5 developments to read for May in less than 5 minutes - In the Middle East, steps towards further localisation of workforces continue with a new law in Bahrain requiring half of the workforce in privatised state services to...more
This week, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) commenced consultation on updates to its Code of Practice in light of the UK Supreme Court’s ruling that the terms “woman”, “man” and “sex” in the Equality Act refer...more
Our employment law update for April covers the Supreme Court decision the correct definition of “sex” and “woman” in the Equality Act and a Court of Appeal decision providing guidelines on gross misconduct dismissals....more
Rather than our usual Two Minute Monthly employment law round-up, we are posting for March 2025 a blog by Partner Katherine Pope on the nature and purpose of risk assessments in complying with the sexual harassment...more
The UK Court of Appeal (CA) has handed down its judgment in the case of Higgs v. Famor’s School, adding to the growing body of case law that examines the complex issue of balancing employees’ freedom to express potentially...more
Happy New Year! In our first monthly alert for 2025, we report on whether comments on an employee’s accent are unlawful harassment, on ‘gig economy’ worker rights – plus guidance on employers’ duties to prevent sexual...more
Employers in England, Scotland and Wales are now required to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees in the course of their employment. New legislation, the Worker Protection (Amendment of...more
A new duty came into force on 26 October 2024 requiring UK employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of employees in the course of their employment under the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act...more
The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2020) Act 2023 comes into force on 26 October 2024, introducing a new legal obligation on UK employers to take ‘reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment at work. In this...more
The UK employment law landscape is rapidly changing following the election of the Labour government. New legislation coming into force on 26 October 2024 that tackles sexual harassment in the workplace and the recently...more
Beginning 26 October 2024, employers in England, Scotland, and Wales will be under a new obligation to take “reasonable steps” to prevent sexual harassment of workers in the course of their employment. Details regarding this...more
The new legal duty in the UK to prevent sexual harassment is ‘designed to transform workplace cultures’, according to guidance published by the Equality and Human Rights Commission....more
After a slightly extended summer break, we return with a summary of the new sexual harassment rules due to come into force in just over two weeks....more
A new duty on employers to take reasonable steps to prevent the sexual harassment of their employees takes effect on 26 October 2024. The Current Rules - While an employer can be vicariously liable for harassment...more
The Worker Protection Act (amendment of Equality Act 2010) – entering into force on 26 October 2024 – will impose a legal obligation on all employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. ...more
The United Kingdom’s Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) recently named several organisations that missed the deadline to report their 2023–2024 gender pay gap data. If the data remains unreported, the EHRC will take...more
After winning the general election last month, the new UK government has started to focus on the implementation of its manifesto pledges, as discussed in our previous alert. The King’s Speech, which took place on 17 July...more
Welcome to the new Two Minute Weekly. Following requests from readers, we are changing the format of our employment law newsletter. It will now be weekly and will feature as it did before news items and new cases....more
As we previously reported, from October 26, 2024, under the (not-so-concisely named) Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 – which we are calling “the Worker Protection Act” – all employers in the UK...more
The UK Worker Protection Act 2023, amending the 2010 Equality Act, represents a significant milestone in safeguarding employees against sexual harassment. With a compliance deadline of October 26, 2024, this Act places a...more
In this issue, we discuss upcoming regulatory changes as well as recent court decisions with far-reaching implications, including case law on the need to replace share awards on a TUPE transfer and a UK Supreme Court ruling...more
On 21 November 2023, as part of its inquiry into large language models (LLMs), the UK’s Communications and Digital Lords Committee considered the role of regulators and emerging trends regarding LLMs, including evidence from...more
The UK Government is supporting the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Bill to significantly expand employers’ liability for harassment in the workplace....more
Settlement agreements are a pragmatic and effective tool in resolving workplace disputes. The employee benefits from financial support and a dignified exit, and the employer achieves a clean break. However, when used...more
The UK Government has recently published its long-awaited response to its 2019 consultation on measures to combat sexual harassment in the workplace and strengthen existing legal protections. Most significantly, the...more