EmployEE Duties

Question 1

Main EmployEE Duties

Answer 1

1. Duty to provide personal service
2. Duty to provide loyal service
3. Duty to obey lawful and reasonable orders
4. Duty to act with honesty and integrity
5. Duty of care

Question 2

Points within Duty to Provide Personal Service

Answer 2

• Generally not acceptable for employee to delegate functions under C.O.E
• Must consider whether individual is under C.O.E or C.F.S - permit different rights
• Ready Mixed Concrete (South East) Ltd v Minister of Pensions 1968 - C.F.S as could appoint subsitute driver when wanted break
• Common law historically highlights C.O.E = employee-employer and C.O.S = contractor-employer

Question 3

Points within Duty to Provide Loyal Service

Answer 3

• Loyalty aspect defined as not doing anything to harm employers by carrying out work for competitors
• Restrictive covenants seek to promote loyalty by restricting employee in what can share with rival businesses
• Faccenda Chicken 1987
• Example of trying to promote loyal service bit highlights limitations of RCs as there are various things that need to be considered before these can be enforced

Question 4

Points within Duty to Obey Lawful and Reasonable orders

Answer 4

• Generally employee is under a common law duty to obey any lawful and reasonable orders that employer may issue to them.
• Except where ordered to commit crimes or endanger safety i.e. Ottoman Bank v Chakarian 1930
• ## Clear guidelines for the lawful side i.e. commit crimes or endanger safety but where orders don’t break law.. no clear guidelines for reasonable

Question 5

Points within Duty to Act with Honesty and Integrity

Answer 5

• Must not attempt to cheat employer by behaving in a dishonest fashion toward them
• Like Reading did in Reading v Attorney-General 1951 where he used his position under the crown to obtain unauthorised benefit
• While someone acting dishonestly can be said to be acting without integrity, the concept of integrity is wider than just being dishonest
• Thus, courts need to consult case law to determine what constitutes integrity

Question 6

Points within Duty of Care

Answer 6

• ‘Implied’ common law duty of the employee that they take ‘reasonable’ care in the discharge of their duties
• In some cases employers held liable for negligent actions of employees
• Employer can sue employee for breach of his duty of care
• Lends itself to mutual understanding that if other party does you a courtesy then one is expected to take reasonable care as a result e.g. if employer provides an employee with things, there is expectation that they would take care of as they would their own things