Employment Law Review
Thompsons’ Employment Law Review is recognised as an authoritative source of comment and discussion from our trade union law specialists. Available to read here, and also via a weekly email bulletin, the Employment Law Review offers considerable insight into the latest issues affecting trade unions and their members.
Â
Latest Issues
Weekly Issue 920
- Does a worker have to request a right to be accompanied even if the employer does not tell them the purpose of the meeting?
- Government publishes Code of Practice on Electronic and Workplace Balloting ahead of 2026 reforms
- Government launches long awaited consultation on the current equal pay regime-
Weekly Issue 919
- Government publishes response to Consultation on Trade Union Access and lays draft Regulations and Code of Practice before Parliament
- Did a clause requiring an employee to pay back the training fee amount to a restraint of trade?
- Government launches review of the employment rights of unpaid carers almost three years after the Carers Leave Act was passed.
Weekly Issue 918
- How should the Acas uplift be applied in high value discrimination cases?
- The Government responds to the consultation on setting up the School Support Staff Negotiating Body (SSNB) and sets out its proposal as to who will be in scope.
Employment rights
Weekly Issue 920
Does a worker have to request a right to be accompanied even if the employer does not tell them the purpose of the meeting?
Employment Appeal Tribunal confirms the right to be accompanied at a disciplinary hearing only arises when a worker makes a request, highlighting a key gap in workplace protections under section 10 of the Employment Relations Act 1999.
Trade union information
Weekly Issue 920
Government publishes Code of Practice on Electronic and Workplace Balloting ahead of 2026 reforms
Learn about the new Code of Practice on Electronic and Workplace Balloting, introducing e-balloting for trade unions from 25 August 2026.
Equality, discrimination and harassment
Weekly Issue 920
Government launches long awaited consultation on the current equal pay regime-
The Government has launched a consultation on equal pay reforms, including race and disability pay discrimination, transparency and enforcement.
Employment rights
Weekly Issue 920
Enforcing holiday pay
Learn how the Employment Rights Act 2025 reforms holiday pay, employer record-keeping duties and new enforcement powers from 2027.
Trade union information
Weekly Issue 919
Government publishes response to Consultation on Trade Union Access and lays draft Regulations and Code of Practice before Parliament
Discover how the Government’s updated trade union workplace access code strengthens workers’ rights, improves union access and supports fair representation at work.
Employment rights
Weekly Issue 919
Did a clause requiring an employee to pay back the training fee amount to a restraint of trade?
The Court of Appeal has ruled that a training repayment clause requiring an employee to repay £8,108 on leaving employment was an unenforceable restraint of trade, with important implications for employers and trade unions.
Employment rights
Weekly Issue 919
Government launches review of the employment rights of unpaid carers almost three years after the Carers Leave Act was passed.
The government has launched a consultation on carers’ leave and support for parents of seriously ill children, exploring potential reforms including paid carers’ leave, extended leave entitlements and stronger workplace rights.
Unfair dismissal
Weekly Issue 918
How should the Acas uplift be applied in high value discrimination cases?
Employment Appeal Tribunal confirms that tribunals may consider the overall size of a compensation award when applying an Acas uplift and have discretion in addressing tax gross-up issues in unfair dismissal and disability discrimination claims.
Employment rights
Weekly Issue 918
The Government responds to the consultation on setting up the School Support Staff Negotiating Body (SSNB) and sets out its proposal as to who will be in scope.
The Government has confirmed the scope of the new School Support Staff Negotiating Body (SSSNB), covering pay, terms and conditions for school support staff in England, while excluding agency workers from sector-wide bargaining arrangements.
Personal Injury
Weekly Issue 917
Burger v Risk Solutions BG Ltd & JD Wetherspoon plc – Is a pub operator vicariously liable for the actions of door staff supplied by an independent security contractor?
A Court of Appeal ruling on vicarious liability, confirming that businesses are not usually responsible for the actions of workers supplied by an independent contractor unless the relationship closely resembles employment.
Industrial Action
Weekly Issue 917
Make Work Pay: draft code of practice on electronic and workplace balloting for statutory union ballots
The government’s consultation on a draft Code of Practice for electronic and workplace trade union ballots could modernise statutory voting processes and increase member participation in industrial action and union elections.
Employment rights
Weekly Issue 916
Leedham v Royal Mail Group Limited - Does a digital online payslip comply with the legal duty on employers to provide a written payslip?
The EAT has ruled that digital-only payslips can comply with the Employment Rights Act 1996. Learn what Leedham v Royal Mail means for employers and the legal risks of electronic pay statements.