DISMISSAL FOR EXAGGERATING SICKNESS AND USING COVERT SURVEILLANCE The recent case of Metroline West Ltd v Ajaj UKEAT/0185/15/RN considered whether dismissing an employee could be unfair, despite the fact that the employee had exaggerated their sickness. The Claimant, Mr Ajaj, a bus driver, was injured in February 2014 as a result of slipping on water…

A Reminder Of The Definition Of Disability The case of Banaszczyk v Booker Ltd UKEAT/0132/15/RN provides firm guidance regarding the definition of disability.    The Claimant, Mr Banaszczyk, had been employed by Booker Ltd (wholesale warehouses) as a picker in their distribution centre since February 2008. “Picking” involved selecting cases of goods of up to…

Many workers eat at their desks, whether it’s a full meal (such as lunch), or the odd snack – it has definitely become part of office culture. Some employees even see this as a sign of their “commitment” and, in a recent HR survey, 60% of office workers actually said they would feel “guilty” if…

RECRUITMENT DISCRIMINATION – THE DUTY TO CONSIDER THE FACTS The recent case of Sivanandan v Independent Police Complaints Commission UKEAT/0436/14/LA has emphasised the need to ensure that all material facts are taken into account in any employment issue, particularly before a claim is dismissed. In this case, Ms Sivanandan, a self-employed Barrister, had applied for…

DISCIPLINARY HEARINGS AFTER A PROTECTED DISCLOSURE The recent case of Croydon Health Services NHS Trust v Beatt UKEAT/0136/15/JOJ has shown that an Employment Tribunal (ET) must analyse any evidence of conduct/ disciplinary issues even where an employee has made a protected disclosure. In this case, Mr Beatt had been employed as a consultant Cardiologist until…

An employee’s poor hygiene is not an easy subject to deal with, so here are our tips to help you tackle it effectively: (1) Deal with it now Human nature means that we all have a tendency to try and put off something we’re not looking forward to. However, you need to deal with the…

As you will recall from our earlier blog we are active supporters and disseminators of “Disability Confident,” the government scheme designed to help businesses become more confident about employing disabled people and to bridge the disability employment gap. Unfortunately, surveys like the one recently carried out by the charity Mencap (supporting people with learning disabilities) show…