In this post we’re going to examine three basic employment regulations that employers should watch out for. This includes the following responsibilities:
- To provide a written statement of particulars within 2 months of the employee commencing employment
- To give written reasons for dismissal upon request from the dismissed employee
- To provide itemized payslips to the employee on or before each pay day
To provide a written statement of particulars within 2 months of the employee commencing employment
Under s.1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 an employer must supply to an employee a “written statement of particulars” within two months of the employee commencing their employment (and, under s.4, should provide a further written statement within one month of varying any terms). A written statement of particulars is not the same as a contract of employment but the two normally contain extremely similar terms – the existence of a written statement of particulars is not necessarily conclusive proof of a contract of employment but it is normally persuasive evidence. If an employer fails to comply with their obligations under s.1 ERA 1996 then the affected employee may issue proceedings in the Employment Tribunal during their employment for a determination of particulars. Further, should they have been dismissed from their employment and have made a claim for unfair dismissal to the Tribunal then they can “add on” a claim under s.1 to their claim form. Should the Employment Tribunal find there has been a breach of s.1 or s.4 ERA 1996 must award between two and four weeks’ gross pay for such a breach. This can be a further cost to employers if the employee’s unfair dismissal claim has been successful.
To give written reasons for dismissal upon request from the dismissed employee
If an employee has minimum two years’ service then they are entitled to receive an adequate and truthful statement of the reasons for dismissal upon request (under s.92 ERA 1996). These reasons must be supplied within 14 days of the request. If the employer unreasonably refuses to comply or supplies inadequate or untruthful reasons then the employee is entitled to a further two weeks’ compensation.
To provide itemized payslips to the employee on or before each pay day
Employers are obligated to provide employees with an itemized pay statement (also known as a payslip) on or before each payday. If the employer fails to provide such a statement – or deductions have been made which were not notified to the employee – then the employee can apply to the tribunal for a declaration to this effect and can ask the Tribunal to make a discretionary compensatory award to them.
As well as the above, there is a myriad of legislation that employers must comply with in England and Wales in order to avoid incurring liability in the Employment Tribunal in the civil courts, such as rules relating to when the dismissal of an employee may or may not be fair, how workers should be treated in the workplace, and health and safety requirements (among others). It is recommended that businesses consult an experienced employment law solicitor to help them understand their obligations in the workplace.
Redmans Solicitors are a firm of specialist employment solicitors in Kingston and are specialist unfair dismissal solicitors
Redmans
Latest posts by Redmans (see all)
- UK Government announces plans to force firms to reveal gender pay gap - February 19, 2016
- LJ Jackson calls for fixed costs to be applied to all claims valued up to £250k - January 30, 2016
- European Court ruling regarding ‘travel to work’ could raise costs for business - September 14, 2015
