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Legal
Basics
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Employment
Last modified:
05 March 2008
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 Essentials of Employment Law - David Lewis, Malcolm SargeantA textbook for students of personnel and human resources, and a reference source for managers. It provides comprehensible coverage of the main statutory and common law rules that govern such issues as contracts of employment, discrimination and union rights. CLICK for INFO |
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You can now apply to an Employment Tribunal or complete a Notice of Appearance on-line, or print out the necessary form to complete - click here for more |
Employment law is something which affects most of us at some time during our lives, and it is the area of law that is probably the most complex and the most frequently changed and added to.
In our experience it is also the area of law most often
ignored or overlooked, particularly be employers, especially employers in small
to medium businesses.
When you set up a business and start to employ people there is no legal
requirement that you have any knowledge of employment law at all. Many employers
simply pick it up as they go along, and there is a lot to pick up. That means
they often get it wrong.
In the next few pages we have tried to set out some of the basic employment law issues, for both employers and employees. But if, once you had read the sections that matter to you, you decide you need more help, then give our new fixed fee telephone advice line a try - click here for more details. For just £40 you could get up to 20 minutes advice from an expert in employment law. We have set up a small panel of solicitors' law firms throughout England and Wales, who have specialist employment law teams, who are ready and willing to help you on the phone.
If you just want to browse through our information then please feel free to do so. Over the next few pages we will cover
The current rate (from 1 October 2007) for the national minimum wage is £5.52 per hour, and now applies to home workers too. (this will rise to £5.73 in October 2008)
The young workers' (18 - 21 year olds) current rate is
£4.60 per hour (£4.77 from October 2008).
In addition a new rate for 16 and 17 year olds was introduced in
October 2004 of £3.40 per hour (but note that apprentices are exempt from the
new young worker's rate). (this will rise to £3.53 from October 2008)
For more information check out the DTI's website at www.dti.gov.uk/er/nmw
Is there really such a thing as No Win No Fee?
The answer is "Yes".
Until just a few years ago solicitors were not allowed by the Law Society (the solicitors' governing body) to accept instructions from any client on the basis that they would be paid only if their client was successful in their action. Such "contingency fees" have long been the norm in the United States and elsewhere, but the Law Society were concerned that such an arrangement would prejudice solicitors as they would have a stake in their client's claim.
However with the decreasing availability of Legal Aid and competition from non-solicitors charging on a success-only basis, contingency fees have now become legitimate, particularly in personal injury and employment law actions, although they are available in other civil actions.
If you are not eligible for Legal Aid then ask your solicitor if they are prepared to take your case on a "No Win No Fee" basis (what your solicitor will call a Conditional Fee arrangement). They do not have to accept it. Some solicitors do not accept any instructions under this type of payment scheme. Those that do will want to assess the likelihood of you winning your claim, as they are staking their time and their fees on you being successful. If they indicate that they are prepared to consider your case on a "No Win No Fee" basis they will usually arrange an initial meeting at which they will take all the details from you, so that they can assess your case. Only once they have made this assessment will they decide whether to offer you a Conditional Fee Agreement.
Under such an agreement you will only pay your solicitor's fees if you win. These will be in two parts - the basic fee (what you would normally pay) and the success fee (an agreed percentage increase on the basic fee - the riskier your case the higher this percentage will be). All these details will be contained within a written Conditional Fee Agreement, which should be explained to you in full. It is up to you whether you want to accept your solicitor's proposals.
However such an agreement does not usually mean that you will not have to pay anything. You will usually be asked to pay any expenses that incur as your case proceeds - such as court fees, medical report fees and police accident report fees (likely to be a few hundred pounds), and make a one-off insurance premium payment (can be as little as £100) to cover your opponent's costs and your own expenses if you lose.
If you sign the agreement and win your case you will receive agreed compensation from the other party and payment of your solicitor's basic fees and your expenses. From this you will have to pay your solicitor his basic fee, plus any unpaid expenses incurred on your behalf, AND the success fee agreed (check that you solicitor agrees to limit his success fee to no more than 25% of your compensation - so that you are assured of receiving at least 75% of any compensation paid). [Note that from 1 April your insurance premium and your solicitor's success fee will also be recoverable from the other party]
Should you lose you will not have to pay your solicitor anything, and your insurance will cover the other party's legal fees and the expenses you have paid in bringing your claim.
Don't be afraid to ask your solicitor to take your case on on a "No Win No Fee" basis.
The Working Time Regulations came into force in the UK in October 1998.
The Regulations have introduced some new fundamental rights for workers, which are summarised here. As with all legislation there are exceptions and anomalies and the details contained here are only a rough guideline. The particular areas of likely interest are:-
The Maximum 48 hour week
Under the legislation an employer cannot compel an employee to work more than 48
hours per week over a 17 week period, unless the worker has agreed to do so in
writing. Such an agreement can only be reached on an individual basis.
"Working time" is defined as when a worker is "working, at his
employer's disposal and carrying out his activities or duties" - all
three elements must be present. If the employer insists upon the employee
working more than the average 48 hours the employee can complain to an
Employment Tribunal and if upheld can claim unfair dismissal.
Compulsory Rest Breaks
Adult workers are entitled to 24 hours off in each 7 day period and
young workers (15-18) are entitled to 2 days in 7.
In addition adult workers are entitled to at least 20 minutes uninterrupted rest if their working day is longer than 6 hours, and they must have at least another 11 consecutive hours in each period of 24 hours worked. Young workers are entitled to 30 minutes rest if their working day is over 4.5 hours long, and not less than 12 consecutive hours rest in each 24 hour period.
Paid Annual Leave
All workers are entitled
to paid holiday from the day they start work at the rate of 1/12 of their annual
entitlement per month worked.
As from 1 October 2007 all workers are entitled to 24 days paid leave annually
(up frpm the previous 20 days). This will increase to 28 days from April 2009.
It should be noted that there is no legal right for employees to be given Bank and Public Holidays. Therefore where a worker is paid for these days, they will count towards their annual leave entitlement.
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