Latest figures show slight reduction in gender pay gap
May 28th 2019By Joanne Stronach Head of Employment & HR The latest figures on the gender pay gap in large businesses show a slight reduction on last year. Legislation introduced in 2017 means that every employer with 250 or more employees has to publish the differences between what they pay their male and female staff in average salaries and bonuses. This is the second year that employers have been required to report…
Female administrator paid 15% less than her male replacement
May 23rd 2019By Joanne Stronach Head of Employment & HR The Employment Tribunal has ruled that a female finance administrator was discriminated against when her male replacement was paid £3,500 more than her. The case involved Mrs J Broom, who had been employed in various roles by Alternative Care Ltd for nearly two years. At the time she resigned from the company, she was a finance administrator with a salary of £18,000.…
Judge orders homeowner to pay builder in full for repair work
May 20th 2019By Laura Bright Solicitor The High Court has ordered a homeowner to pay the full cost of repair work carried out on his property by a building company. The court heard that the homeowner, Sylvein Pinto, had asked ICCT Ltd to stop leaks in his basement. The work was not paid for so ICCT took the matter to arbitration and Mr Pinto provided the adjudicator with pictures of the leaking…
Director ordered to pay £20,000 after breaching his duties
May 13th 2019By Mark Aspin Director A director has been ordered to pay £20,000 for breaching his legal duties shortly before his company went into liquidation. The director had run a freight-forwarding company from 2011 until its voluntary liquidation in 2015. He had been the sole shareholder. His father had previously been a co-director of the company and continued to work for it. The company operated from the father’s home. The director…
Sub-contractor held liable for loss of rent due to faulty work
May 7th 2019A sub-contractor has been held liable for all the compensation a contractor had to pay for damage caused by faulty work, including loss of rent. The High Court was told that the contractor, Ground Construction Ltd, had been employed by a landlord to build a property next to Regent’s Canal in London. The main contract was a JCT standard form incorporating the terms and conditions of DOM2. Ground Construction sub-contracted…
Government warns 10,000 businesses to pay SME invoices on time
May 3rd 2019By Carly Davies Credit Control & Debt Recovery The government has written to 10,000 businesses to warn them they must pay their suppliers on time or risk being barred from winning public contracts. Officials from the Cabinet Office have written to the businesses – which include all the government’s current strategic suppliers – to remind them of the new rules on prompt payment, which come into force this autumn. Under…
Husband and wife lose £40,000 deposit in failed company purchase
April 24th 2019By Mark Aspin Director & Head of Dispute Resolution A husband and wife who tried to buy a business have lost their £40,000 deposit after the High Court ruled they could not claim a refund when the deal fell through. The couple wanted to buy a waste collection company. They were introduced to the sole shareholder and a tentative agreement was made that they would buy the business for £210,000.…
Asda loses appeal over equal pay for women workers
April 4th 2019Joanne Stronach Head of Employment & HR explains. The Court of Appeal has upheld a tribunal ruling that female workers in Asda stores were employed under terms and conditions that were comparable to men working in the company’s distribution depots. It’s an important decision as it could allow thousands of women working for major retailers and numerous other businesses to bring equal pay claims. Asda has 630 retail stores and…
Businesses learn from world champions M-Sport
March 22nd 2019BUSINESS leaders from companies large and small were revved up when they attended a special event at the headquarters of World Rally Champions M-Sport. Experts shared best practice across a number of fields before delegates were given a tour of the company’s impressive headquarters. The event was the latest in a collaborative series organised by leading Cumbrian legal firm Cartmell Shepherd. They partnered with insurance broker Jelf, as both companies…
Joanne Stronach considers recent case; 88-year-old becomes oldest person to win age discrimination claim
March 15th 2019Joanne Stronach Head of Employment & HR considers the case of E Jolly, Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust. An 88-year-old woman who was dismissed from her job with the NHS has become the oldest person in the UK to win an age discrimination claim. Eileen Jolly told the Employment Tribunal that she felt “humiliated and degraded” by the way she was treated by the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust. Mrs…
