March 2010 Archives - 2/2 - Employment Law Advocates

Dividing up hearings

08-Mar-2010 / James Medhurst / No Comments

It is common practice for tribunals to rule on liability first and then to determine remedy later. In my experience, this can often be more trouble than it is worth, especially in short unfair dismissal cases, particularly where the issues of a Polkey reduction or of¬†contributory fault are likely to come into play. This was even more true during the ill-fated period of the statutory disciplinary and dismissal procedure in which a procedurally¬†unfair dismissal could be rendered fair by the ...

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Reasons for less favourable treatment

04-Mar-2010 / James Medhurst / 1 Comment

If the burden of proof reverses in a discrimination case,¬†the employer has to show a non-discriminatory reason for the treatment about which¬†the complaint has been made. Sometimes this is straightforward but the decision of the Employment Appeal Tribunal in Arhin v Enfield Primary Care Trust provides an example of a situation where¬†it can be¬†more difficult. It¬†was found that the respondent had¬†simply made a mistake in not allowing the claimant, who was redundant,¬†to compete for¬†a job that was offered to her ...

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