Hillyer McKeown hosted two employment law updates in Chester and Deeside in September and October. This presentation covers: - The amendments made to Tribunal fees - The changes to whistleblowing - An introduction to settlement agreements - The proposed changes to encourage early settlement of potential claims - The changes made to unfair dismissal awards To view the presentation, please click on the button above.

1. Employment Law
Update 2013
Justine Watkinson and Rachel Reid
Hillyer McKeown Solicitors
www.hillyermckeown.co.uk

2. Our Employment Law Speakers
Rachel is a Solicitor in our experienced
Employment Law Team. She has extensive
experience in advising and acting for a
diverse range of companies on Tribunal
claims, general HR issues such as
disciplinaries, grievances, discrimination as
well as redundancy (collective and
individual), TUPE issues and industrial
relations.
Justine is Head of the Employment Law
Team. She has extensive expertise in all
areas of employment law, including
executive appointments and terminations,
drafting of contracts of employment and
handbooks, all aspects of business change
projects, long term sickness, performance
and capability, and discrimination issues.
www.hillyermckeown.co.uk

3. Enterprise and Regulatory
Reform Act 2013
• Came into force 25 June 2013
• Introduced various changes to the law
• Improve the employment tribunal system
• Reduce number of claims being issued in the
Tribunal
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4. Enterprise and Regulatory
Reform Act 2013
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Whistleblowing changes
Unfair dismissal cap
Settlement Agreements
Employment Tribunal Fees
Early conciliation
Employee shareholders
TUPE
www.hillyermckeown.co.uk

5. Whistleblowing
• Applies to disclosures made from 25 June 2013
• Worker must have a “reasonable belief “ the
disclosure is in the public interest
• Removal of requirement for ‘good faith’
• Vicarious liability of employer
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6. Unfair Dismissal Cap
29 July 2013
• Limit to compensation
• £74,200 or 52 weeks’ gross pay (benefits such as pension,
benefits in kind and discretionary bonus excluded)
• Future revisions rounded up to nearest £1
• Revisions to be made on 6 April rather than 1 February
• Statistics published by BIS in 2010 – only 5% of all Unfair
dismissal Claimants recovered in excess of 12 months loss
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7. Settlement Agreements
• ACAS Code of Practice
• Offer made before a dispute
• Verbally and in writing
• Confidentiality of discussion only for unfair
dismissal claims
• Employees accompanied at meetings
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8. Settlement Agreements
• “Improper behaviour” prevents confidentiality:
• Not allowing 10 days for employee’s response
• Stating the employee will be dismissed if not
accept offer
• Employee threatening employer’s reputation
unless the agreement is signed
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9. Employment Tribunal Fees
29 July 2013
• When are fees payable?
• To issue a claim
• To secure a hearing
• When making an application
• Where parties agree to Judicial Mediation
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10. Employment Tribunal Fees
29 July 2013
• Type A - Deduction of wages/redundancy/breach of
contract/ - £160 issue/£230 hearing
• Type B – Unfair dismissal/discrimination/whistleblowing £250 issue/£950 hearing
• £600 from Respondent where parties agree to judicial
mediation
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11. Early Conciliation
Expected April 2014
• Before issue a claim contact ACAS
• One month window to settle
• Save costs for business and individuals
• No settlement reached – 3 month window opens
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12. Employee Shareholders
Growth and Infrastructure Act
• Came into existence on 1st September 2013
• Employee can agree to accept a minimum of £2,000 worth of shares
in the Company (Capital gains exempt up to £50,000)
• Give up certain employment rights
• Employee must get written terms
• Employee must take legal advice
• Employer must pay for that advice
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13. Employee Shareholders
Growth and Infrastructure Act
What does an employee give up?
• Request for time off to study
• To request flexible working (save for when following a period
of parental leave if made within 14 days of return)
• Unfair Dismissal (excluded automatically Unfair Dismissal)
• Right to a redundancy payment
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14. Transfer of Undertaking (Protection of
Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE)
TUPE applies to a “relevant transfer”, which covers two events:
1. A transfer of a business, undertaking or part of a business or
undertaking where there is a transfer of an economic entity
that retains it’s identity (Regulation 3(1)(a))
2. A client engaging a contractor to do work on it’s behalf reassigning such a contract or bringing the work “in house”,
providing certain conditions are met (Service Provision
Change) (Regulation 3(1)(b))
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15. Transfer of Undertaking (Protection of
Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE)
• Where TUPE applies the employment contracts of those
employees assigned to the organised grouping of resources
pass from the transferer to the transferee (Regulation 4(1))
• The Government announced 6th September 2013 to scale
back proposals
• Employment Relations Minister, Jo Swinson ‘comments’:
Timescales – changes laid before Parliament December 2013,
planned changes January 2014
Positively received by Employers
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16. Transfer of Undertaking (Protection of
Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE)
Proposed changes - Key points:
• The Service Provision Change provisions will remain although the
activities carried out after the transfer must be “fundamentally
or essentially” the same as those carried out before
• Dismissals due to a workforce relocation as a result of a TUPE
transfer will no longer be automatically unfair. They will fall into
the exemption of an economical, technical or organisational
reason (ETO) changes to the workforce
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17. Transfer of Undertaking (Protection of
Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE)
Proposed changes - Key points:
• Pre-transfer consultation by the transferee on proposed
collective redundancies post-transfer will be valid and
meaningful
• Business with fewer than 10 employees will be entitled to inform
and consult with their employees directly and not through
representatives
• The timescale for providing employee liability information has
been increased from 14 days to 28 days prior to transfer
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18. Thank you
Any questions?
Find out more at
www.hillyermckeown.co.uk
www.hillyermckeown.co.uk