Other Employment Matters Articles

As part of an unfair dismissal case, an employment tribunal is having to decide whether or not ethical veganism can be classified as a religion and is thus protected by the 2010 Equality Act.

Employment Laws are in place to protect both employers and employees in the workplace. The laws govern what employers can expect from employees, what employers can ask employees to do and the employees’ rights at work.

The loss of a child is one of the remaining taboos between friends, family and certainly in the workplace. Early miscarriage often passes completely unbeknown to all but the closest of friends. Later miscarriage, although physically noticeable, will go unspoken. However, the pain that the parents suffer during this time is rarely acknowledged by those around them.

Mental Health problems can affect anyone at any time. Our mental health is equally as important as our physical health, but why do we find it so easy to neglect? Until recently the social stigma associated with mental health meant it was an issue that nobody would speak of. Fortunately, this has reduced, and momentum has gained surrounding the need to raise awareness of mental health problems, particularly in the workplace.

It is considered that individuals doing the same job or work of equal value should receive the same or equal pay; but in many cases they do not, despite the law saying otherwise. Shockingly this is the case with the 1,000 current and former employees of Tesco who back in July 2018 lodged claims to the Employment Tribunal for equal pay.

Introduced in 2017, the Gender Pay Gap Report requires by law, employers in Great Britain with 250 employees or more to publish certain information regarding the pay of males and females in their organisation. The aim of the scheme is to reduce the pay gap between genders and in time achieve equal pay throughout

Domestic abuse may take place behind closed doors, but it has far reaching consequences and is known to have a detrimental impact on the working lives of those living in such circumstances. The scale of the problem is huge. In the UK, in any one year, more than one in five victims of domestic violence take time off work because of abuse and two per cent lose their jobs as a direct result of the abuse.

A recent discrimination case ruling by an employment tribunal in the UK has overturned the dismissal of, and awarded damages to, a female court worker. This has added an interesting stance to our understanding of workplace discrimination, the Equality Act 2010 and to the growing debate on attitudes towards menopause in the workplace.