As we approach the end of the year, here are highlights of the key cases in employment law in 2021.
Redundancy
Can the failure to offer an appeal in redundancy dismissal amount to unfair dismissal? This is a key issue faced by many employers and was considered in the Court of Appeal in the case of Gwynedd Council v Barratt and another [2021].
The Court of Appeal held that the lack of any appeal or review procedure does not of itself render a redundancy dismissal unfair. This does not provide carte blanche for employers not to hold any form of appeal at the end of the redundancy process. Indeed, my recommendation is that it is still best practice to do so. If there is no appeal, then it is is one of the factors to be considered when determining the overall fairness of the dismissal.
This case determined that where the redundancy process was undertaken in accordance with a fair process, then the absence of an appeal is not fatal to the employer’s defence.
Disability discrimination and the menopause
For a condition to amount to a disability within the meaning of the Equality Act, the following will need to be satisfied. The employee has:
In the case of Rooney v Leicester City Council, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) considered whether the menopause could be deemed to be a disability within the meaning of the...
Health care entities may be able to pay less than half the steep fines ordinarily associated with False Claims Act (FCA) violations by voluntarily reporting issues under a new pilot program launche...