Complaints Handling Procedure

Couriers are workers, not self-employed, tribunal rules

Group of 65 couriers entitled to employment rights, minimum wage and holiday pay. A group of Hermes couriers have won their fight to be treated as workers instead of independent contractors in what has been described as one of the most significant victories against exploitation of gig-economy workers. The judgement mirrors verdicts in cases brought against Uber, Addison......

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Recognition as employees rather than freelancers

A group of 27 artists and art lecturers who worked in the building overlooking Trafalgar Square in London, are claiming unfair dismissal and seeking to be recognised as employees rather than freelancers. In order to claim for unfair dismissal, these workers must show they were employed under a contract of service and were not self......

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Boy, eight, was taken from his family and put in foster care after social worker said his mother didn’t take him for ice cream or let him get his hair cut how he liked

Mr Justice Mostyn described the social worker’s claims as ‘utterly insubstantial’ The boy, now eight, taken away from his mother and made to live in foster care Social worker said ‘best example’ of neglect was not giving the boy ice cream Mr Justice Mostyn overruled a court hearing Swansea to rule he can return...

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The Court of Appeal has backed a decision that Pimlico Plumbers should have viewed self-employed Gary Smith as a “worker”.

The five justices rejected an appeal by Pimlico Plumbers against a number of court rulings that determined Mr X could claim “worker” status, even though he was described in his contract as a “self-employed operative”. Mr X claimed that, after suffering a heart attack in 2011, he was unfairly dismissed when he tried to reduce......

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If you cheat on your partner with someone of the same sex, it’s not considered adultery – even if you’re in a same-sex marriage

What is considered grounds for divorce varies from person to person – whilst their partner embarking on an affair of the heart is enough for some people to call it quits, others will vow to stay together despite adultery. In the eyes of the law, however, adultery is one of five reasons a person may......

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Rich couple’s divorce battle a waste of time, says UK judge

A divorce battle between a couple who have spent almost £2m on lawyers’ fees while fighting over assets worth £6.6m at most, has been described as a “scandalous waste of court time” by a judge. Barbara Cooke, 58, and Michael Parker, 55, an estranged couple who run a firm that supplies luxury bathrobes and towels......

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Settlement agreements: what do employees need to know?

If your employer offers you a settlement agreement, deciding whether you should accept it can be pretty daunting. Settlement agreements are typically given to employees when they are being made redundant. The documents outline the terms of the deal: usually an employee is given money in return for certain conditions, such as not bringing a......

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