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Communications
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| Bargain
Brief 5 - Topical news for activists and
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September
2001
Legal Application fees for Employment Tribunals Dropped The Government has dropped plans to charge Employment Tribunal applicants a fee of £100. It is still consulting on other proposed changes to the ET system. Stress at work compensation UNISON has helped a member obtain £140,000 compensation for developing a stress-related illness as a result of pressure at work. Thelma Conway, a social worker with Worcestershire CC, obtained the award after exposing bad management and then being put in temporary charge without proper training or support. However, it is still very difficult to obtain damages for illness caused by work-related stress. Amongst the many hurdles to be overcome, it must be 'reasonably forseeable' to the employer that their conduct will result in a stress illness for that employee, usually by being warned that the employee is suffering from stress and is being put under undue pressure. Stress at work is a huge issue - a more detailed briefing will be available from the P&I team shortly. NMW and attendance allowance Employers cannot include attendance allowance payments when calculating the National Minimum Wage. Only payments which are attributable to a worker's performance at work can included (e.g. productivity bonuses) and the EAT held that mere attendance at work does not fall within the definition used in the Regulations (Aviation & Airport Services v Bellfield & Ors). Consolidating an attendance allowance into an hourly rate to comply with the NMW without obtaining the employees' consent was an unlawful deduction from wages. Holiday pay in lieu In Whitley & District Mens Club v MacKay an employee sacked for dishonesty was still entitled to accrued holiday pay under the Working Time Regulations. This is because the Regulations require an employer to make such payments in lieu of statutory annual leave and the Regulations override any clause in a contract which states that payment can be withheld in certain circumstances e.g. if the employee is sacked for misconduct. Employment Rights New Sex Discrimination Regulations The Sex Discrimination Act 1975 has been amended by new regulations which come into force on October 12th 2001. The Regulations change the definition of indirect discrimination; it now occurs when a person applies a provision, criteria or practice to the detriment of a woman that would also be to the detriment of a considerably larger proportion of women than men and which cannot be justified using factors unrelated to sex. There is also a new burden of proof in sex discrimination cases; the complainer must establish facts from which the court/tribunal can presume that there has been sex discrimination, From that point, the defender must prove that there has been no such discrimination. No statutory right to public holidays Employees have no automatic right to an extra day's paid holiday when the Government declares an additional bank holiday, following Campbell & Smith Construction Group v Greenwood. The EAT held that the status of public or bank holidays is a matter of contract between the employer and employee. This may be an issue for some employees next year, as an extra bank holiday has been declared for 3 June to mark the Golden Jubilee. Industrial Relations Scottish Employers ignorant of Law A recent survey found that Scottish employers were ignorant of the implications of recent changes in employment law. Over 80% of those questioned knew little, if anything, about new rules for employment tribunals and the changes to maternity leave. Those firms with union agreements were more likely to know about the changes. Work/Life Balance The TUC and the Industrial Society has launched Changing Times, a new guide to implementing work-life balance strategies that will benefit both employee and employer. They have also issued Get the balance right, a video training pack promoting the benefits of adopting flexible working policies. There is a real need to aggressively promote flexible working practices. Recent surveys have indicated that less than half of all employees enjoy any kind of flexible working at all. On top of this UK workers still work the longest hours in Europe despite the introduction of the European Working Time Directive - over four million of us regularly work more than 48 hours a week. Flexible Working Policies Industrial Society research indicates that even where flexible working has been introduced, very few companies have formal policies. Professor Sir George Bain, chair of the Work and Parents Taskforce, said that there is an issue in getting employers to take flexible working seriously. Staff consulted, however, felt that informal policies did not work, as they were uncertain what their rights on flexible working were and that senior management only participated when the policies became formalised and were included in the employee handbook. Flexibility reduces Absenteeism Flexibility reduces Absenteeism A further report by the Industrial Society suggests that flexible working can reduce absenteeism and backs up the business case for introducing flexibility at work to enable employees to influence their work-life balance The survey of nearly 300 firms showed that absence rates fell from around 8 days per employee to 6.5 when flexible annual leave, occasional home working and flexible working hours were introduced. Employees and employers had different perceptions of the reasons for absenteeism, however. 91% of employees said that they had time off for colds or flu; 74% said they had stomach upsets or food poisoning and 54% attributed their absences to headaches or migraines. Employers, however, only attributed 65% of absences to colds and flu and cited stress and family problems as high contributors to the statistics. The London Borough of Lewisham has reduced its employee absentee rate by more than four days a year since 1993 by a combination of flexible working policies and training programmes, all of which they believe improves motivation and attendance. Women Worst Affected Only 29% of women surveyed were "completely satisfied" with their working hours, compared with 51% in 1992. Mothers felt particularly aggrieved, with recent research showing that mothers with a dependent child between 12 and 15 are now working approximately 5 hours a week more than they did in the early 90s. Home Working The predicted home-working revolution which would see office workers being replaced by people working from home using computer links has failed to materialise, according to a recent TUC report. Instead, workers are more likely to use their home computers for working extra hours at home. AND FINALLY
. . . Angry colleagues are on the increase, according to a survey by HR Consultancy, Eden Brown. This is not about someone losing their temper on a one-off basis, and apologising later. Office Rage refers to people losing their rag on a regular basis, with outbursts so pointed that they border on the abusive. Competitive and pressurised workplaces seem to encourage ruthlessness and stress which has led to bellowing bosses, fist swinging and on rare occasions, physical violence. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED . . . Contacts list:
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