Weekly Issue 12 - July 1997

Sacked Before She Started

An employee whose contract is ended before starting work can bring a claim for breach of contract the Employment Appeal tribunal has ruled.

Electricity pensions hopes dashed

A case for a chief executive whose annual salary was £490,000 may appear to have little relevance for trade union members - but the principles applied to calculate compensation can be put to wider use.

Maternity: ill health and return to work following maternity leave

It is a sad fact that many women suffer from ill health following child birth.

Part-time workers' rights

A new European directive on part-time working has been approved by the European Social Partners (the European TUC and the European equivalent of the CBI) under the procedure allowed for by the Social chapter.

Fixed-term contracts - waiver clauses

The Employment Appeal Tribunal has dealt a blow to the growing culture of using fixed term contracts to deprive employees of unfair dismissal rights, but the news on redundancy payments is not so good.