In April 2023, the latest round of annual increases relating to the maximum awards available at Employment Tribunals and other statutory rate increases, such as statutory sick pay and the national minimum wage, take effect. Perhaps not unsurprisingly given the current inflationary environment, the increases are significantly higher than in previous years, most notably in
Employment
Latest news on US non-compete ban
Many of our clients (in the US and outside) are tracking the progress of the Federal Trade Commission’s proposal to ban non-compete agreements. It remains to be seen whether that rule will be introduced, and if it is, there will undoubtedly be litigation challenging it. In the meantime, however, it is worth noting that the…
Global Diversity Month: Evening Q&A with Anita Asante
As part of Mayer Brown’s Global Diversity Month, we will shortly be hosting an evening Q&A with Anita Asante on 29 March 2023.
Anita Asante made 75 appearances for the England & GB football teams. She has played for the likes of Arsenal and Chelsea and won nearly all the UK’s major football competitions. Anita…
Termination letter was effective despite being headed “without prejudice”
The case of Meaker v Cyxtera Technology UK Limited serves as an important reminder to employers of the importance of ensuring that letters of dismissal are appropriately clear and unambiguous. The employer in this case wanted to rely on a letter it had sent to an employee referring to a termination date but which was…
Employment Status – An Update
There has been some debate in recent years as to whether or not the written terms between an alleged independent contractor and the recipient of their services hold any weight at all when determining the employment status of an individual.
In the past, it was always thought to be one factor to be weighed up…
New Code of Practice for “fire and re-hire”
The Government is consulting on a draft Code of Practice that will regulate the practice of dismissal and re-engagement, or “fire and re-hire”, as it has become known more recently. This is the practice that became particularly controversial following the dismissal by P&O of 800 staff in 2022, in order to replace them with lower-cost…
Dangers in the workplace: Court of Appeal decides that employee not automatically unfairly dismissed for refusing to come to work during the pandemic
In the case of Rodgers v Leeds Laser Cutting Ltd, the Court of Appeal has decided that an employee had not been automatically unfairly dismissed for refusing to come to work during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a notable decision as it is the first post-pandemic Court of Appeal claim considering s100(1)(d) of the…
Employment law – what’s on the horizon in 2023?
With 2022 now over, we look ahead to the key developments that look set to shape the UK employment legal landscape in 2023 and beyond.
New employment rights
Whilst the Government’s promised Employment Bill now looks unlikely to materialise, in 2022 the Government instead announced that it intended to support a raft of private members’…
New Government proposals to strengthen the right to request flexible working
In response to its ‘Making Flexible Working The Default’ Consultation (the “Consultation”) published on 5 December 2022, the government set out a raft of new measures designed to improve the existing framework for the right to request flexible working which it anticipates will extend the right to an additional 2.2 million people.
The…
OPEN Talks: DEI podcast series – a reminder
As the year draws to a close, this is a quick reminder about our new series of short podcasts focused on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI): OPEN Talks.
Our recent interviews cover the equal pay settlement for the US women’s national soccer team, DEI at Mayer Brown and QBE’s approach to diversity, inclusion and wellbeing.