XpertHR provides summaries of recent employment tribunal rulings, as well as the full transcripts of the decisions. New cases added this week involve: an employee who was entitled to treat the termination of his private tenancy as the "last straw" in a constructive dismissal claim; an employee who was fairly dismissed for failing a random test for illegal drugs; and a gay pub-worker who was discriminated against on the ground of his sexual orientation. 

International specialists at IRS round up employment developments from across Europe, including: new trade union guidelines for negotiating European Works Council agreements in the period until the "recast" EU Directive on EWCs comes into effect in June 2011; the Irish Government's plans to increased the retirement age from 65 to 68; and a three-year national agreement on pay moderation and job creation signed in Spain.

Bipolar disorder falls within the remit of the Disability Discrimination Act. Occupational Health explains what this means for employers.

The contracts and termination of employment chapters of the XpertHR employment law manual have been updated to reflect recent case law related to agency workers, contract variation and constructive dismissal. 

The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has held that, even where “special circumstances” existed in a collective redundancy situation, the employer was not totally relieved from its obligations to consult with the affected employees. However, the EAT allowed part of the appeal by remitting the matter of the protective award back to the tribunal.

The High Court has held that provisions regarding minimum crew complements, contained in collective agreements, were not legally incorporated into employees’ contracts of employment, and those employees could not rely on them. It also held that, in any event, an injunction sought by the employees to restrain British Airways from crewing planes other than in accordance with that collective agreement could not possibly be justified.

In this week's topic of the week article, Judith Harris of Addleshaw Goddard continues a series of articles on the new fit notes system with a look at how employers should deal with sickness absence in the light of fit notes. In addition, we pull together some of the wealth of information on XpertHR on sickness absence, fit notes and related topics.

On this week's XpertHR Weekly: the findings of the IRS stress management survey and key ways in which employers manage stress and mitigate its impact on employees; the statutory right to be accompanied and guidance on when it is triggered, what it permits a companion to do and whether or not the right has been extended by recent caselaw; and an employer's obligations under the Information and Consultation of Employee Regulations 2004 (SI 2004/3426) and the penalties that may be imposed in the event of a breach.

XpertHR's head of content Jo Stubbs and group editor David Shepherd ask whether or not workers have the right to carry over statutory minimum annual leave where they have been unable to take leave due to sickness.

XpertHR provides summaries of recent employment tribunal rulings, as well as the full transcripts of the decisions. New cases added this week involve: an employer who fairly dismissed a depressed and disabled employee; an employee who was fairly dismissed for disclosing details of a job applicant to her mother; and a long-term sick employee who, having been unable to take holiday, was on termination entitled to be paid for more than a year's accrued leave.

Lisa Mayhew, partner, and Natalie Smith, associate, Jones Day, answer questions on discrimination laws for workers outside the UK. 

This article from the XpertHR "how to" section looks at the statutory right for workers to be accompanied at disciplinary and grievance meetings. It explains when the right applies and gives practical advice for employers on allowing workers to exercise the right, while ensuring that disciplinary and grievance proceedings are dealt with promptly and effectively. It also looks at the circumstances in which employees may have the right to legal representation at a disciplinary hearing.

Additions to the FAQs section cover disability discrimination and the duty to make reasonable adjustments, and the right to be accompanied at disciplinary and grievance hearings.

Jane Hobson, partner, Weightmans, discusses bullying in the workplace. 

A model policy and accompanying letters on the right to request time off for study or training have been added to the XpertHR policies and documents section, in advance of the legislation coming into effect on 6 April 2010. The accompanying letters include a letter that can be circulated to employees explaining the new right.

The High Court has awarded damages for injury and distress under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.

In this week's topic of the week article, Anna Bridges of Addleshaw Goddard begins a series of articles on the new fit notes system with an overview that looks at the options that will be available to doctors who are certificating sickness absence. In addition, we pull together some of the wealth of information on XpertHR on sickness absence, fit notes and related topics.

Line managers take lead or shared responsibility for people management in 90% of organisations, yet IRS research has shown that line manager training in areas such as absence management, appraisals and recruitment is often poorly attended and inadequate. IRS is conducting a survey on line manager training and, if you take part, you will get immediate access to a free copy of our previous survey on line managers’ role in people management and we will provide you with a free copy of the new survey as soon as it is ready. 

The Employment Appeal Tribunal has set the penalty for an employer's failure to comply with the Information and Consultation of Employees Regulations 2004 (SI 2004/3426) at £10,000.

If your company uses agency workers to maintain flexibility and keep costs down, you may need to rethink the structure of your workforce.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has launched a voluntary scheme for reporting on gender pay gaps in the private sector - something that very few firms currently do. But many HR professionals feel that transparency itself will do little to tackle the deep-rooted causes of gender pay inequality. 

This article summarises the main issues and outcomes in five tribunal cases where it was claimed that the employer failed to consult with trade union or employee representatives when it was proposing to make 20 or more employees redundant. Although the decisions are not binding on other tribunals, they provide useful illustrations of situations that have led to employers facing claims for failing to inform and consult on collective redundancies.