hr breakfast forum - 24 september 2013
DESCRIPTION
HR Breakfast Forum - 24 September 2013 Guest Speakers: Helen Mason, Richard Shakespeare & Samantha CotterTRANSCRIPT
Welcome to Burton HR Professionals
HR Breakfast Forum - 24th September 2013
Helen MasonRichard Shakespeare
Samantha Cotter
Employment rights: All change! Protected Conversations
Fees New Rules
Cap on Compensation “Shareholder” employees
ACAS early Conciliation
Helen Mason
Protected Conversations• 29 July 2013• Inadmissible in ET proceedings• Exclusions: – discrimination– automatically unfair dismissal– “improper behaviour”
• ACAS Code• right to be accompanied• 10 days to consider
Fees
• 29 July 2013• Type of claim (A and B)• Types of Hearing• Remission• Judicial review
New Rules
• 29 July 2013• Initial paper sift• Preliminary hearings• Costs
Cap on Compensation
• Dismissals after 29 July 2013• Cap of the lower of 52 weeks pa or £74,200
Shareholder employees
• 1 September 2013• £2000 minimum share value• Loss of certain statutory rights
ACAS early Conciliation
• April 2014• Employee must contact ACAS before making an ET claim• Additional month to resolve dispute
Reasonable AdjustmentsMyth and Reality
Richard Shakespeare
Understanding Reasonable Adjustments • The Equality Act came into force on October 1st 2010
• Employers are required to make a “reasonable adjustment” to support an employee
• You only have to make adjustments where you are aware – or should reasonably be aware – that a worker has a disability
• The employer's duty to make reasonable adjustments only arises where a provision, criterion or practice puts a disabled person at a substantial disadvantage when compared with a non-disabled person
Understanding Reasonable Adjustments
• An organisation with lots of money would be more likely to have to make a reasonable adjustment than one with fewer resources.
• Failure to make a reasonable adjustment is disability discrimination for which an employer may be liable to pay an unlimited amount of compensation
• Remember - It costs nothing to treat someone fairly and with dignity
Considering Reasonable Adjustments
Best Practice:
Ensure that all employees know who to approach for advice/support - Speak to a line manager or to someone in
your occupational health team, human resources or employee engagement team.
A few basics to remember
Finding a reasonable adjustment should be a collaboration between the employer and employee
Should be a creative process – use your knowledge of the role and the employees knowledge about how the disability impacts the individual
Case Study: Age Discrimination
Samantha Cotter
The factsThe law
The decisionWhat should the employer have done?
The Facts
• Waitress B and C both employed by Company A• B is aged 17 and has 9 months service• Waitress C is aged 54 and has 9 years service• B and C have a fight at work • Full investigation• Disciplinary hearings
The Facts
• Equally to blame• Waitress B: dismissed for gross misconduct• Waitress C: Final written warning• B claims age discrimination
The Law (Equality Act 2010) • S19(1): A discriminates against B if A applies to B a provision criterion or practice (PCP) which is discriminatory in relation to a relevant protected characteristic of B’s.
• S19(2): PCP is discriminatory if: (a) A applies PCP to persons with whom B does not share the characteristic; (b) it puts persons with whom B shares the characteristic at a particular disadvantage c/f with persons with whom B does not share it; (c) it puts, or would put, B at that disadvantage; and (d) A cannot show it to be a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.
• s23: there must be no material difference between the circumstances relating to each case.
The Tribunal’s Decision
• Indirect age discrimination: • Discriminatory PCP • Employer unable to justify i.e. show that PCP was a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim• Remedy settled “out of court”
What should the employer have done?
• Treated B and C the same regardless of length of service
• At ET hearing, shown reasons to justify difference in treatment.
Questions and Comments
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Thank you
Helen MasonConsultant with Else
Solicitors LLP
07778 [email protected]
Richard ShakespeareRichard Shakespeare Disability Consultants
07891 [email protected]
Samantha CotterElse Solicitors LLP
07970 [email protected]