Employment law stories in the news – 10.10.2016 to 16.10.2016

redmans-blog-newsIn the latest of our series of posts on employment law stories in the news, we take a look at nine employment law stories that have made the news between 10 October and 16 October 2016

  1. Manufacturing firm fined after worker crushed to death – Oldham manufacturing firm R Tindall (Fabricators) Ltd has been prosecuted after a worker died after he was crushed under metal pipework. Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court heard that 53-year-old Frank Dunne was operating a side-loader forked lift truck which was carrying a vacuum packed pipe bundle (HSE)
  2. Shelterbox founder cleared of fraud withdraws unfair dismissal claim – The found of Helston-based aid charity Shelterbox has withdrawn his claim for unfair dismissal against the organisation (The Falmouth Packet)
  3. Worker wins £25,000 after being sacked over raunchy emails – A worker at an explosives factory has won almost £25,000 after being unfairly sacked over raunchy emails with a supplier who nicknamed her “sexy knickers”. Aileen Paterson, who worked in procurement for Chemring Energetics, was dismissed in January after 35 years’ service with the Ayrshire firm (Herald Scotland)
  4. Tesco car wash workers got half of minimum wage – A car wash at a Tesco store was found using Romanian workers who were paid half the minimum wage. The premises in Congleton, Cheshire, was operated by Waves Car Wash, which manages about 180 Tesco car washes (BBC)
  5. Former Boulby Potash manager says he was unfairly dismissed – A former manager of Boulby Potash mine has taken the company to court over what he believes was an unfair dismissal. Gary Todd was made redundant from his position as a manager from the mine in Saltburn in February after working for Cleveland Potash Ltd since 1980 (The Gazette Live)
  6. Golfing supremo, 61, who dined with royalty to secure £120million Rolex sponsorship deal for the PGA European Tour ‘was sacked because he was too old’ – A golfing supremo who dined with royalty to secure huge sponsorship deals worth more than £100 million for the PGA European Tour was sacked because he was too old, an employment tribunal was told today (The Daily Mail)
  7. Tesco faces legal action from staff in pay dispute – Tesco is facing legal action from staff who say they lost out on pay for working anti-social hours. The complaint is from 17 workers who are “extremely unhappy” at seeing their pay rates change for weekends, bank holidays and night shifts (BBC)
  8. Unite union’s women officers say they’ve been asked to wear high heels and if they are wearing stockings while in ‘pale, stale and male’ meetings – The country’s biggest union has come under fire from female officers who claim they are referred to as a ‘piece of skirt’. Female officers at Unite, which represents hundreds of thousands of workers on low wages, claim there is a ‘pale, stale, male’ culture at the union and if they dare complain, their male counterparts ‘make [their] life hell’ (The Daily Mail)
  9. Star Wars firm fined £1.6m over Harrison Ford injury – A production company behind the latest Star Wars movie has been fined £1.6m ($2m) after Harrison Ford broke his leg on set. The actor was injured in June 2014 at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire as he reprised his role as Han Solo (BBC)