Employment

Employment Appeal Tribunal ruling may extend whistleblower protections to charity trustees

On Monday, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) published its judgment in the case of Dr Nigel MacLennan and the British Psychological Society (BPS). Dr MacLennan was serving as a trustee and President-Elect of the British Psychological Society when he was expelled as a member in May 2021. This expulsion followed his reporting of allegations against …
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Realise your purpose: How Immigration and hybrid working are shaping the future of workforce diversity

Realise Your Purpose is a Bates Wells campaign to help commercial organisations consider, decide on and implement their ESG goals. From governance to people, and from contracts to real estate, this series will provide insight and guidance for business leaders and senior decision makers on the first steps in their sustainability journey.   The global landscape …
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UK’s Electronic Travel Authorisation scheme rollout timetable finally confirmed

The government has finally announced further rollout dates for the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme. As one of many steps being taken by the Government towards achieving its aims of digitising the UK border and immigration system, it’s important that employers and individuals are aware and start preparing now for these changes. What’s changing? The …
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The new duty to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace: Top tips for employers

From 26 October 2024 employers will be under a new legal duty proactively to take “reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment in their workplaces.  We take a closer look at what the new duty means in practice, and share some top tips for employers. What is the current law on sexual harassment in the workplace? …
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Realise your purpose: Wellbeing in the workplace

Realise Your Purpose is a Bates Wells campaign to help commercial organisations consider, decide on and implement their ESG goals. From governance to people, and from contracts to real estate, this series will provide insight and guidance for business leaders and senior decision makers on the first steps in their sustainability journey.   Employee sickness absence …
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Employers’ guide to eVisas – all you need to know

As the UK government continues to phase out physical immigration documents in favour of digital eVisas, it’s important that employers are aware of what the changes mean and how it impacts right to work checks. What’s changing? By 2025, almost all migrants in the UK will have to use a digital record to evidence their …
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The King’s Speech: Labour Government’s Legislative Agenda for Employment Law

On 17 July 2024, in the King’s Speech, the newly elected Labour government set out its proposals for two new employment law Bills; the Employment Rights Bill and the Draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill. Both are intended to deliver on the policies set out in its pre-election “Plan to Make Work Pay: Delivering a New …
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Realise your purpose: Increasing gender diversity in the workforce

Realise Your Purpose is a Bates Wells campaign to help commercial organisations consider, decide on and implement their ESG goals. From governance to people, and from contracts to real estate, this series will provide insight and guidance for business leaders and senior decision makers on the first steps in their sustainability journey.   Currently in the …
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Working 9 to 5… Can you ask your workforce to return to the office full-time?

It has been reported that Manchester United minority shareholder, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, has told employees they need to return to the office full-time, citing a boost to productivity and reduction in email traffic as his reasons for the move. It is also reported that he told staff they should seek “alternative employment” if they were …
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Bates Wells and the EHRC supports Uber Eats driver who faced problematic AI checks

An Uber Eats driver received financial settlement following allegations that an AI facial recognition system, required to access the Uber Eats platform, was racially discriminatory. Pa Edrissa Manjang continuously experienced difficulties with Uber Eats’ verification system. In 2021, he was removed from the platform and told by Uber Eats that they had found ‘continued mismatches’ …
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Holiday pay for irregular workers (and some positive developments for employers)

The question of how to pay holiday pay to workers working irregular hours has for many years been a vexed one. Rolling up holiday pay has technically been unlawful (although as a matter of pragmatism it has remained a wide-spread practice). In 2022 the Supreme Court in Harpur Trust v Brazel cast doubt on the …
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What’s still to come in 2024? Upcoming immigration changes

2024 has already been a year of rapid change for the UK’s most-used immigration routes. The rest of the year looks set to be no less eventful and in particular, important changes to both the Skilled Worker and partner routes will be coming into force in early April.   Common themes of the new measures …
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