News

In a legal judgement this month (June 2019 ) the Court of Appeal has ruled that paid voluntary overtime which is taken regularly should be included  in holiday pay calculations, in addition to any “non-guaranteed” overtime.  Earlier this year, in two cases before an Employment Tribunal it was ruled that contrary to the views of …
Read the full Story “Judges Rule That Paid Voluntary Overtime Should Be Included In Holiday Entitlement”

In a major development in the on-going issue of non-disclosure agreements, a committee of MPs is now calling for specific  changes to clauses which, when wrongly used, handcuff employees in taking their case to a tribunal. In some cases say the Women and Equalities Committee, “gagging clauses” in non-disclosure agreements (NDAs)  are being  used to …
Read the full Story “M.Ps Committe Calls For A Ban On NDA ‘Gagging’ Clauses”

A survey by the Equality and Human Rights Commission has found that 41% of pregnant workers feel that their work risked their health. Under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, employers must protect the health and safety of new and expectant mothers, while the 2010 Equality Act also provides protection from …
Read the full Story “Hidden Health Risks For Pregnant Women And Returning Mothers in Domestic Staff Jobs”

The issue of Mental Health has been in the spotlight recently with Mental Health Awareness Week running from the 13th May to 19th May. It is perhaps a time for extra thought to be given to your domestic staff, many of whom may be living in another country to  their family. Living and working in …
Read the full Story “Mental Health In The Spotlight”

Is there a domestic answer to womens’ workplace stress? Some revealing figures in new research highlight the stress that many  female staff suffer at work and poses the question: is there a “domestic” solution? Cigna, the workplace health benefits provider says that heavy workloads made 17% of women feel stressed with one in 10 female …
Read the full Story “Is There A ‘Domestic’ Answer To Womens Workplace Stress?”

Sometimes a case arises that illustrates how careful  an employer – including those with one domestic employee – has to be when considering a request for flexible working hours through illness. At a recent employment tribunal an employee who was suffering from depression was awarded £35,000  on the grounds that he was discriminated against by …
Read the full Story “Flexible Working Request? – Think Hard….”

As one of Britain’s largest care home groups  goes into administration, residents are awaiting the outcome. Four Seasons provides care accommodation for 17,000 residents and patients and employs some 20,000 staff. At the beginning of May, two of the holding companies behind Four Seasons appointed administrators as a result of finance issues. Although the position …
Read the full Story “17,000 Care Home Residents Must Wait And See…..”

The Hidden Dangers Of Finding A Domestic/Household Staff Replacement Through Reccommendation. It sounds a good idea, a simple solution to the problem. Your trusted domestic/household staff member is leaving and you need a replacement, what could be easier than asking them to recommend a friend?  Or, you could ask a friend of yours who also …
Read the full Story “The Hidden Dangers Of Finding A Domestic/Household Staff Replacement Through Recommendation”

This month, May 2019, the government is set to publish its first consultation on the extension of shared parental leave to grandparents . At the present time the right to shared parental leave is limited to the mother’s partner, the child’s father, or the mother’s partner if there is an enduring family relationship. The government  …
Read the full Story “Will Shared Parental Leave Be Extended To Grandparents…..?”

There are some important changes to compensation awards that employment tribunals can apply recently. The following two came into effect from April 6th this year (2019) The bands of compensation that employment tribunals can award for injury to feelings in discrimination cases (known as Vento bands) have changed. Part of the compensation that can be …
Read the full Story “Two Major Compensation Changes You Should Be Aware Of”