On the Monday Morning Dispatch (MMD) this week we examine the critical topic of employees seeking to assert a statutory right. We have updates from the Tribunal on gender discrimination and worker status.

We still have spaces for our Mock Tribunal at Weetwood Hall so please register your interest by reply or at employmenthub@chadlaw.co.uk

This Week at Chadwick Lawrence

The employment team attended a team-building lunch catered by Cocoa & Dough Ltd.

The Media Hub

The Media Hub

Asserting a Statutory Right – a Route to a Claim? This video examines the topic of dismissals of employees for asserting a statutory right.

This is particularly important for short-serving employees as such a dismissal does not require a two-year qualifying period of service as with ordinary claims.

To watch the video please click on the link below.

https://youtu.be/e6GdqwGkakg

There have been lots of relevant employment law/HR updates this week.

A mother suffered gender discrimination and unfair dismissal as her employer refused to reduce her hours

In this recent case, a deaf mother who worked as a project manager at the British Deaf Association had made a request to reduce her working hours to two or three days a week after the birth of her daughter. She had made this request so that she could care for her baby, however the request was rejected by her charity director which meant that the claimant had to resign. The claimant subsequently sued the charity for gender discrimination and constructive unfair dismissal. The tribunal held that the claimant had been subject to ‘indirect gender discrimination’ because women are more likely to want reduced hours for childcare reasons. It also said that the charity had not sufficiently considered the alternative possibilities in order to accommodate her request. The claimant was awarded over £36,000.

https://www.gov.uk/employment-tribunal-decisions/ms-l-hedger-v-british-deaf-association-3318925-slash-2019

A personal secretary to a consultant solicitor was not found to be employed by the firm

In this case, a consultant solicitor employed with Eldwick Law, offered a job as a personal secretary to a nightclub dancer he met at a Playboy casino. He offered the claimant a base salary of £14,000 and a 10% bonus. No contract was ever provided, no bank details were taken, there was no induction, and the solicitor never paid the claimant for the work she did or any expenses she incurred on his behalf. The claimant told the tribunal that the solicitor had ultimately went to her home and assaulted her and her four-year-old son and was arrested by the police, and subsequently brought proceedings on the basis that she was employed by Eldon Law. The tribunal found that the firm had no knowledge of how the claimant had come to work for the solicitor, she had never visited firm premises and did not have a relationship with the firm or its managers and was therefore employed by the solicitor and not the firm. The claim against the firm was dismissed.

https://www.gov.uk/employment-tribunal-decisions/br-v-ad-deceased-and-eldwick-law-a-firm-2307054-slash-2020

Legal privilege did not have retrospective application to grievance investigation report

In this case, the claimant raised a grievance under his employer’s Dignity at Work Policy. However, by the time the investigation was concluded, the claimant had already submitted employment tribunal claims of race discrimination and harassment. The employer sought external legal advice on the report and amendments were made to the original document on the back of this. The tribunal bundle only included the revised report, the original was not included. The claimant applied for disclosure of the original report, to which the employer resisted stating that privilege applied retrospectively because of the legal advice it had obtained regarding the report’s contents, resulting in an amended version of the document. The tribunal disagreed with the employer and stated that privilege did not apply retrospectively.

https://www.gov.uk/employment-appeal-tribunal-decisions/university-of-dundee-v-mr-prasun-chakraborty-2022-eat-150

Dates for the Diary

Mock Tribunal – What’s Your Verdict?

When? Monday 14^th November 2022

Where? Weetwood Hall Estate, Otley Road, Weetwood, Leeds, LS16 5PS

Time? 8:30am registration, 9am start

This interactive seminar will involve a mock trial based on a fictional employment tribunal claim. We shall be using practising solicitors and barristers to ensure the event provides a very realistic view of the tribunal process with you, the audience, acting as the ‘jury.’

Further details to follow shortly.