Regulations outlining how Early Conciliation (EC) will work when the service is launched in April were published last week.
Under the Employment Tribunals (Early Conciliation: Exemptions and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2014, anyone thinking of lodging an employment tribunal claim will have to notify Acas before they do so.
The Religion or Belief Regulations (now part of the Equality Act) state that employers cannot impose a provision, criterion or practice (PCP) which discriminates against a worker on the basis of their religion or belief, unless they can justify it. In Mba v The Mayor and Burgesses of the London Borough of Merton, the Court of Appeal held that the Council’s requirement for Ms Mba to work on Sunday was a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.
Employers only have to make a reasonable adjustment if they know (or could reasonably be expected to know) that the employee was disabled. In Gallop v Newport City Council the Court of Appeal held that, rather than relying on reports from their occupational health advisers, employers must make their own judgment, on the facts, as to whether the employee was disabled.