LEGISLATION

More Money for Unsecured Creditors following change to Insolvency Laws

Section 251 Enterprise Act 2002 came into effect on 15 September 2003 abolishing the preferential claims of the Inland Revenue and Customs and Excise in relation to VAT and unpaid taxes when a company goes into insolvency. As such, it will help unsecured creditors recover a proportion of the debts owed to them by insolvent companies, which would previously have been recovered by the Revenue.

The new provisions should also help employees who, following insolvency, are often owed money in the form of unsecured debts. Employees will therefore be able to recover a greater part of what is owed to them than was formerly the case.

National Minimum Wage Regulations 1999 (Amendment) Regulations

These Regulations have now been published and will take effect from 1 October 2003. They raise the National Minimum Wage to £4.50 generally and to £3.80 for 18-21 year old workers. They also provide that accommodation provided by the employer as part of wages can only be as a fixed amount of £3.50 per day.

ACAS Pilot Mediation Scheme

ACAS has launched a pilot mediation scheme, which aims to help employers and employees resolve their problems. Assistance is available by telephone, or by ACAS representatives visiting the workplace and is free. The aim is to visit the workplace within 5 working days of a request, and for formal mediations within 10 days of receiving an agreed request from both employer and employee. Whilst being piloted, this scheme will only be available to certain regional areas or those employers with fewer than 50 employees.

For more information, visit: http://www.acas.org.uk/mediation/home.htm

Flexible Working - DTI Guidance on Teleworkers

The DTI has published a concise guidance on teleworkers. This is a helpful review of many issues that will arise in employing workers who spend all or a substantial part of their time working at home. A copy of the guidance can be found at: www.dti.gov.uk/er/individual/telework.pdf

DRC Consultation on New Codes

The government is in the process of implementing an EC Directive, which will establish a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation. The Disability Rights Commission (“DRC”) is issuing two new draft codes of practice to assist with the application and interpretation of the new law. These are the DDA Employment and Occupation Code and the DDA Trade Organisations and Qualifications Bodies Code, and they can be found on the DRC’s website at: http://www.drc.org.uk/campaigns/consultation.asp

Road Transport and Working Time

The Department for Transport has published a consultation paper on new working time proposals for the road transport sector. These proposals aim to implement the EC Road Transport Directive into UK law by 23 March 2005.

To view fuller details, please visit: http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_freight/documents/pdf/dft_freight_pdf_024812.pdf

TUC Launches Legal Challenge on Sexual Orientation Rules

The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003 contain a defence which will allow discrimination if being of a particular sexual orientation is a genuine occupational requirement and it is proportionate to apply that requirement. There is a more specific defence in relation to organised religion, in which an employer may apply a requirement as to sexual orientation so as to avoid conflicting with the strongly held religious convictions of a significant number of the religion’s followers. This latter defence was not in the European Directive but was introduced into UK legislation by the Government, and as such the TUC are reviewing the Government’s powers to introduce this additional element.

The legality of “Regulation 25” will also be queried with the argument that it allows pension schemes to continue to discriminate in favour of married people. The argument presented is that, because gay people cannot marry their partners, this amounts to indirect discrimination.

ACAS Codes on Religious and Sexual Orientation Discrimination On 1 and 2 December 2003, the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations and the Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003 come into force respectively. It will thereafter be unlawful to discriminate against workers because of their religion, belief or sexual orientation.

ACAS have brought out two new sets of draft guidance - "Religion Belief and the Workplace" and “Sexual Orientation and the Workplace”. The guides can be viewed at:

http://www.acas.org.uk/publications/pdf/Art13%20R&B.pdf

and:

http://www.acas.org.uk/publications/pdf/Art13%20SO.pdf