Burnetts Bitesize Bulletin

Moving in the Direction of More Worker Protection

From 31st May 2021, the Employment Rights Act 1996 (Protection from Detriment in Health and Safety Cases) (Amendment) Order will come into force.

From that date, the rights under section 44(1)(d) and (e) of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 1996) (not to be subjected to a detriment in certain health and safety cases) will be extended to workers. Previously this right was only available to employees.

ACAS has updated its guidance on Working Safely During Coronavirus (COVID-19) to state that, from 31st May 2021, workers will have protection from experiencing any detriment if they reasonably believe being at work or doing certain tasks would put them in serious and imminent danger.

A worker will not be regarded as having been subjected to a detriment, in breach of the new law, if the date of the relevant act or failure to act, or the last of a series of similar relevant acts or failures to act, happened before 31st May 2021.

It is vital to understand whether your staff are employees, workers or self-employed independent contractors, as only employees and workers enjoy this new right. Coming soon, in our in-depth blog, we will explore the complex and ever-changing law governing employment status. Getting it right is key to understanding rights that attach to each category of individual to avoid the risk of creating claims. Following Uber, and other recent cases, there is a clear trend that tribunals are moving in the direction of more worker protection. Watch this space!

For more information on how this impacts on you or your business, please contact Burnetts’ Employment Law & HR team at hello@burnetts.co.uk or 01228552222.