnel responsibilities and training strategies of an organisation. All the training and development programs are done by the human resource department. If you’re an employer and your HR manager is unsure of legal issues concerning the workplace, it would be advisable to contact a solicitor who specialises in employment […]
Taxing times
From April 2020, changes to the ‘IR35’ regulation will impact employers who engage contractors through Personal Service Companies (PSCs). These changes will expose businesses engaging contractors to significant tax risks. At the moment, where a person provides services to a business through a PSC, income tax and national insurance contributions (NIC) are paid if that […]
Employment Tribunal Time Limits
The usual time limit for a Claimant to issue a tribunal claim for unfair dismissal or constructive dismissal is three months less than one day from the termination of employment. This was tested recently at the Employment Appeal Tribunal. Overview of Pora v Cape Industrial Services Ltd [2019] The decision of the Employment Appeal Tribunal […]
Redundancy Protection for Women on Maternity Leave – BBC Interview
David Harris discusses redundancy protection for women on maternity leave on BBC Radio Berkshire. David Harris was interviewed by Andrew Peach of BBC Radio Berkshire this morning about a proposal being discussed in the House of Commons to extend redundancy protection for women who are pregnant or returning to work, as well as those on […]
DPH Legal interviewed on BBC Radio Berkshire about NDAs
Mark Lafferty, Solicitor at DPH Legal, was interviewed to discuss NDAs (Non-Disclosure Agreements) on BBC Radio Berkshire yesterday. You can listen to the interview here: Non-Disclosure Agreements have been in the news recently due to their frequent use in employment disputes relating to discrimination, harassment bullying and whistleblowing. The #MeToo campaign has also shone […]
Unpicking Unfair Dismissals Under TUPE
Introduction to TUPE Regulations and Unfair Dismissal TUPE regulations are complex and not to be taken lightly. The Court of Appeal has ruled that an employee who was dismissed on the very day of a TUPE transfer under the guise of a problematic working relationship was in fact automatically unfairly dismissed because of the transfer. […]
DPH Legal feature in Buckinghamshire Living Magazine
What is acceptable behaviour at work and when has someone crossed the line? This topic is frequently in the news, especially since the creation of the #metoo and #timesup campaigns, as well as a documentary by the BBC called “Is This Sexual Harassment?”. DPH Legal features in Buckinghamshire Living magazine to give advice about sexual […]
David Harris discusses Age Discrimination on BBC Radio Berkshire
David Harris was interviewed by Phil Kennedy of BBC Radio Berkshire about a recent case where Eileen Jolly, an 88-year-old employee, won her claim of age discrimination against The Royal Berkshire Hospital. You can listen to the interview here: Age discrimination happens when someone is unfairly treated or disadvantaged for reasons relating to their […]
Legal rights of employees with less than two years service
Generally, employees need to have worked for an employer for two years before they can bring a complaint of unfair dismissal. But there are certain exceptions where employees do not need any minimum period of service to bring a claim. If it can be established that the dismissal of an employee is for one of […]
More equal pay claims
WM Morrison is facing a potential equal pay claim in the region of £100 million from hundreds of its staff (predominantly women), who are of the belief that they have been underpaid when compared to their colleagues, often men, working in distribution centres and warehouses. Morrison’s shop floor workers namely customer assistants argue that they have […]
Is an employee under a duty to disclose the criminal conviction of others?
The Supreme Court, in Reilly v Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council [2018] UKSC 16 (a transcript of the judgment can be accessed here https://www.supremecourt.uk/cases/docs/uksc-2016-0170-judgment.pdf), recently held that a dismissal of an individual for failing to disclose a relationship with a person convicted of a serious criminal offence was capable of falling within the range of reasonable […]
New statutory rates of pay to come into force
The government recently published details of the proposed new statutory rates for maternity pay, paternity pay, shared parental pay, adoption pay and sick pay which will apply from April 2018. Statutory maternity pay is due to rise from £140.98 to £145.18 per week from 1 April 2018 (although SMP remains at 90% of the employee’s […]
They said they would not compete
As experienced employment lawyers, we frequently advise employer clients on restraining employees’ post-employment activity to prevent competitive activity. A recent case provides guidance in relation to the circumstances surrounding an employee resigning and stating that they do not intend to compete but then subsequently choose to do so. The High Court (Chancery Division) recently found […]
David Harris interview on BBC Radio Berkshire about gender pay gap
David Harris, Managing Partner of DPH Legal, employment solicitors, was asked by BBC Radio Berkshire to comment on the recent disclosures made by their own organisation of Executive salaries. Following the disclosures, disparities were noted between certain recognisable television personalities, e.g. Sue Barker and Alan Shearer, which some say provided stark evidence of a continuing […]
Whistleblowing update: damages for stigma and loss of future prospects
The Court of Appeal in Small v Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust [2017] EWCA Civ 882 recently considered the question of whether a Claimant ought to receive damages for stigma and loss of future prospects where the evidence suggests so but the issue has not been raised by the parties. In this instance, the […]
What next for the gig economy?
The much-anticipated Taylor Review (or to give it its formal title, “Good work: the Taylor review of modern working practices”) was published on 11 July 2017 A full copy of the Review can be accessed via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/627671/good-work-taylor-review-modern-working-practices-rg.pdf The Review has come, at least in part, in response to the recent plethora of […]
Dealing with stress in the workplace
Figures from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development show that, for the very first time, stress is the most common cause of long-term sickness and accounts for around 35% of all work-related ill health cases and 43% of all working days lost due to ill health. Preventing and dealing with workplace stress is a […]
Diocesan Discrimination
The inherent complexities of Equality Law are again in the spotlight following the recent Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) case of Pemberton v Bishop of Southwell & Nottingham. Anglican priest, Reverend Pemberton, saw his application for a position as Chaplain at an NHS Trust rejected following the Bishop of Southwell & Nottingham’s refusal to grant the […]