Employment law stories in the news – 09.04.2018 to 15.04.2018

In the latest of our series of posts on employment law stories in the news we take a look at ten employment law-related stories that have made headlines between 9 April and 15 April 2018

  1. Setting paternity pay below the level of enhanced maternity pay is not discriminatory, EAT rules – It is not discriminatory to set paternity pay at a lower level than enhanced maternity pay, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has ruled, in a case seen as significant for determining parental leave rights (People Management)
  2. Company fined after worker falls from ladder – Safestyle UK has been sentenced after a worker fell from a ladder sustaining a fracture to his lower leg. Sheffield Magistrates’ Court heard how, on 1 March 2017, a window installer working for H.P.A.S. Limited, trading as Safestyle UK, was attempting to install a first-floor rear bedroom window at a property on Cemetery Road, Doncaster, when the ladder he was climbing slipped (HSE)
  3. Disabled DWP worker who ‘nearly died’ on job wins £26,000 from bosses who called him a “whinger” – A disabled DWP employee has won a £26,000 payout after his bosses called him a “whinger” and gave him a warning after he ‘nearly died’ at work. An employment tribunal awarded compensation after finding Barrie Caulcutt had been treated unfairly by his bosses at the Department for Work and Pensions (The Mirror)
  4. Dundee HMRC worker sacked after being off following ‘playful knee slap’ loses discrimination claim – A Dundee HMRC worker who was sacked after being off after a “playful” slap to the knee aggravated an old injury from his time in the forces has failed in a disability discrimination claim (The Evening Telegraph)
  5. Surveyor fined after failing to detect asbestos – A specialist asbestos company has been fined after failing to detect asbestos at a demolition site (HSE)
  6. Porter underpaid for antisocial hours wins employment tribunal – Darren McGavigan, a receptionist and porter for Western Urgent Care (WUC) in Londonderry, launched the case after he was improperly paid for antisocial hours (The Belfast Telegraph)
  7. Midwife Jane Greaves sacked after lack of toilet breaks gave her kidney infection wins job back – A midwife who was sacked for taking too many sick days after she fell ill because of a lack of toilets at work has won an employment tribunal. Jane Greaves was sacked from Pinderfields Hospital in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, after contracting a kidney infection because the birthing centre where she worked did not have a staff toilet (The Independent)
  8. Concerns raised over administration process at doomed Airdrie company TOM – Staff facing redundancy at doomed Airdrie company TOM Vehicle Rental could be in line for a hefty chunk of compensation following concerns raised over its administration process (The Daily Record)
  9. Top doctor described as a ‘boob man’ who got his sexual kicks by performing ‘demeaning and distressing’ examinations on three young female patients is struck off – A top doctor who carried out ‘humiliating, demeaning and distressing’ examinations on three young female patients has been struck off. The doctor – described by one patient as a ‘boob man’ – conducted several examinations that were not ‘clinically indicated’ for his own sexual gratification, an employment tribunal heard (The Daily Mail)
  10. Bipolar manager who sent ‘unprofessional’ emails was unfairly dismissed, tribunal rules – A senior manager at a hospital who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder after being summarily dismissed for sending offensive emails to her colleagues and visiting the house of her boss after working hours was unfairly dismissed, a Birmingham tribunal has found (People Management)