After the excesses of Christmas we’re back into the fray of what promises to be a busy year in employment law. In this edition of the Pharos Legal Beacon we look at some recent cases and give a “heads up” on what’s coming for employers…
In addition, nearly a year after the firm was founded we have expanded into new premises at Airedale House to house our growing team!
We are delighted to welcome Emma Hammond on board as Associate.
Emma qualified as a solicitor in 1998 at Walker Morris, one of the “big six” firms in Leeds, having studied French and Spanish at Newcastle University and law at the College of Law in York.
Emma brings to Pharos extensive employment law experience, gained in a number of diverse environments (including in-house for a major supermarket and within the nationally renowned healthcare employment team at DAC Beachcroft) and by acting in several high profile cases.
Increases in compensation limits
Each year, to most employers’ dismay, the limits on certain employment tribunal awards and other amounts payable under employment legislation increase. 2012 will be no exception.
From 1 February 2012, the limit on compensation for unfair dismissal will rise from £68,400 to £72,300, and the cap on ‘a week’s pay’ for the purpose of calculating redundancy payments (among other things) will go up from £400 to £430.
In addition,
• guarantee pay increases from the rate of £22.20 a day to £23.50 a day; and
• the minimum basic award in cases where the dismissal was unfair by virtue of health and safety, employee representative, trade union, or occupational pension trustee reasons will increase from £5,000 to £5,300.
The new rates apply where the event giving rise to compensation or payment occurs on or after 1 February 2012. In the case of unfair dismissal, for example, the rates apply to dismissals where the effective date of termination falls on or after this date. Where the dismissal or relevant event falls before 1 February, the old limits will still apply, irrespective of the date on which compensation is awarded.
“Britain’s Got Talent” status question
Whether a possible BGT contestant actually does have talent might be in doubt but their employment status is not…
In Czikai v Freemantle Media Ltd and others UKEAT/0606/10 a preliminary hearing was held to determine whether the claimant's appeal had a reasonable prospect of success. Unfortunately for the claimant, none of her seventeen grounds of appeal had any prospect of success and the EAT endorsed the findings of the employment tribunal that a Britain's Got Talent contestant was not covered by discrimination law.
The purpose of the auditioning was held to be to progress in a competition, it was not an application for employment. Miss Czikai attended auditions voluntarily and no mutual obligations existed between the parties. Had the contestant progressed to the subsequent stage of the competition and become contractually obliged to perform in a roadshow, that would however have constituted employment for discrimination purposes.
Doctor awarded £4.5 million in discrimination compensation
The Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust and three senior employees have been ordered to pay £4,452,206.60 in compensation to Dr Eva Michalak for race and sex discrimination. Dr Michalak worked as an obstetrician at Pontefract General Infirmary earning £88,000 per year.
Senior employees were found to have plotted to terminate Dr Michalak's employment through "secret meetings" before and during her maternity leave. She was then subjected to harassment, criticism, false allegations and "a lengthy and wholly unauthorised period of suspension" in 2006. Disciplinary proceedings began in May 2007 and she was eventually dismissed in July 2008. The tribunal called this a "concerted campaign" to end her employment and said they were "outraged" at the behaviour of senior employees in the Trust.
The tribunal heard medical evidence that Dr Michalak had suffered "chronic and disabling" post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety, leading to an "enduring personality change".
Dr Michalak's husband told the tribunal he had to leave his job to take care of his wife and children.
This award is thought to be the largest ordered in a UK discrimination case. The award was made up of £1.1m for loss of past and future earnings, £660,000 for loss of pension, damages for injury to feelings and exemplary damages against the Trust.
Post-P45 PAYE
HMRC has proposed that, from 6 April 2012, employers must use the 0T code when operating PAYE on all post-P45 payments and notional payments, including employee share and share option gains. (The 0T code, introduced on 6 April 2011, requires PAYE to be operated on a non-cumulative basis at 20, 40 or 50% as applicable, as if an individual had no personal allowance.)
Draft regulations making this change are expected to be published in mid-January for a four-week consultation period.
