Issue 717

Coronavirus technology

According to a survey by the technology company, Disruptive Technologies, more than 50 per cent of workers are worried about returning to the workplace. Due to the risks of coronavirus (COVID-19), concerns about contracting the disease still loom large in people’s minds, specifically in relation to issues about cleanliness and COVID-related security in their workplace.

Legal protection

The Supreme Court has held in Uber BV v Aslam and ors that, when trying to decide whether individuals are workers and so entitled to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and other employment rights, tribunals must first consider whether they fall within the statutory definition rather than how the relationship is characterised in the documentation.

Tribunals are courts

In order to protect the rights of third parties, for instance in circumstances where one of the parties to a contract which was insured has gone bust, the law says that a “court” may give judgment against the insurer. In Irwell Insurance Co Ltd v Watson and ors, the Court of Appeal held that a tribunal is a “court” for those purposes.