EMPLOYMENT LAW JULY/AUGUST 2019
Employment law SOS
This month, our legal expert explores the law around purchasing
workwear, unsanitary working conditions leading to a hospital
stay and maternity pay entitlement following a miscarriage
BY HELEN HUGHES, LEGAL DIRECTOR, SHAKESPEARE MARTINEAU www.shma.co.uk
Following a recent company
takeover, we have had
to update our corporate
branding – including the
workwear worn by operatives
on the shopfloor. As part of
the takeover, all staff are now
responsible for buying their
own clothing: a branded polo
shirt, smart trousers and
‘sensible’ footwear. While we
pay well for our area, many
of our staff are saying they
cannot afford the £75 or so
we estimate this will cost.
Are there laws around buying
workwear, and what to do if
you can’t afford it?
While there is no specific law
requiring employees to buy
their own workwear, employers
may sometimes choose to
incorporate this as a term in
employment contracts. If this
is done – and there is evidence
that the employee has agreed
to this – you can insist that
your staff purchase their own
uniforms, regardless of their
financial position.
In the retail sector, where
this practice is common,
employees often receive a
discount when purchasing
their workwear, with the total
cost deducted from their
salary. However, this situation
risks bringing their pay below
the thresholds for National
Minimum Wage (NMW) and
National Living Wage (NLW).
It’s not clear why your
company’s uniform guidelines
are so specific, for example,
the need for employees to have
‘sensible’ footwear appears
to be more of a health and
safety issue than a branding
requirement. Having more
relaxed guidelines around dress
codes would certainly make
compliance with NMW laws
more straightforward. If caught
breaking the rules, organisations
risk being brought in front of
the Employment Tribunal, as
well as facing significant fines
from HMRC.
Depending on when your
company’s new rules came
into force, the sudden change
of policy around employee
workwear suggests that a breach
of Transfer of Undertakings
(Protection of Employment)
Regulations (TUPE) may
have occurred. There are
strict rules around changing
the terms and conditions of
employment due to a takeover.
The new requirement for staff
while I was on my sickbed,
four or five of my colleagues
at a local factory also came
down with the same illness.
We’re now convinced that the
conditions in the toilets and
the communal areas at the
plant are unsanitary and have
caused us to become sick. If
we can prove it, what can we
do to take the company to
task over the lost time and
distress caused?
I’m sorry to hear that you’ve
been so unwell and I hope you
are feeling a lot better now. It’s
clear that a possible health and
safety breach has occurred here,
which could warrant you taking
action against your employer. If
you take this route, employment
legislation is in place to
protect you from any potential
retribution taken against you
as a result of your claims.
An essential first step in the
process is to talk to all other
affected employees. When
raising a grievance with your
employer or union, they will
need to be provided with proof
of your illness, so it’s important
to gather together as much
medical evidence as possible.
It’s also worth considering
your primary motivation for
bringing action against your
employer, which is normally
one of two key reasons. Firstly,
do you have ongoing concerns
about the safety of your working
environment, or a fear that a
similar incident might occur in
the future? If so, it is probably
wise to report the incident to
the Health and Safety Executive.
After undertaking a thorough
workplace audit, they should be
able to provide a list of practical
steps for your employer to
follow in order to improve
to purchase their own uniform
may well be invalid, and
employees could be entitled to
raise a collective grievance.
Before holding further
communications with
staff, ensuring a thorough
understanding of TUPE laws,
and how your current policies
impact compliance with NMW
legislation, will be essential
in avoiding costly HMRC
sanctions, legal claims and
reputational damage.
Recently, I spent a week
in hospital with a nasty
bout of gastroenteritis,
which I initially put down
to a dodgy meal. However,
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