Pay levels and awards
Tori O'Neil, associate, and Judith Harris, legal director, at Addleshaw Goddard detail the latest rulings.
In Parkwood Leisure Ltd v Alemo-Herron and others [2010] EWCA Civ 24 CA, the Court of Appeal held that, where the transfer of an undertaking occurs, and the transferring employees' contracts contain a clause referring to a collective agreement between the transferor and the relevant union, the transferee is not obliged to recognise wage increases agreed by the transferor and the union after the transfer has occurred resulting from negotiations to which the transferee was not a party.
In Bateman and others v Asda Stores Ltd EAT/0221/09, the EAT held that the employer was entitled to change its employees' pay arrangements without their consent because it had reserved a clear contractual right to make unilateral variations to their terms and conditions of employment.
The Employment Appeal Tribunal has held that a sleep-in payment was not an allowance for the purpose of the national minimum wage. Therefore it should not be excluded from the calculation of the hourly rate paid by the employer.
The Employment Appeal Tribunal has held that the national minimum wage relates to a worker's basic rate of pay, even if he or she normally works only at night at an enhanced rate.
This week's case of the week, provided by DLA Piper, covers working time.
The Employment Appeal Tribunal has upheld an employment tribunal decision that an employee who was allowed to sleep for much of his shift, but had to deal with anything untoward that might arise, was entitled to be paid the national minimum wage for the whole shift.
The Employment Appeal Tribunal has held that a trainee in the second year of a learning agreement was entitled to the national minimum wage.
In James v Redcats (Brands) Ltd [2007] IRLR 296 EAT, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has given guidance on the definition of a worker under the national minimum wage legislation.
In Leisure Employment Services Ltd v Commissioners for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs [2007] IRLR 450 CA, the Court of Appeal has held that sums deducted from the pay of workers living in employer-provided accommodation to offset the cost of utility bills can not be counted as part of their wages for the purposes of establishing if they are receiving the minimum wage.
Employment law cases: HR and legal information and guidance relating to pay levels and awards.