Can anyone help me with regard to an employer attempting to reject me as a member of the group of employees who have submitted a claim to the Employment Tribunal. Briefly, I joined with a group of self employed people who are seeking to have their employment status confirmed as being contracted employees. If their claim is successful we would be similar as I have in the same way as the self employed people would have for claims for unpaid statutory holiday pay. The employer has not paid me correct statutory holiday pay. The employer is seeking to have my claim struck out as I am not a self employed person. I am aware that the tribunal does have the power to waive or vary the requirement that all claimants under a group claim have to be similar. To what extent would the tribunal consider or waive the requirement? If I had to submit a new claim, would the date of submitting the claim be replaced by the date I originally claimed? If it were not to be, I think I might have an issue with being out of time. Any help please would be greatly appreciated.

I don't know if there is anyone that can help in this matter, but it's really driving me mad. I had a main job, which I lost at the beginning of October, but also had a secondary job, which was on a commission only basis. I am now left with just the secondary job, which doesn't pay that much at all. I have recently made a claim for housing benefit who wanted to see evidence of the last 3 months commission I earned. This amounted to me earning £1600 over a 3 month period. With this in mind they have calculated that I would earn a wage of £115 per week. (They obviously multiplied £1600 by 4 to get a yearly income and then divided this by 52 weeks to get a weekly amount). To cut a long story short, everything I earn over £72.40 I have to pay for my rent with a disregard of £5. The problem I have with this is that most weeks I bring home approx £72 per week, which is no near enough to live on when they expect me to pay £40 a week rent plus £14 towards council tax too. Only last week I actually brought home £64, so how they could expect me to pay out £54 out of the £64 I earned is beyond me. To top it off my first payment from housing benefit will not arrive until December 15th. This will put me in nearly 3 months arrears with my private landlord, who I doubt would put up with this. I put in claim at beginning of October as soon as I lost my main job. My problem now is that because of this I am wanting to give my self employment up as I am much worse off than I would be on JSA. There are no other benefits I can claim like working tax credit as I don't work enough hours to get it (I would need to work 30 hours to get working tax). My daughter is now classed as a non-dependent so I don't get child tax credit either. She only has a bar job that earns pocket money (£52 a week), but housing benefit expect her to pay £14 towards rent, which would cover my weekly council tax, of which I get no benefit at all. Would I be able to quit this job without any problem on the basis that I am so much worse off. After all the benefits letters always say that the law says I need x amount of money to live on when in fact my earnings are much lower than this x amount. I did wonder whether it would be worth waiting until I find another job, but it appears you need to have a degree to do a cleaning job these days. I'm so angry with the whole system. It's so hard living as a single person when you have no spouse/partner to help pay towards the bills.

I won my employment tribunal claim for discrimination a couple of months ago and am awaiting a remedy hearing at the end of the year. I have re-read the judgement whilst preparing for the remedy hearing and realised that there are several findings of fact that are wrong and are easy to point out to the Tribunal. These findings of fact would not have affected the liability judgement but may be relevant in the remedy deliberations. Can I get these errors corrected and if so, how?

Hi, long story short, I am currently on benefits and have been since April of this year. My previous employer has now agreed after a long battle, that I was underpaid for the last few years and is paying me the difference between the pay that I actually received and the wage rise that I should have received, for those previous years. However I am concerned that they will give it as a wage payment, as if it is earnings for this year, when none of it would be applicable to this tax year since I have not received any wages in this tax year only benefits. So does anybody know if my current benefits might be stopped or affected because of the backpay? Thanks for any advice.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-29896617 Be aware appeals are pending, this is not yet finalised

I was going for an administration job and reached the second stage of the recruitment/interview process, when the company suddenly turned around and stated that I would have to undergo a credit check. I have been having a few debt problems on the count of my recent divorce from my ex-partner and had to take out a myriad of loans to keep my family home with 2 young children from going under. The company realised my bad credit score and in the end did not offer me the job because of it. I am struggling to pay my rent on the low income job that I am currently doing which I have been in for the last 5 years.... it's not enough and then when there is a glimmer of hope, it got taken away just like that due to a credit check! So I am desperate to know what other people's experiences with this kind of issue has been and the methods you have taken to move past this. How has this affected you? Because quite frankly, it's affected me and the up keep of my children badly....

I have accepted and signed an employment contract for a new job. However I've been offered a new job opportunity elsewhere which I would like to accept instead. So my question is how binding is the contract that I have signed considering I have not yet started? Does consideration mean that the contract is only enforceable once I have started the job?

Hi All, I am looking for a mentor who can explain about basic law of employment. I want to know about point of law in very simple term with example (case law) I want to know about error of law in very simple term with example (case law) when a employer dismissed a employee with knowledge of disability on ground of capability but after dismissal if found by regulatory body that claimant has no professional incompetence then based on new evidence what will be the case ? Is there any effect of fresh evidence in the court of appeal ? now respondent argued that when they dismissed the employee in that moment they have no knowledge of fresh evidence so they are not guilty of any discrimination. my understanding that when a employer is going to dismissing a disable employee (with knowledge disability)they should more careful than non disable employee..isn't it ? it would be highly appreciate if you could answer my question..please help me out : thanks in advance regards P

Hi, I need some advice in the following situation. I've recently completed a 3 month contract in a job where my direct line manager was short tempered, verbally abusive and would often shout, yell and bully me and all other fellow staff. During the contract I juggled numerous projects. One major project was completed and made substantial progress on the others. During the final week, my manager asked if I would consider a contract extension if it was offered, where I replied that I would consider this but did not confirm anything. Since I did not hear anything further, on the final day of my contract, a handover via email was given along with an update on the current state of all projects and left the company. I recently attended a 1st stage interview for another job after leaving the company, where the offer was conditional on a successful vetting outcome. Information requested was some standard documentation, including employment history over the last 5 years, along with details of my direct line managers during this time. During my 2nd stage interview, the interviewer informed me that my line managers have been contacted via telephone, where my previous manager (who was short tempered, verbally abusive and would often shout, yell and bully me and other fellow staff, where I would definitely not disclose by choice, but I could not supply false information on a vetting process) supplied a bad reference along with an inaccurate record of my duties. For example, I only worked on one project and made no progress on the other projects; I had left the company suddenly, etc. I believe I was not considered for this job that required the vetting process, based solely on the inaccurate information supplied by my previous line manager via the telephone. I have heard that I can request information about myself due to the data protection act? However this was a telephone conversation between my previous line manager and my new potential employer. I now plan to make a formal complaint the HR department, however given that this was a contract role, will anything happen? Also, can a legal case be made? Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.

Good morning, I really need some guidance and help on a matter that has been going on since March please. I work for a local council authority and back in March this year my manager tried to get me to significantly increase my evening overtime working hours without my consent and also without change to my contract even though this would have meant a substantial change to my working hours. When I realised that she was being underhanded, I said I wanted to speak to someone on the council to ensure what she was asking was correct. Needless to say this did not go down well and after many days or her threatening legal implications and much bullying to get me to do it, I declined once more. It was then she threatened to email the entire council (21 members) about me and tell them I had flatly refused to do as I was being told and to support her in her endeavours to 'manage' me and not to enter into any interaction with me again on the matter. She later sent the email. At this stage she also challenged me to file a formal grievance against her if I so wished. Having no personnel dept to go to I visited the CAB who advised that she was out of order and to file a formal grievance against her, she was not allowed to change me contractual hours etc without the consent of the council. This I did and what has enfolded can only be described as a farce! The grievance was held by 2 current councillors and found that my manager had not been bullying me and it must have all been in my mind and she was right to do what she did! I appealed the finding and some months later an independent panel found in her favour regarding the bullying as my colleagues refused to back me up. The panel did find that the way she had managed the situation was all wrong. They confirmed she had been wrong to send the email which undermined and embarassed me and the way the whole thing had been handled was disgraceful. The panel suggested the council must decide what the next step forward was but suggested some mediation could be offered to me and my line manager. A findings report was released for the council and she refused to let them see it. The original grievance was raised in March this year and during this time I have not been allowed to speak to a single soul at work about the matter. I have been completely isolated, without direction and it has really left me vulnerable. The final straw for me was when a new councillor came into the office 3 weeks ago demanding I go to mediation as the situation was now intolerable and embarrasing for the council. I said I wasn't sure I could attend as the situation had never been resolved (with the manager) after all she did she was never even given a slap on the wrists for her behaviour and now the whole thing has just been swept under the carpet. He demanded I go, if not, the council would have to take further action against me! I just can't cope with this any longer, it has been going on far too long as has caused me mental and physical stress, including heart palpitations. I went to see my doctor and she signed me off work for 2 weeks and then a further 1 month since my last visit with work related stress. (She did offer to sign me off back in May when I went to see her but I said I would wait and hope the situation would be resolved.) I have heard nothing from work at all in the last 3 weeks, but this morning received the attached letter quoting new deadlines and grievances etc etc. This is about to send me over the edge I swear, but what should I do, I'm off with stress and they send me more??? I don't know which was to turn. The letter is signed by a councillor on behalf of the staffing committee, but this newly formed committee (Sep 2014) is not a personnel/HR dept and I have no guidance at all. Do I really have to deal with this letter now, it seems like they are adding to my stress. I feel they have caused my current ill health due to their lack of duty and care towards me. I feel like walking out. I know that utimately I'll have to go as I no longer trust my manager or the council to stand up to her but in the meantime need some guidance, many thanks in advance to you all. I am happy to answer any questions you might have to clarify the situation.

I am confused about the new rules for interest on discrimination awards in the Employment Tribunal when the case spans the 29th July 2013 and the rate changed from 0.5% to 8.0%. I understand the bit that says interest is payable at 8.0% if the respondent does not settle within 14 days of the remedy judgement but am having difficulty with the rest. For example if a discriminationary event took place on 29th July 2010 and a liability hearing on 29th July 2012 found in favour of the claimant and a remedy hearing on 29th July 2014 awarded compensation for injury to feelings and psychiatric damage plus an award for loss of earnings what rate of interest is applicable? Does interest accrue at 0.5% up to 29th July 2013 then 8.0%? Can anyone give an example with numbers?

So this is an unsual one on behalf of my sisters boyfriend. Recently, he left his job because he found better employment elsewhere. The job he was in required a months notice. He advised his employers on the Thursday that he would be leaving on the Friday-not 4 weeks notice, but his new job started the following Monday, and quite frankly, its a fact of life that sometimes your new job means you cant work your notice. Unfortunate, but sometimes unavoidable. He told the secretary, who advised that the boss would not be happy, and indeed he was not. He told the person in question to "f**k off and leave now). So basically, he was instructed to leave the premesis by the boss, who had taken offence. I think my sisters boyfriend was quite expecting them to refuse to pay him, because he hadnt worked his notice. I also think he was prepared to accept that as the price of getting out of a job he didnt like, as he would be getting paid from his new job and wouldnt be any worse off for that month. However it hasnt worked out like that. The previous employer, who has never been the mostpleasant of employers, has sent him a letter demanding around £1000 for a previous incident. A response was written politely declining to pay this money, and since then a letter has been sent by the companies solicitor giving the person in question 7 days to pay, or else face court action. The issue is however, that the £2000 he is requesting, is related to an incident that happened during his employment that bares some detailed description. Prior to Christmas last year, my sisters boyfriend was using a piece of machinery that caused damage to company property. The company said to their employee that he should pay £600 (30% of the repair costs), and they would pay the rest, rather than going through the companies public liability insurance. The alternative was that the company would claim, and they would charge their employee the £2000 excess fee. Naively perhaps, he agreed to this, because it was just before Christmas and didnt want to rock the boat and possibly lose his job. He undoubtedly felt pressured into this and agreed arguably under duress. However, this strikes me as extremely dubious practice by the employer? Surely they have public liability insurance for precisely these kind of accidents, and surely they cannot justifiably demand their employees pay the excesses of their own insurance claims? Regardless, this is what they did, and the full £2000 is apparently what the former employer is rather vindictively demanding back, seemingly out of nothing but spiteful annoyance that he didnt work his notice. If this was to end up in a small claims court, would it stand up? Would my sisters boyfriend have a reasonable case to counter-claim against the company for pressuring him into paying even the £600 when they should have gone through their public liability insurance? How do you suggest he responds to this? Thanks

Hi there, I hope I am asking this question in the correct section (Admins please change if not) Can someone help me understand section 147 employment rights act 1996 ( in plain english) with regards to what it says about "initiating rights " to claiming redundancy. my partner's job role as been made redundant. There is an interim post on the table ( not very appealing) and also a "voluntary" redundancy package ( which is basically the minimum redundancy package) on the table. My partner is wanting to understand the mortgage protection cover she has in regards to the above "voluntary" redundancy package. The exclusion policy states.... you will not receive monthly benefit for unemployment in the following circumstances: unemployment caused by or resulting from: ii) any wilful act by you;or iii) resignation or voluntary unemployment- for the avoidance of doubt this shall exclude voluntary redundancy where you initiated your right to claim redundancy under section 147 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 time is of the essence as a decision will need to be made early next week.. and this information will have a bearing on the decison Many thanks in advance,

I have applied for a position with British Gas. They asked if I had any CCJ's or IVA's against me within the past 6 years. I said no. However I have progressed a bit further now and have to fill in forms for a full check by Experian, and the question is now worded differently - Have you ever received any County Court Judgments or Individual Voluntary Arrangements against you? My CCJ was over 6 years ago, and has dropped off of ALL of the credit reports I have paid for to check, so my question is - Do I have to tick yes? Thanks in Advance. Tony.

Please bear with me whilst I type this. It's been a long day with no sleep and feeling awful! I am currently employed with a company- I have been there for almost 3 years. For the last 4 months I have worked under a manager who I feel is trying his hardest to manage me out of the business. He is very critical of the work I do, to the point where I feel as though I can do no right. He palms a lot of his work onto me; he will start something and leave me to finish it because he 'has loads of things to do and you don't so it's better than you sitting doing nothing' I completely understand that as a manager you delegate but this includes starting a transaction with a customer and leaving me to finish it. I was diagnosed with depression in December, I did start taking tablets and after that, I was feeling better in myself and so I stopped taking the tablets but all of the stress of work is making me feel exactly how I felt 8 months ago. I spoke to my area manager today who said there was a full time position open at another store 28 miles away, but I don't drive so would be reliant on public transport and would also be getting up for work at 6 and not getting home until 8:30pm 5 days a week. I really don't know what my options are. If I hand my notice in, I'll have two weeks to find another job. If I was to speak to my dr about being signed off work because of my depression, I would worry too much about bills because of being on sick pay. And can I even quit my job whilst on sick? Is anyone able to give me advice on what to do? My only option, really, is to leave the company Appreciate any advice and help, Sorry for the rambles!

Ok, Today we found out that she has been awarded PIP standard for both Care and mobility. (we originally had high rate DLA mobility) Anyway I am sort of part time self employed and we found out whilst reading about PIP that we could be entitled to Carer's Allowance. If I have the information correct then carer's maximum earnings rate is currently £102 after allowances. My questions are [1] Would WTC (working tax credit) be taken into account when arriving at the amount I earn. [2] Would any allowance be made for materials and equipment I buy + NI / tax / etc that I pay whilst doing this self employment. [3] do they average out your income over say 1 month or is it purely a week by week calculation. I currently have a turnover in the region of £200 pw but after costs leaves me about £90-95. (and I do not put anything in for rent/utilities as yet) If someone can give me some advice or point me in the right direction for finding information about this, it would be appreciated.

Hi All, Basically its like this. I work at a military establishment with a woman who is starting to drive me nuts, basically. She has obsessive compulsive disorder - don't get me wrong, I fully respect she has the condition but she's making my working life that much more unbearable. She's even confiding in a work colleague that she went to see a psychologist because she said that I stress her out at work and to hear that second hand from a work colleague was not too pleasant to be honest. I have had a problem with pen chewing and putting things in my mouth, chewing my nails etc. as far back as I can remember and there seems to be no signs of it letting up - despite my best efforts, I find myself relapsing and every now and again, which has become a bit more occasional of late, find a pen or something else in my mouth, be it my fingers for biting my nails or whatever. However whenever I have been at a workstation using the keyboard or been somewhere else and this is usually some while after I have bitten my nails, for example, then she is there cleaning the desk area and I am made to feel like a dirty person - don't get me wrong - I fully respect her condition but I'm being made to feel that I can't even put my hands near my mouth or pick up a pen in fear she's going to put in a complaint and I think that I am going to be on the receiving end of something unpleasant and the fact that she has a mental illness will work against me. Furthermore, she is rather cold toward me in the office and I feel the tensity in the office is going to reach a peak before long. We have been open and honest about our feelings in the office as well. I can't help what I do at the end of the day and as I explained, since I've been a nipper, its been a recurring problem for me. Can someone offer me some advice as to what the best solution is as I will not take kindly to an official complaint from my supervisor as I feel I've done little wrong and am trying hard to work on a problem I've had difficulty in resolving in the past. Regards

Hi Guys, Last week I called the DWP to transfer from JSA to ESA. This morning, I received my ESA Customer statement. I am just a little confused about what to do now? In the Statement it states "We require evidence to support your claim. Please provide us with documents to support your claim" What documents do they mean? It doesn't state in the letter what they are. I hope this doesn't sound a stupid but do they mean sick note which I haven't provided has yet or my P45? Appreciate your help guys...Thanks Tom

Hi All, I have been working for a company since July 2013 in the same role ( Field service engineer ), driving all over the uk etc, the company start a young guy 23, iam young 45 with no health issue never been sick and not even taken holiday yet as been to busy with work. Since this guy started they have been training him, and last night a was pulled into the office and told not asked you will be now working in the office and the van needs to be given to the new starter next week. Which now means no transport will have to buy a car pay to get to work, they also state as i will be office staff no overtime etc . I worked out the loss of earns regarding overtime £5k loss of van fuel complete joke, can my employer do this so quickly without a notice period, all my letter of appointment stated was field engineer. i had my last meeting / appraisal which went very well no issue, i have asked for a copy as it was recorded yet they refuse. Do i have any rights or just find another job Just to make things even bitter, they asked me to attend a machine breakdown today, as the younger guy can not work today feel like refusing / saying no as its overtime Have anybody got any idea's, of my rights as someone did say an employer has to give 12 weeks notice to change a job role ???????????????????????????????? Cheers

Hi, I'm going through a claim with Barclaycard at the moment which dates back to the mid 90s. Ive sent back the original questionnaire but they have written back asking me for proof I was employed at the time. I wasn't, I was self employed so I think they may be trying to trip me up, also due to the length of time I have no proof either way. Could anyone advise me how I should proceed?

Hi, I was previously told by my adviser screenshots of my mailbox are required to prove that I am actively looking for works. For months there were never any problems with my job search. However now I am given some forms called Actively seeking employment (with questions like what did you do, when did you do it, job details etc) by the JC staff, she told me to fill it in and then show it to her tomorrow. I really do not know why this happened as she obviously cannot be bothered to explain it to me. It somehow makes me feel that she did not trust the evidences I provided at all (she's photocopied the screenshots I provided). I'd basically just like to ask if it is normal for the JC advisor to ask the claimant to fill out this form, when the claimant already provided screenshots of the mailbox?? I personally really do not know how to answer some of the questions listed. For examples: which JC did you use to look for jobs and on what date(s) did you visit/contact them? Can I simply say that I went to JC only to sign on??... Just noticed that there are questions like "why do you feel that the steps you have taken to find work in the week in question give you your best prospects of getting a job？ Why did you not take all those steps to find work that you had agreed to on your agreement? (WHAT?!!) etc" Very tricky questions I have to say!! Thanks.

Hi I would be grateful for some advice on an apprenticeship/employment issue although I'm not sure what forum to start on as the main issue is not with the (former) employer but the negligence of the apprenticeship provider, so please bear with me. Briefly: My daughter started a one year apprenticeship last Autumn. She struggled with the work and despite receiving no help whatsoever from the apprenticeship provider handed her coursework in by the deadlines. Her last attendance at the college was March with subsequent work all to be done online. There have been a trickle of emails over the past several months between my daughter and the provider and her last coursework was completed and handed in in JULY. This was acknowledged and she received emails after this date saying she would be set more work although this was not forthcoming despite her boss and her chasing. Yesterday she received a letter saying that she had been removed from the course in APRIL although no reason was given. Her boss contacted the provider today (yes - AUGUST!)to be told the staff dealing with the apprenticeship course had been let go through a restructure and the resulting lack of staff meant they could not deal with the remaining volume of students. They had therefore made an assessment (based on...?when...?) re which students would be likely to pass and chucked the others of the course, one of whom was my daughter without telling her or her employer. The issues are: - My daughter was immediately let go by her employer today as her contract states she must be on the course to work. - Neither she (nor her employer) have received written details of when or who made this assessment (given that the course tutors had been sacked in April!) Surely she is entitled to know the reasons for the cessation of her place on the course given they were still planning on setting her coursework in July! - She has been working and paid the apprenticeship wage for the past three months even though she has apparently not been on the course - should the company therefore be retrospectively paying the difference between that and the minimum wage for the past three months as she has effectively been a normal employee? - What redress do we have against the UTTER NEGLIGENCE of the apprenticeship provider in failing to inform either my daughter or her employer of the decision in April? Surely she is entitled to some form of written explanation if not some form of compensation - I reiterate, she handed coursework in at the start of July when the college was still in dialogue via email re ongoing work towards a qualification that they have now unceremoniously decided to deny her. At a days notice, she has found herself unemployed without anything to show for almost a years work and no right of appeal. Just dumped! I can't help but feel there must be something we can do as I feel the apprenticeship provider (who have quite frankly been a useless shower of idiots from day 1) should be accountable for their negligence. Can anyone start us off in the right direction please? Many thanks.

I hope you guys will be kind enough to help. I'm currently going through an employment tribunal. 1st the solicitors refused to accept that I have any disability. I provided evidence recently and today they wrote back saying they still refuse to concede my disability status. I sent them my summary Dyslexia report, confirmation letters from GP various medical problems and letters from the companies who help with my disability needs. I also stated some of the effects the above disabilities have had on me. This doesn't seem to be enough. I cannot advise how long I have been Dyslexic other to advise them it could assumed from birth. The other problems in excess a decade. This is what they are saying, I quote: ...The respondent does not concede the claimants alleged disability status. The claimant provided the respondent with information regarding his alleged medical conditions...the documentation supplied does not provide the respondent with sufficient evidence to make a concession in relation to the disability status. The limited documentation provided by the claimant indicates that he has, at certain times, suffered from various medical conditions… 1. They want sufficient evidence which confirms how long these alleged issues have lasted. 2. Provide evidence (medical or otherwise) effects on normal day to day activities including my ability to carry out these day-day activities. I advised I will provide them more evidence in due course once I have them. I already have provided some evidence to them. I am very surprised how difficult they are being. My previous employer has phenomenal resources and has hired an expensive leading law firm. They want this discussed at the CMD and also want various things struck out due to time bar but I wasn't in a position to file my claim then. Further, I have advised all these issues have lasted over a year and or expected to last for life. I am new to all this and self-representing which they are aware of. Many thanks, PS: I have asked for help from elsewhere.

Hello, For the past 6ish years I've been experiencing what you could call mental health issues (depression/anxiety like symptoms) due to various past and present reasons and have never felt the need or brought my self to seek help. I have finally decided to and I am slightly concerned on what the implications could be, (part of the reason I have never sought help). Basically I know that it is in my best interest to inform my employer once I have seen someone, but do I have to? They have quite an 'old school' approach to everything so I worry that they could just see me as a liability. I haven't had any time off and will not in the future due to this, i'll still be fully capable to fulfil my capacity at work. Is there anything to stop them from doing this? Bearing in mind that I will not be signed off probation for another 2 months. Also I never disclosed any of this during my interview as in my honest opinion I didn't think I had any problems.

Hi guys, im currently on probation at work, ive been off sick (stress)from work about 4-5 months, theirs going to be a review held sometime next week and my manager has advised the outcome could be end of contract(its a fixed term contract til end of next year) my query is i understand ive been off 4 months out of a 6 month probation, so it doesnt look good. i want some advice has anyone been through something similar because i was thinking of resigning i dont really want to be sacked. thanks