In time for Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month in November (referred to by some as ‘Movember’), ACAS has recently updated its guidance on supporting employees with their mental health at work. Understanding the law - Supporting mental health at work - Acas…

‘Harassment’ in an employment context is defined in the Equality Act 2010 as ‘unwanted conduct related to a protected characteristic that…

The Leeds Employment Tribunal has issued its judgment in the case of Lynskey v Direct Line Insurance Services this month. Whilst this is a first instance decision only and so not binding on other tribunals, we are a little concerned about the potential…

The CIPD (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development) has reported a significant increase in sickness absence, up from an…

In March of this year, we reported on a Bill, the Workers (Predictable Terms and Conditions) Bill 2022-23, which has now received Royal Assent. It will become law, probably in September…

We're delighted to welcome Daniel Rubin as a Partner to the Horsfield Menzies Executive Team. A pragmatic employment lawyer with expertise in strategic reputation…

We are excited to announce that Rachel Yorke has joined the Horsfield Menzies as a Senior Associate…

We have previously written about the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill which received Royal Assent on 20th July 2023 and is now the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023. You will recall that this is the legislation which grants…

There has been a lot of coverage of the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Bill since it received Royal Assent on 20 July 2023, indeed in a press release from the Department for Business and Trade, it was hailed that ‘millions of British workers will have more flexibility…

There are two striking elements to the Court of Appeal’s decision in the case ofJump Trading International v Couture.
First, the case is an important challenge to the ubiquitous urban myth that a court will never uphold a restrictive covenant which lasts over 12 months…

New figures from the Office for National Statistics show that a record number of people in the UK (2.55 million) are not working due to long-term sickness. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there has been a noticeable increase in the number of…

The CBI has hit the headlines recently amid serious allegations of rape and sexual misconduct at the organisation.
Tony Danker was the Director General at the organisation from November 2020 and has informed the media that his dismissal has left his reputation in tatters…

Baby Loss Awareness Week this year runs from Sunday 9th to Saturday 15th October. Last Autumn, as part of our series of lunchtime webinars around Equality in the Workplace we included a webinar on Baby Loss. This is too large a topic to cover fully in a short article…

The case of Kong v Gulf International is a potentially useful case for employers who are considering dismissing a whistleblower.

As you will be aware, a dismissal on the grounds of…

Holiday pay has long been a tricky issue for workers who do not work ‘typical’ hours, by which we mean workers who have no set pattern of work; this could include zero hours workers and term time workers.
On 20 July 2022, the Supreme Court issued an important…

July 15 2022 is World Youth Skills Day. The theme this year is transforming youth skills for the future, with a particular focus on equipping those groups of young people who, because of socio-economic and other reasons…

As the UK basks in the latest heatwave, employees at UK Plc are increasingly asking at what point it becomes so hot that they have a legal right not to attend work….

There’s often bad feeling from business leaders and and management towards whistle blowers.

Jes Staley the former CEO of Barclays was famously fined £642,430 by the FCA, and reportedly had to forfeit £500,000 of his bonus, following his attempts to identify an anonymous whistle blower in 2016.

So what happens when the whistle blower’s identity is known? Quite often…

Salary Exchange (also known as Salary Sacrifice) is a feature of many employment packages in the UK. Many employers use it for things like employer pension contributions, cycle to work and childcare vouchers. In effect an employee gives up their contractual right to pay in return for an employer provided benefit, saving tax and national insurance in the process...

How have we got to a situation where Azeem Rafiq, a former professional cricketer, was left close to taking his own life after being subjected to racism during his time at Yorkshire County Cricket Club?

How did the Club, which launched a formal investigation into Rafiq's allegations in 2020, conclude that Rafiq had been subjected to only "inappropriate behaviour" but not (initially) uphold his allegations of racism?