Contracts and Policies

Testimonials
Richard has worked on some complex cases. I can honestly say that his eagerness to succeed is matched with his willingness to listen and his calm yet consistent approach to confront issues head-on. And above all else, unlike solicitors we have dealt with before, he will go to vast lengths to understand each case before making any assertion. Without hesitation I recommend GD People. Peter Hetherington (Operations Director 1^st Care Ltd, Midlands) We needed help to guide us though our redundancy process and clearly the whole matter had to be handled sensitively. On recommendation, we chose GD People to help co-ordinate and communicate this to our workforce and they did a sterling job for us. We would have no hesitation in recommending their services based upon our own experience to-date. Darren Timson, Landcare Operations Director, Stockport.

Testimonials

Richard has worked on some complex cases. I can honestly say that his eagerness to succeed is matched with his willingness to listen and his calm yet consistent approach to confront issues head-on. And above all else, unlike solicitors we have dealt with before, he will go to vast lengths to understand each case before making any assertion. Without hesitation I recommend GD People.

Peter Hetherington (Operations Director 1^st Care Ltd, Midlands)

We needed help to guide us though our redundancy process and clearly the whole matter had to be handled sensitively. On recommendation, we chose GD People to help co-ordinate and communicate this to our workforce and they did a sterling job for us. We would have no hesitation in recommending their services based upon our own experience to-date.

Darren Timson, Landcare Operations Director, Stockport.

Contracts and Policies

If your employees don't have a contract of employment then they need one. Section 1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, states, "Where an employee begins employment with an employer, the employer shall give to the employee a written statement of particulars of employment." This statement "shall be given not later than two months after the beginning of the employment." This statement must contain certain particulars.

At GD People we can draft contracts of employment so that they reflect the work that you do and contain the specific particulars required under the Act.

We can also draft all your employment practice policies. In this respect the implementation of the Equality Act 2010 in October of 2010 is important. The Act has consolidated nine Acts of Parliament, 100 statutory instruments and 2,500 pages of guidance in its attempt to pull together the disparate strands of discrimination law. It is a massive tome and is rightly described as a landmark piece of legislation.

The Act introduces some new concepts into discrimination law such as positive discrimination and protected characteristics. It further warns us against the use of pre-employment health questionnaires and renders pay secrecy clauses unlawful.

These changes and others must be reflected in your current contracts of employment and policies and for one simple reason. Under the Act employers are legally responsible for the discriminatory acts of the people they employ if the acts are committed in the course of employment, even where those acts are done without either the authority or knowledge of the employer. Any discrimination or harassment by an individual employee in the course of his or her employment is treated as also being done by the employer, and therefore both employee and employer are liable. If however the employer can show it took all reasonably practicable steps to prevent the discrimination or harassment from occurring, it may avoid liability. This is called the ‘reasonable steps’ defence.

If your policies are not up to date this 'reasonable steps' defence is unlikely to be open to you.

Please note adequate equality training for your employees may also be needed if the defence is to be effective.

At GD People we can review your contracts of employment and all other policies to make sure they are compliant. Please contact us on 0161 872 4334 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you would like a free review of your contracts and policies.

Case Law Update

Morgan v The Welsh Rugby Union

This is a useful case for reviewing some of the issues you need to consider when engaging on a redundancy procedure in its various forms.

In this particular case, the Claimant and a colleague were made redundant and their roles were replaced by one amalgamated wider role. Both men were interviewed for the new role but despite the fact that the Claimant met the new job description and the colleague did not, the colleague was given the job.

The Claimant's argument was based on the case of Williams v Compair Maxam [1982] IRLR 83. Williams sets out principles of good industrial relations to be observed in redundancy cases where the employees are represented by an independent union recognised by the employer. The EAT when outlining these principles was clear that they should not be taken as immutable or principals of law. Nonetheless, the principals have long been used as a benchmark for managing redundancy situations. They read as follow:

Conteh v Parking Partners Ltd

The Claimant was a black African female born in Sierra Leone. She was employed by the Respondent employer from 16 February 2009 as a customer car park attendant working in a car park at St George's Residential Development. The employer was a company which carried on business providing car parking facilities.

The marketing staff for St George's worked at the premises and were issued with tickets as they entered the car park. To leave the tickets had to be validated and on occasion the validation machine was broken. The Claimant had standing orders not to allow anyone to leave if their ticket was not validated. On the 14th March 2009, the Claimant exercised this standing order and refused to allow a member of the marketing staff to leave. The following day another member of the marketing staff came into the Claimant's office and was alleged to have said that "The fucking bloody machines are not working and who is paying your fucking bloody wages?", pointed to the sign on the wall and answered the question by saying, "St George's, you fucking stupid black African bitch". She went on insulting the Claimant, eventually letting herself out and slamming the door.

Lisboa v Realpubs

Over four decades the Coleherne Public House in Earls Court, London developed a national and international reputation as London's first 'gay pub'. Realpubs bought the premises. Realpubs own and operate gastropubs and their business model is to buy failing pubs and reposition them as gastropubs, offering good food and drink to all sections of the community.

In September 2008 when Realpubs acquired the Coleherne it was then in decline. The premises underwent refurbishment and were re-launched as the Pembroke Arms, opening to the public on 5 December 2008.

The Claimant in this case was an openly gay man. His working life has been spent in the hospitality industry. Between 2003 and late 2008 he worked as General Manager of a gastropub in Ealing. In late November 2008 he was interviewed by Realpubs' Operational Manager for a post in the Pembroke Arms. Following that interview the Claimant was offered and accepted a position as Assistant Manager at the Pembroke Arms. His employment commenced on 1 December 2008; it ended with his resignation on 11 January 2009.

Keeping Peace In The Workplace

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