Weekly issue 531

End of Tribunal Fees

Last week, the UK Supreme Court unanimously held that, as the order introducing Employment Tribunal and Employment Appeal Tribunal fees prevented access to justice and as set out in Lady Hale’s judgment, discriminated against women.

Limits on Employers

In misconduct cases, a dismissal is fair if the employer believed the employee to be guilty of the misconduct; had reasonable grounds for that belief; and carried out a reasonable investigation.

Broken Chain

The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has reaffirmed its earlier decision in the case of Fulton and Baxter v Bear Scotland Ltd that a gap of three months or more between two successive alleged under payments or non-payments of wages breaks the chain in a “series” of deductions as set out in the Employment Rights Act 1996.