Employment law stories in the news – 24.11.2014 to 30.11.2014

Iredmans-blog-newsn the latest of our series of posts on employment law stories in the news, we take a look at ten employment law stories that have made headlines between 24 November and 30 November 2014.

  1. Sky shareholders in revolt over secretive and ‘excessive’ bonuses – The pay-TV giant Sky has been hit by a revolt over pay as 55 per cent of independent shareholders failed to back the remuneration report. The influential American shareholder watchdog ISS and British advisory group Pirc had recommended that investors abstain in the vote because of a lack of transparency over bonus targets (The Independent)
  2. Osborne targets bankers’ pay after withdrawing EU challenge – Chancellor George Osborne is targeting further forms of limiting bankers’ remuneration following his decision to drop the legal challenge against the EU’s bonus cap (WSandB)
  3. British Muslims face worst job discrimination of any minority group, according to research – Muslims are facing the worst job discrimination of any minority group in Britain, according to new research which found that they had the lowest chance of being in work or in a managerial role (The Independent)
  4. Workers win Employment Tribunal fight against distillery – A group of distillery workers who were warned their jobs would be subcontracted out if they did not accept a pay offer have secured a significant legal ruling at an employment appeal tribunal. The judgment has been described as a stark warning to employers over their interaction with trade unions, with Loch Lomond Distillery facing a hefty payout to the 13 staff involved (Herald Scotland)
  5. New RBS row over £1m payout to ex-chief Stephen Hester – Royal Bank of Scotland is at the centre of a fresh pay row after it emerged it had handed £1m in shares to Stephen Hester, who was in charge of the bank when traders there helped to rig foreign exchange markets (The Guardian)
  6. Unite will not appeal overtime and holiday pay ruling – Unite will not be appealing the employment appeal tribunal (EAT) judgment ruling that overtime should be included in holiday pay calculations (WSandB)
  7. Contractor’s safety failings led to employee’s life-changing injuries – A Melksham construction company has been prosecuted after a crane operator suffered an electric shock when the equipment he was using came into contact with overhead power lines (HSE)
  8. Employment Tribunal fees likely to be reduced in Scotland – The Smith Commission has today revealed that control of Employment Tribunals in Scotland is to be devolved to the Scottish Parliament. The move will mean Scotland will be able to decide the level at which fees are set for claims made in Scotland, or even abolish fees altogether (Lexology)
  9. Proposed changes to Human Rights Act could affect employment law – The Conservative Party’s announcement that it would attempt to replace the Human Rights Act 1998 with a British Bill of Rights has led to speculation that this change could affect UK employment law (International Law Office)
  10. Rochdale company in court over worker’s severe chemical burns – A Rochdale fabric firm has been fined £10,000 after an employee fell into a vat of bleach and suffered severe  chemical burns over most of his body (HSE)