header-logo header-logo

07 June 2007 / David Malamatenios
Issue: 7276 / Categories: Features , Employment
printer mail-detail

Agents of change

Recent EAT decisions have accelerated changes to the legal status of agency workers, says David Malamatenios

You might be excused for having a feeling of déjà vu when first reading this article, because this is the latest in a series of articles which attempt to make sense of the employment status of agency workers. In that case, you might fairly ask, what is the point of this article? Well, the situation has at last started to become clearer (for employers at least) as a consequence of two recent decisions of the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) in Astbury v Gist [2007] All ER (D) 480 (Mar) and Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Trust v Kulubowila [2007] All ER (D) 496 (Mar), both of which were published on 28 March 2007.

AGENCY WORKERS

There is no point telling you what’s new without first telling you what’s old and how the law has come to be so confused on this issue.
The problem of agency workers is an old one. An agency worker works under a tri-partite

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

DAC Beachcroft—Paul Brehony

DAC Beachcroft—Paul Brehony

Commercial disputes practice expands with partner hire in London

Ward Hadaway—Maria Coster

Ward Hadaway—Maria Coster

Partner appointed to lead family and matrimonial department in Leeds

Slater Heelis—Helen Marsh

Slater Heelis—Helen Marsh

Commercial property team expands in Manchester with partner appointment

NEWS
Financial protections for domestic abuse victims would be strengthened and cohabiting couples be given inheritance and separation rights, under historic government proposals
Doctors and nurses could be sued for mistakes made by the artificial intelligence (AI) equipment they use to treat patients, researchers have warned
The law sector has been chosen as the testing ground for the government’s AI Growth Labs—speeding up development, testing and regulatory compliance so software can be market-ready more quickly
A range of options beyond burial, cremation and burial at sea could become legally available, under Law Commission recommendations
Artificial intelligence (AI) legal assistants will be deployed to cut delays in the Crown Court, ministers have announced
back-to-top-scroll