The Court of Appeal has considered whether discrimination arising as a result of disability occurred where the employer dismissed a disabled employee without knowing that the misconduct arose from their disability.
Sep
24
2018
UK: Agency workers: zero hours contracts
The EAT has found that an employee on a zero hours contract was an agency worker because of the temporary nature of his assignment
Sep
24
2018
UK: Privilege: iniquity exception to legal advice privilege
Evidence does not have to be provided to a third party or court if it is privileged. Legal advice privilege applies to confidential communications between lawyers and their clients if it is made for the purpose of seeking or giving legal advice. However, legal advice privilege does not apply if the advice is given for the purpose of facilitating crime or fraud (the iniquity exception). The EAT recently considered whether an email that suggested ‘cloaking’ discrimination in a redundancy exercise was covered by legal advice privilege
Sep
24
2018
Sweden: Court ruling on discrimination, because of an applicant’s religious belief to refuse physical contact with the opposite gender
The Labour Court ruled that an applicant for a position as interpreter was subject to discrimination when the hiring company cancelling the interview because the applicant, due to her religious belief, declined to shake hands with a representative of the company
Sep
24
2018
Spain: The National High Court has been pronounced on the calculation and enjoyment of paid leaves
The National High Court, interpreting the jurisprudence of the Supreme Court on family paid leaves, considers that, with the exception of the marriage paid leave (long paid leave), all others (short paid leave) must begin on a work day, and in the calculation they should only be taking into consideration working days. Conversely, the marriage leave must be calculated for calendar days
Sep
24
2018
Germany: No evaluation prohibition for older recordings from open video surveillance
The storage of video material from a lawful open video surveillance, which shows the commission of criminal offences by an employee, is not inappropriate due to the lapse of time. This applies as long as the employee can be prosecuted under labor law
Sep
24
2018
Germany: The employer is entitled to prevent employees from participating in a strike by promising a so-called “strike-breaking” premium
The highest German labor court has ruled that an employer is generally entitled to prevent employees from participating in a strike, by promising a so-called strike-breaking premium. Apparently, an unequal treatment of striking employees and so-called strike breakers exists, which is justified for industrial action reasons
Sep
24
2018
France: The dismissal of the Director of a subsidiary by the director of the parent company is valid
An employee dismissed by the director of the parent company overseeing its activities is valid, since the latter is not completely detached from the subsidiary. This holds true even in the absence of any written delegation of authority.
Sep
24
2018
Canada: Termination for Frustration May Constitute Unjust Dismissal Under the Canada Labour Code
In the recent decision of Lewis v Whiteline Trucking Ltd, 2018 CanLII 72555 (CA LA), an adjudicator ruled that the doctrine of frustration of employment did not apply to a determination of whether an employee was unjustly dismissed contrary to the Canada Labour Code
Sep
24
2018
Australia: Casuals Employed On A “Regular And Predictable” Basis Entitled To Annual Leave: Full Federal Court
The Full Court of the Federal Court has unanimously ruled that casuals, who are employed on a “regular and predictable” and “continuous” basis, are entitled to annual leave under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth). This was despite true casual rates incorporating a loading to compensate for non-receipt of annual leave under the Act