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13 May 2020 / Ian Smith
Issue: 7886 / Categories: Features , Employment , Covid-19
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Employment law brief: 13 May 2020

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As the shutters & umbrellas close at Carluccio’s, Ian Smith reflects on how the current emergency is starting to throw up case law on areas of potential conflict with standard tenets of employment law

In brief

  • Variation of contract and the government furloughing scheme.
  • Re-engagement if not the best candidate for the available job.
  • Duty to make reasonable adjustments and its application to electronic working.

The last month has seen further specific legislation to deal with the coronavirus emergency, in particular amending the rules on statutory sick pay again to deem very vulnerable people in preventive lockdown to be incapable of work and providing that furloughed employees on 80% of earnings can count their previous earnings if claiming statutory maternity pay, statutory paternity pay, statutory shared parental pay or statutory parental bereavement pay. This emergency is also starting to throw up case law on areas of potential conflict (or at least awkward overlaps) with standard tenets of employment law. The first case here is one such,

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A longer time limit for employment tribunal claims, new charity law thresholds, property tribunal recruitment and appellate guidance on small-claims costs feature in the latest Civil Way round-up

A recent High Court ruling could make issue estoppel considerably more complex in cross-border litigation, requiring parties to consider the foreign law governing the underlying claim
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Jonathan Fisher KC’s wide-ranging fraud report contains worthwhile proposals, but turning them into workable reform will require money, capacity and political will
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