News & Events
News & Events
Gus Baker looks at Sections 44 and 100 of the Employment Rights Act in relation to coronavirus and health and safety dismissals. Gus Baker has produced a guide concerning health and safety dismissals and detriments under sections 44 and 100 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 in the time of Coronavirus. The guide provides a detailed look at how and when employees will accrue protection under the Act for taking unilateral action to protect their safety including: When can employees who consider themselves at risk of infection refuse to attend work? Can staff insist on wearing face masks? Can employers make employees redundant if they refuse to take part in activities they consider would be risky? Read the full guide…
News 16 Apr, 2020
A High Court judgment has provided important guidance on the provisions for furloughing employees where a company has gone into administration due to COVID-19. Peter Linstead explains how it is no less relevant despite the new Treasury Direction on furlough leave. On Easter Monday 13th April, a High Court judgment gave declaratory guidance on how the provisions for furloughing employees should be applied by administrators where a company had gone into administration as a result of the effects of coronavirus. The judgment succeeds in providing essential clarity on the status of employees’ claims in an insolvency situation and has wider application to contractual variations in the context of furlough. It remains relevant in both these areas despite the publication on 15 April of…
News 15 Apr, 2020
The OTC Employment Law Team will be leading a Q&A Webinar Programme, helping the Free Representation Unit. Organiser Daniel Barnett invites you to join this unique event. The Outer Temple Chambers employment team is leading a group of 28 barristers who are giving up their time by appearing on a series of 28 Q&A webinars, starting Monday 20 April 2020. Each webinar is themed around a specific employment law topic and consists of a 15 minute talk followed by a 30 minute live question and answer session. Barrister Daniel Barnett, of Outer Temple Chambers’ Employment Law Team, who is organising the event, says: “This is an unprecedented opportunity for solicitors and others to pick the brains of some of the…
News 13 Apr, 2020
With many businesses struggling during the ‘lockdown’, furlough is now a common term in employment law. Daniel Barnett looks at how this works alongside other forms of leave. The Government’s guidance on whether employees can take annual leave while on furlough under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (‘CJRS’) is incomplete. Employment Barrister Daniel Barnett gives his interpretation of the current situation while we await clarification. The following article deals with a wholly unclear area of law. Daniel answers some frequently asked questions with his views at the time of publication (3rd April 2020) and specific advice should be sought on this fast moving area of law. Can an employee be on furlough and annual leave at the same time? At…
News 4 Apr, 2020
Outer Temple Chambers is very proud of Andrew Allen who is formally sworn in today as a member of Queen’s Counsel at the QC Appointment Ceremony 2020. Some of the finest legal minds awoke today eagerly anticipating the QC Appointment Ceremony that will formally give them silk status, including Outer Temple’s Andrew Allen. Whilst the celebrations have understandably been scaled down, we are giving Andrew a virtual celebration to recognise his achievement and will get together to raise a glass as soon as we can. Silks Day The 2020 QC Appointment Ceremony, colloquially known as ‘Silks Day’, is the culmination of a rigorous application process to demonstrate excellence in advocacy in the higher courts. It is made to advocates…
News 16 Mar, 2020
A recent Employment Tribunal judgment found that two Uber drivers should be regarded as ‘workers’ under the relevant legislation and therefore were entitled to rights such as holiday pay and the minimum wage. Paul Livingston looks at the importance of this decision. This judgment, which included quotes from Shakespeare and Milton, is seen by many as an important step forward for the protection of those individuals working in the ‘gig economy’. Uber unsuccessfully tried to argue that it was merely a technology platform and that the drivers were therefore self-employed, something which the Tribunal regarded as “faintly ridiculous” and “a pure fiction”. However, contrary to various sources, the Tribunal did not find that the drivers were ‘employees’, but instead placed…
News 1 Nov, 2016
