Archive for June, 2008
By Philip - Tuesday, June 10th, 2008
A question that is regularly asked is can an employer not pay an employee if that employee is in breach of contract. The question normally arises when the employment relationship ends.
The position is clear. Unless the employer has signed authority from the employer to authorise the deduction then no deduction is allowed.
The case reported here illustrates the point. An employment agency worker agreed with an employment agency to work for a client for a fixed term from January to May.
The worker only completed two days of the assignment and then left. The agency did not pay the worker on the basis that the client had not paid them and they believed the worker was in breach, having left 2 days into employment.
The EAT held that the failure to pay the wages amounted to an unlawful deduction as there was no lawful basis to withhold the sum due.
Posted in Breach of Contract | 2 comments »
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By Emma - Monday, June 9th, 2008
We have some great news here at PJH Law. On Friday afternoon we were informed that Sarah King has been shortlisted for the Young Business Person of the Year Award in the Lincolnshire Echo Business Awards 2008. She will attend a finalists’ judging day on 16 June 2008. The winner will be announced on 17 July 2008 at Gala Presentation Dinner at University of Lincoln.
The news was a great way to end our first week in our new office. Come on Sarah, we’re rooting for you!
Posted in About us, PJH Law News | 1 comment »
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By Sarah - Friday, June 6th, 2008
The City and Guilds have published a happiness index of employees which showed that 57% of employees stay with their current employer because of an interest in their job but only 44% remain due to their salary and benefits package.
Apparently good relationships with colleagues, a good work-life balance and lower stress are all key in making employees happy. Here at PJH Law we pride ourselves on a happy workplace as well as offering the trimmings to all staff. Speaking to a client this week I was explaining the link that is often missed between high levels of sickness and low morale. This client was discussing issues of morale within the department and when we looked at sickness absence levels we found that they had actually increased.
The research from the City and Guilds comes as no surprise to us at PJH Law who have long said that a happy workforce leads to greater staff retention and a higher productivity. It is quite clear that staff happiness effects the bottom line!
Posted in Miscellaneous | No comments »
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By Philip - Thursday, June 5th, 2008
Well I watched the Apprentice for the first time in this series and I was a bit surprised at the result. In fact Lucinda was the only one of the five who I would have employed.
The message the programme sends out is that if you are a narcissistic backstabber, or lie on your cv and can’t spell or are a former club 18-30 rep or think the other contestants are gob shites, then you’ll get ahead of someone who is mature, eloquent, bright and not in it for the money. Funny old world!
Posted in Miscellaneous | No comments »
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By Liam - Wednesday, June 4th, 2008
It is easy to make silly mistakes about dates. The difference between 3 months and 12 weeks as well as the difference between 4 weeks and a month are obvious examples. Remember that February only has 28 days too….most of the time.
In this case at the EAT, a Claimant presented her complaint on 27 October 2005 when in fact the limitation period expired on 26 October 2005. The EAT held that a mistake in calculating the limitation date is not grounds for an extension of time for an unfair dismissal complaint on the “not reasonably practicable” basis.
The Claimant lost the right to pursue her complaint. The moral of this story is if you can’t use a calender(!) don’t leave presenting your complaint until the last day of the limitation period. Even if you can use a calendar, there are still risks associated with leaving the presentation of a complaint to the last minute - the fax machine could fail, your pc could crash or the dog could eat your form!
Posted in Employment Tribunal Procedure | No comments »
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By Philip - Monday, June 2nd, 2008
It’s quite difficult sometimes for clients to appreciate that if an employee wins a case of unfair dismissal, it is not a case of winner takes all. The tribunal system is not binary. If a claim of unfair dismissal succeeds, there is a whole range of awards that can be made from zero through to the maximum of £60k, and all points in between.
Tribunals, in the main, can reduce compensation on three grounds: if the dismissal would have occurred in any event, if the employee contributed to their dismissal, or if the employee failed to appeal.
In this case the dismissal was unfair as the employer had failed to tell the employee of their right of appeal. However the Tribunal found that had an appeal been heard then the employee would still have been dismissed as the internal appeal would have failed.
The compensatory award was therefore £0.00. The theoretical liability facing the employer was £60k but the actual result was £o. You can sometimes be better off as an employer, fighting and losing, rather than settling.
Posted in Unfair Dismissal | No comments »
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By Philip - Monday, June 2nd, 2008
If you telephone in to PJH Law you will hear some new voices. Two new solicitors have recently joined, Emma and Jenny. To enable you to put a face to a name here’s a photo of Jenny and Emma, Jenny being on the right and Emma on the left. Emma has joined us from a City firm and Jenny has moved from a Manchester firm, having recently qualified. Both have experience of employment law, with Emma also having extensive experience of business immigration.
Posted in Uncategorized | No comments »
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