Employment Relationship+Non-standard Work Flashcards
mutuality of obligations test - to be an employee there needs to be an obligation on the employer to provide work and the employee has to perform the work for some remuneration.
Carmichael v National Power plc [2000]
more flexible ‘control’ test for definition of an employee under s.230(1) ERA
White v Troutbeck [2013] per Richardson J - “the question is not by whom day-to-day control was exercised but with whom and to what extent the ultimate right of control resided”
UK statutory protection provided for agency workers which includes limited rights of equal treatment and prevention of abuse of agency workers
The Agency Workers Regulations 2010
Leading case on agency workers - they cannot be “employees in disguise”.
Can only imply a contract between the agency worker and the end user where the ‘business necessity’ test is satisfied.
James v LB Greenwich [2008]
Qualifying period for unfair dismissal
s.108(1) ERA - 2 years
Contemporary theme which is increasingly transferring the risk from the employer to the employee - blurring the lines between employment and self-employment
Demutualisation
Contemporary theme which describes the shift from collective representation e.g. TUs
Individualism
Case which caused the removal of ET fees
UNISON (brought judicial review) [2017] per Lord Reed and Lady Hale
5 examples of deregulatory/weakening of employment protection
- extending the qualifying period for UD from 1 to 2 yrs.
- introduction of “employee shareholders” from 2013
- limited TU rights as a result of Trade Union Act 2016
- Restricting vicarious liability claims in equality cases (only have to take reasonable steps e.g. have a policy)
- capping compensation awards by ETs
examples of extensions to employment protection
- more flexible parental leave and pay
- increasing the minimum wage in 2016 - now the national living wage for over 25s
- banning of exclusivity clauses in zero hour contracts
Statutory definition of employee and worker
s.230(1) ERA and s.230(3) ERA respectively
employment status in Equality Law
s.83(2)(a) EA - have to be under a contract personally to do work
NB - this definition is similar to worker in s.230(3)(b) ERA - so isn’t just employees
Rights only available to employees
- Unfair Dismissal (after 2yrs)
- Redundancy Pay
- Maternity/Paternity Pay
Protection offered to both employees and workers
- Equality Law
2. National Minimum Wage
Three common law tests to determine whether someone has employee status
- control test
- risk test
- mutuality of obligations
common law ‘control’ test to define employee status
Yewens v Noakes [1880] confirmed in Ready Mixed Concrete [1968] - idea of an element of subordination
Integration test - If the ‘control’ test for the common law definition of employee isn’t passed it is sufficient to show a certain level of integration
Stevenson, Jordan and Harrison [1952] - question of whether they’re an ‘integral part of the business’, but remember this test isn’t useful for clarifying the status of non-standard workers
Most recent case of the application of the ‘risk’ test to define employee status
Stringfellows v Quashie - was self-employed because she paid the club to be provided with the opportunity to earn money by dancing with clients
Wrong label cases which developed the common law test of ‘mutuality of obligations’ to define employee status
Kalwak [2008] - strict
then Szilagyi [2009]
then Autoclenz [2011]
Definition of ‘mutuality of obligations’
an ongoing contractual nexus or global contract with the employer - this distinguishes between employees and workers by looking at the ‘true’ relationship of the parties
Case which held that having a ‘zero hour contract’ doesn’t mean you automatically fail the mutuality of obligations test if you still have a set working pattern you have to follow
Pulse Healthcare [2012] - zero hour workers were found on the facts to be ‘employees’ because even if people had specific shifts there were mutual obligations for the delivery of the whole care package on an ongoing basis inc. cover for holidays and sickness
General definition for an employee
contract of employment based on mutual obligations
General definition for worker
Quasi-dependent. A contract to perform work or services personally for another based on dependency, can’t be a client or customer
General definition of self-employed
contract for services based on independence