Legal Article
08/12/22
Flexible working remains the right to request, not to have The Government has recently published their response to the Consultation on Making Flexible Working the Default, which closed around 12 months ago. Key takeaways, which are a must for HR professionals and managers to be aware of, are…
Legal Article
01/12/22
With the cost of living skyrocketing in recent months, the pressure of the crisis continues and is being keenly felt throughout many sections of society, including those in the further and higher education sectors. Below we look at the ways the crisis is impacting both students and staff and consider…
Legal Article
08/11/22
Eighty-five per cent of North West-based small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) are confident their revenue will grow over the next 12 months despite the challenging economic conditions, according to new research by law firm, Forbes Solicitors. UK expansion, organic growth, and research and…
Legal Article
25/10/22
With the cost-of-living skyrocketing in recent months, the pressure of the cost-of-living crisis has become inescapable. As household bills rise and budgets tighten, flexible working is becoming increasingly important for many employees across the UK. It is crucial now more than ever, that…
Legal Article
18/10/22
It is estimated that 1 in 4 pregnancies in the UK end in loss during pregnancy or birth. Given this statistic and that a majority of people wanting to start or grow a family will be of working age, employers should be aware of the likelihood of their employees being affected by pregnancy or baby loss…
Legal Article
30/09/22
What are the facts? Harper Trust employed Ms Brazel as a visiting music teacher on a year round contract, but for term times only. Ms Brazel was only paid for the hours she taught, which could vary from week to week. The Trust sought to calculate Ms Brazel's holiday pay by using the '…
Legal Article
30/09/22
The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has created a significant movement in the shift to hybrid working across many sectors of the economy. After having no option but to adapt to home working in 2020, the concept of physically attending the workplace 5 days a week has become outdated, with many employees…
Legal Article
21/09/22
The Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) is conducting a review on the trends and tax implications of hybrid and distance working in the UK and across borders. The focus of the review is to look at changes in practice and any emerging trends away from the 'traditional' way of working. From…
Legal Article
21/09/22
A suspension occurs when an employer tells an employee to stop carrying out work temporarily, and Acas has recently published new advice on how to approach this ( https://www.acas.org.uk/suspension-during-an-investigation; https://www.acas.org.uk/acas-publishes-new-advice-on-staff-suspensions-at-work…
Forbes News
15/09/22
The Scale-up route opened for applications on 22 August 2022 and is unlike other sponsored visas that have been introduced previously. A Scale-up worker visa allows applicants to travel to or remain in the UK to do an eligible job for a fast-growing UK business, also referred to as a 'Scale-up…
Legal Article
07/09/22
On 4 August 2022, the Home Office announced a welcomed change in the UK immigration world, confirming that the Police Registration Scheme has been suspended with immediate effect and is expected to be abolished altogether shortly. Previously, the Police Registration Scheme placed an onerous task on…
Legal Article
16/08/22
In July 2022, the House of Commons Women and Equalities Committee (WEC) published their report titled 'Menopause and the workplace'. The report emphasises the important topic of menopause, how it affects those who suffer from its symptoms and the impact this has on the workplace. With 4.5…
Legal Article
02/08/22
On the 6th of June 2022, the world's largest trial of the four-day work week was embarked upon in the UK. 3,300 workers across 70 UK companies have enrolled on the program from a wide range of industries - from a local chip shop to large-scale corporations. The coordinated trial will run for six…
Legal Article
28/07/22
The Health and Social Care Select Committee published a damning report on 25th of July 2022. The Workforce: recruitment, training and retention report outlines the scale of the workforce crisis that is facing the NHS in England. New research outlines the scale of the crisis: · A shortage…
Legal Article
25/07/22
The recent record-breaking temperatures and the first ever red heatwave warning from the Met Office has led to calls from some MPs and unions for legislation to be introduced to put a limit on workplace temperatures to 30 degrees, or 27 degrees for workers doing strenuous work. There has also been calls…
Legal Article
01/07/22
A significant development for employers, including those in the education sector, took place last week when the employment tribunal handed down its judgment in the case of Burke v Turning Point Scotland. For the first time in a reported case, the tribunal held that an individual with long Covid met the…
Legal Article
20/06/22
The current legal position surrounding business disruption caused by industrial action is that if your business faces industrial action, employers are unable to recruit agencies to supply workers specifically to cover work that is not being done by lawful industrial action, however, that could soon be…
Legal Article
14/06/22
In the recent case of Mellor v The MFG Academies Trust, the tribunal had to consider the effect of how an employee had been treated following numerous requests for a room to enable her to express breastmilk whilst at work. In July 2020 Ms Mellor, a teacher, returned to work from maternity leave.…
Legal Article
14/06/22
From August 2022, the government will make the apprenticeships programme simpler for employers to use. It hopes to make the system more user friendly by reducing 'bureaucratic burdens'. The improvements are set to include: · Making it simpler for individuals to accelerate their…
Legal Article
30/05/22
2021 was the year deemed to be the 'Great Resignation' whereby employers witnessed mass resignations. Indeed, figures at the end of November 2021, evidenced that 4.5 million people had resigned from their positions, leading to the huge question as to why? Was this, as many espouse, a result of a…
Legal Article
24/05/22
In February 2022, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the removal of all remaining Covid19 legal restrictions and a number of employers seized the opportunity to inform employees that they were immediately required to return to the workplace. However, a significant number of employees still have…
Legal Article
19/05/22
Traditionally the construction sector has been dominated by self-employed contractors. The latest data released from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) however has shown that in the fourth quarter of last year the number of self-employed workers operating in the construction sector has fallen by…
Legal Article
16/05/22
Managing the return of employees back to the workplace following a period of remote working, owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, is becoming an increasingly challenging exercise for employers. Many people still remain nervous about commuting and attending work and increasing their risk of contracting…
Legal Article
12/05/22
People suffering from long Covid have reacted with alarm to comments by government's equalities watchdog, that the condition should not be treated as a disability. In a tweet posted on Sunday night, the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), said: " Discussions continue on whether…
Forbes News
09/05/22
Forbes Solicitors has made a trio of appointments in its employment team as the firm continues to grow its presence in the Manchester market. The new hires will be based in Forbes' Manchester office and will work closely with the firm's 23 strong employment law team, as well as the firm'…
Legal Article
21/04/22
As the country and businesses continue to manage it's way out of the pandemic, the Employment Tribunal's are no different. Given the events of the last two years the Employment Tribunal system has faced increasing pressures which has led to a backlog in the processing, management and listing of…
Legal Article
19/04/22
In a recent poll of 1,788 teachers by the National Education Union (NEU), 44% said they would leave by 2027, and around 20% said they would leave within the next two years. Reasons included: · Unmanageable workload; · Salary; · Accountability · Not…
Legal Article
04/04/22
When an employee leaves your employment what do you do to ensure that they have returned all your confidential information? Most employers rely on either a contract of employment setting out the obligations on an employee to return company property on exit or on asking an employee to provide a written…
Legal Article
04/04/22
Q: How should we deal with a grievance that is raised by an employee during a disciplinary process? A: If a grievance is raised during a disciplinary process the usual process may be to temporarily suspend the disciplinary process to deal with the grievance, however, there is no legal requirement…
Legal Article
28/03/22
April 2022 sees six major changes for employers. It is vital that HR teams familiarise themselves with the updates prior to their enforcement and ensure that its existing policies are compliant and updated with any mandatory obligations. Procedure and policy documents should be subject to regular review…
Legal Article
07/03/22
Undoubtedly, everyone has been affected in some way over the course of the past 2 years as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. When the order was issued to work from home, some people were of course able to work from home, thereby reducing the risk of contracting the virus, however, many people were key…
Legal Article
04/03/22
When an employee leaves your employment what do you do to ensure that they have returned all your confidential information? Most employers rely on either a contract of employment setting out the obligations on an employee to return company property on exit or on asking an employee to provide a written…
Legal Article
24/02/22
Aside from the provision of routine advice to our clients, the Employment team at Forbes has significant experience in working with housing associations on specific projects, including running grievance and disciplinary investigations, and advising on each stage throughout restructures. We also support…
Legal Article
24/02/22
Burn v Alder Hey Children's NHS Hospital saw a claim brought by an employee seeking an injunction preventing her employer moving forward with the disciplinary process she was subject to, until an issue of disclosure was dealt with. The claimant considered that a contractual right to see correspondence…
Legal Article
07/02/22
Royal Mail has recently launched an investigation after footage appeared to show postal workers under the influence of drugs. According to a caption, the workers accidentally ate 'hash brownies' and had to be helped because of the impact the drugs had on them. The video claims staff ate the…
Legal Article
26/01/22
During the pandemic, many employers have found difficulty in monitoring absence and taking formal action where employees are absent for significant periods of time. There are growing concerns regarding the severity and longevity of the effects of the virus; thus, many employers feel unable to enforce a…
Legal Article
26/01/22
The Home Office has announced that from 6 April 2022, there will be changes to the way in which Biometric Residence Permit (BRP), Biometric Residence Card (BRC) and Frontier Worker Permit (FWP) evidence their right to work and right to rent. From 6 April 2022, the presentation of a physical…
Legal Article
21/01/22
Allette v Scarsdale Grange Nursing Home Ltd Background The claimant in this case worked as a care assistant in a nursing home which provided residential care for dementia sufferers. In December 2020, the roll-out of the covid vaccine to residents and staff was due to begin, however this had…
Legal Article
11/01/22
IKEA has confirmed that it has cut sick pay for its unvaccinated UK staff, without mitigating circumstances, who would be required to self-isolate due to close contact with someone with Covid-19. The furniture retailer said workers who have not been jabbed will receive only statutory sick pay of £…
