Contract of Employment

Question 1

What are the three statutes effecting Contracts of Employment?

Answer 1

Employment Rights Act 1996

TUPE - Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) 2006

Equality Act 2010

Question 2

What is the law regarding when the contract must be supplied?

Answer 2

Employment Rights Act 1996 states under s.1 (2) that a written statement of the terms of employment should be supplied not more than two months after the beginning of the employment.

Question 3

Name the 12 Terms that the contract must contain…

Answer 3

1) The names of the employer and the employee
2) The date on which employment began
3) The scale and rate of remuneration and the way it is to be calculated
4) The intervals at which remuneration will be paid
5) Any terms and conditions relating to the hours of work
6) Any terms and conditions relating to holiday pay, holiday entitlement, sickness, pensions etc
7) The length of notice needed to terminate the employment
8) The title of the employee’s job
9) If not a permanent position, details on contract length
10) Work location(s)
11) Collective agreements effecting the job
12) Where the employee is expected to work outside UK for month than 1 month, the currency in which the employee will be paid

Question 4

Define Restrictive covenants.

Give a case law example.

Answer 4

These will seek to limit or prohibit some action of the employee during or sometimes after the course of employment - often regarding dealings with competitors.

Faccenda Chicken Ltd v Fowler (1984) is an example of the employer being entitled to protect trade secrets.

Question 5

Where do you find the law regarding variation of contract?

Answer 5

Section 4 of the ERA 1996 requires that changes to terms of contract must be notified to an employee within one month.

Question 6

Under what circumstances can an employer vary

a contract ‘unilaterally’?

Answer 6

The employer does not have the right to vary the contract unilaterally.

Any such change would have to avoid impacting the employee detrimentally and be subject to a ‘reasonableness’ test.

Question 7

Define ‘Mutual Trust and Confidence’

Answer 7

This is well established implied term in employment contracts and forms the basis of most actions against the employer - even though not expressly stated.

Question 8

How would ‘Implied’ terms be best described?

Answer 8

Taken for granted in the formation of a relation between employer and employee - and are taken as read by an Employment Tribunal

Question 9

Give 2 examples of Mutal ‘implied’ terms

Answer 9

Mutual duty of care

Mutual duty of respect

Question 10

Give the 8 ‘Implied’ terms impacting duty of the employee

Answer 10

Duty to indemnify
Duty of fidelity
Duty to obey lawful and reasonable orders
Duty to use reasonable care and skill
Duty not to accept bribes
Duty not to reveal confidential information
Duty of personal service
Duty not to engage in misconduct

Question 11

Give the 6 ‘Implied’ terms impacting duty of employer

Answer 11

Duty to provide remuneration
Duty to provide work
Duty of confidentiality
Duty to indemnify the employee
Duty to provide references
Duty to take reasonable care to ensure safety

Note also that part time workers (less than 16 hours per week) must be treated the same as full time workers.

Question 12

What three concepts did the TUPE Regulations introduce into UK employment law?

Answer 12

Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) 2006 TUPE Regulations

TUPE introduced three concepts into UK employment law:

1. The automatic transfer principle
2. Protection against dismissal in a TUPE transfer
3. Employers obligation to inform and consult with representatives of the affected employees

Question 13

What notice periods does an employer have to give under ERA 1996?

Lengths of service:

a) less than two years
b) 2 - 12 years
c) 12+ years

Separately:
d) 1 month - 2 years

Answer 13

ERA 1996 S.86 makes provision for minimum periods of notice that an empoyer must provide:

a) Not less than one week notice if the employment has been for less than two years
b) Not less than one week’s notice for every year the employee has been continuously employed if two years or more, but less than 12 years
c) Not less than 12 weeks notice otherwise

If an employee has worked one month or more then a minimum notice period of one week applies.

Question 14

Can the statutory rights regarding notice periods be waived?

Answer 14

ERA 1996 S.86 does not prevent either party from waiving his right to notice or from accepting payment in lieu of notice.

Question 15

What is the effect of Equality Act 2010 on contracts of employment?

Answer 15

Eliminates discrimination between men and women, applying to all persons under a contract of employment irrespective of age or length of service. It implies an equality clause into contracts of service.

Question 16

How does the Equality Act 2010 provide for the doctrine of ‘equal pay for equal work’?

Answer 16

Section 65 provides that there are three ways of determining ‘equal work’. A’s work is said to be equal to B’s work if it is:

Like B’s work;

Is rated as equivalent to B’s work; or
EA 2010 section 65 (4)(5)

Of equal value to B’s work

Question 17

Give the case law in respect of Equality Act 2010 S.65

Answer 17

Dugdale v Kraft Foods Ltd (1976) - ‘like B’s work’

Hayward v Carmel Laird (1984) - ‘of equal value to B’s work’