Blog
From garage to unicorn – Employment law lessons for scaling tech teams
Catherine Bourne
16 November 2018
Carrying out a reasonable investigation into a misconduct allegation – can an employer withhold evidence from a disciplinary panel?
The case of Hargreaves v Manchester Grammar serves as a useful reminder for employers of how to carry out a reasonable investigation, particularly when the employee in question is facing potentially career changing consequences as a result of the allegations. In this case the Employment Appeal Tribunal decided that it was reasonable for the employer to withhold the evidence of potential witnesses who “had seen nothing” - the Tribunal had been entitled to make this finding and reject the employee’s claim of unfair dismissal.
14 November 2018
The extension of the SMCR, the fit & proper test and the increasing significance of non-financial misconduct
The FCA has been determined to drive cultural change in financial services for some years now. Since the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards published their seminal report ‘Changing banking for good’ in 2013 there has been a concerted drive to improve the culture of financial services, to avoid future financial scandals, and ensure accountability and responsibility for risk management, compliance and wrongdoing from the top down.
21 September 2018
Is Section 40 of the Equality Act due a comeback?
Section 40 of the Equality Act 2010 (EqA 2010) rendered employers liable to employees if they were subjected to harassment by third parties during the course of their work and if – despite knowing harassment had occurred on two previous occasions – the employer had not taken reasonable steps to stop it happening again. Some referred to this as the ‘three strikes’ rule.
10 September 2018
How best to react to claims of sexual misconduct
THE media storm surrounding former SNP leader Alex Salmond has in many ways been fuelled by his confrontational approach to the sexual misconduct claims raised against him. These allegations came to the public’s attention when he commenced legal proceedings against the Scottish Government about their handling of investigations. Some consider this a smart move, others a political distraction from the underlying claims. It will be interesting to see how his case plays out given his very public profile.
7 September 2018
How to bring an allegation of sexual misconduct in the workplace
Having to raise an allegation of sexual misconduct in the workplace will be one of the most distressing and stressful moments in anyone’s career. The #metoo movement has undoubtedly emboldened people to raise concerns and encouraged organisations to take these issues seriously. But we are also seeing increasingly robust defences from those accused and employers following strict and careful procedures to be sure to follow a fair process.