Employment Law

Bobby Ahmed of William B. Rose & Associates LLP

Bobby began by explaining where the duty of care in law came from in terms of health and safety and the introduction of employment law in 1970’s to cover all employees at work. Currently employment law is a complex subject with the Equality Act 2010 covering a wide range of issues including race and sex and this range of subjects can get Employers in trouble particularly if asking personal questions at the recruitment stage.

He then went on to talk about the need for consultation with the workforce and the rights and responsibilities of those chosen to represent the workforce on health and safety issues, in particular the Union appointed safety representatives who have rights in law. Bobby illustrated his comments with a range of varied and interesting anecdotes from his years as a legal advisor and his representation at Employment Tribunals. These were now becoming common place in the UK with 122 000 Employment Tribunal cases in 2010

An outline of the Tribunal processes were then discussed which covered their operation, the decision process, an individual’s application, and timescales for application and response all discussed. This was followed by a frank and open discussion on the tricky subjects of misconduct for health and safety breaches, long term illness, and “reasonable adjustment to the workplace.” He suggested that the Employer can best deal with these issues if they are approached on a united front using the expertise from both the Human Resources department and the Safety department.

There were many questions from the floor and Bobby gave a good insight into how to tackle the issues raised before receiving their grateful thanks of the audience for what was a very interesting and informative presentation (105kb).

This meeting was the last for 2011 and a new programme for 2012 will be out soon so please look at the NSSC website and ensure you add these events to your calendar. I can advise you now that the first meeting will be on 13th February with a talk on Asbestos.

Finally, it falls upon to me to thank the District committee for all its good work over the past year and to wish you all a very Happy Christmas and a safe and prosperous New Year.

Philip Gallimore Media Officer