The method of calculating holiday pay for workers without normal working hours, and for workers with normal working hours whose pay varies with the amount of work done (piece workers) or according to the time of the work (shift workers), uses a reference period. For example, holiday pay for workers with no normal working hours is calculated as an average of all sums earned in the reference period. This reference period was extended from 12 to 52 weeks in respect of holiday pay due on or after 6 April 2020. What does this mean in practice? The reference period was increased from 12 to 52 weeks ..read more

In Square Global Limited v Leonard, the English High Court decided that the absence of a garden leave set-off clause was not fatal to the enforceability of a non-compete clause. How can a garden leave clause impact on the enforceability of a restrictive covenant? To be enforceable a restrictive covenant must be designed to protect a legitimate business interest (such as goodwill, trade secrets or confidential information) and must be no wider than reasonably necessary to protect that interest (so will usually be limited by reference to restricted activities, duration and geographical extent ..read more

The Presidents of the employment tribunals in England and Wales and in Scotland (the ‘Presidents’) have published their roadmap detailing what we can expect in terms of the listing and conducting of hearings in the months ahead. Review of previous Practice Direction The Presidents reviewed their Joint Direction first issued on the 19 March 2020 for the second time on 29 May 2020. The Direction remains in its current form, meaning all hearings listed to commence on or after 29 June 2020, unless already postponed as a result of a case management hearing, will remain listed. Where cases haven’t ..read more

The ability of employment tribunals to be light on their feet has proven especially useful in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak. On 19 March 2020, the week before the UK introduced strict social distancing measures, the Presidents of both the England and Wales and Scottish employment tribunal services jointly issued detailed guidance to those involved in claims. With immediate effect, all full hearings up to 26 June 2020 were postponed. The procedure rules which tribunals follow already allowed for any hearing to be conducted by electronic methods, including by telephone. Many case management ..read more

On Friday the Chancellor announced some important changes to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme: A claim can only be made in respect of employees who have been furloughed for the first time on or before 10 June; Employers will be able to bring furloughed employees back to work part-time from July (and still claim under the scheme for the hours the employee doesn’t work); A new taper requiring employers to contribute to furlough pay will be brought in from August; and The scheme will close completely on 31 October. Closure to new entrants: 10 June deadline From July onwards, it will only be ..read more

From 8 June 2020, anyone entering the UK (whether as a resident or a visitor) will have to self-isolate for 14 days under new Government rules. The rules are to be reviewed every 3 weeks so please check if there any changes before making arrangements based on the rules. Requirement to provide information Upon arrival, individuals will be expected to fill in an online form, providing their contact details and the address at which they will stay for the next two weeks. Certain individuals are exempt from the requirement to provide this data including certain members of diplomatic missions ..read more

In January 2020, we published our HR to-do list for 2020, highlighting forthcoming changes and proposals related to employment law. Little did we know that COVID-19 was about to arrive in the UK. We have now ‘revised’ our HR to-do list to reflect what we anticipate your HR agenda for the remainder of 2020 will include. If you would like to discuss any of these items further, or if you need support implementing your HR agenda, please get in touch with your usual Brodies contact. Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (“CJRS”) and furlough If you have furloughed employees and are relying on grants ..read more

No, its not 2006, Graeme Poll isn’t officiating and Josip Simunic hasn’t survived courtesy of the most infamous refereeing blunder of all time. The Upper Tribunal have rejected HMRC’s appeal in the case of HMRC v PGMOL, as to whether certain football referees in England should be taxed as employees of PGMOL. However, HMRC have indicated their intention now to appeal to the Court of Appeal. The facts The First Tier Tribunal (FTT) had held that the referees in question, identified as “National Group” referees, were not employees of Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), and as such ..read more

As the COVID-19 related restrictions continue, many of us who are still working, continue to do so remotely from home, particularly in Scotland where the public health message remains ‘Stay at Home’. With that in mind and to coincide with Mental Health Awareness Week, we offer our tips on how employers can help to reduce the risks that prolonged periods of homeworking can have on employees’ mental health and wellbeing. Keep in touch Many employees will not have worked from home for a prolonged period before, so it is important for managers to stay connected with their teams. This will help em ..read more

Whilst everyone’s attention has been focused on COVID-19 for the last few weeks, the Brexit transition period is due to end at the end of the calendar year.  The new immigration rules are set to come into force as planned on 1 January 2021: so employers need to prepare for that notwithstanding the business interruptions of COVID-19. From 1 January 2021, employers will need to have a sponsor licence in place in order to sponsor European nationals and their family members (who were previously exempt from sponsorship requirements). European nationals already in the UK by 31 December 2020 wh ..read more