Insights & News
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ASA Chief Executive Guy Parker in conversation Fireside chat highlights
03 December 2021On Tuesday afternoon, Brinsley Dresden, Partner and Head of our Advertising & Marketing Sector Focus Group, welcomed Guy Parker, Chief Executive of the Advertising Standards Agency (“ASA”), for their second annual fireside chat to discuss how the ASA is facing up to some of the big issues in the advertising and marketing industry.
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Using the NHS Covid pass for staff
02 December 2021The NHS Covid pass offers businesses an easy way of discovering an individual’s Covid status but there are legal issues to consider first. This insight considers the key data protection and equalities issues raised by using the pass for staff.
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Directors and their general duties
Inbrief
02 December 2021English law imposes on company directors high standards of behaviour and they must put the interests of the company before their own. Their duties are derived from both statute and case law. In addition to general duties, there are extensive specific duties. This is an introductory guide to those general duties.
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Acas guidance sounds a note of caution to employers on ‘fire and rehire’
02 December 2021New guidance from Acas says that employers should “think carefully” before taking the “extreme step” of using fire and rehire practices to change their employees’ terms and conditions. Acas stresses the importance of employers first exploring all other options and consulting their employees in a genuine and meaningful way. The guidance was produced at the government’s request, but it neither changes current law nor has any formal legal status.
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Coronavirus vaccination - FAQs for employers
02 December 2021Employers are facing many difficult and untested employment law issues in light of the UK’s Covid-19 vaccination programme. These FAQs cover whether an employer can make vaccination compulsory for its employees, alternatives to a mandatory requirement, time off for vaccine appointments, dealing with vaccine objectors, data privacy concerns and other issues.
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Workforce testing – FAQs for employers
02 December 2021Testing for Covid-19 is an option for employers hoping to encourage employees to return to the workplace, control the spread of the virus and increase customer and staff confidence. These FAQs cover the legal issues and considerations that employers should take on board when considering or using a testing programme.
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New judgment further restricts employers’ scope for responding to industrial action
01 December 2021The Employment Appeal Tribunal recently interpreted the law on detrimental treatment for trade union activities in a way that limits the scope for employers to respond to industrial action. In another decision, it has now decided that participating staff may also bring claims under separate blacklisting regulations, which entitle employees to potentially far greater compensation in the form of an automatic minimum award of £5,000.
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Understanding the growing differences between employment laws in Great Britain and Northern Ireland: comparative employment law table
30 November 2021Over recent years, employment law in Great Britain (GB) and Northern Ireland (NI) has increasingly diverged. This is due to NI employment law largely remaining static, while there have been continuing significant changes in GB. Employers should be mindful of the differences when engaging staff in both jurisdictions.
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The policy and legislation changes to expect this winter: Sara Hanrahan comments for Planning Magazine
29 November 2021With levelling-up a key government policy, the start of 2022 is set to hot up with the government setting out its response to feedback on the planning white paper
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Six countries added to COVID-19 red list for England
26 November 2021South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia and Zimbabwe have been added to the COVID-19 travel red list for England from midday GMT on Friday 26 November 2021.
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The policy and legislation changes to expect this winter: Sara Hanrahan comments for Planning Magazine
Press
26 November 2021With levelling-up a key government policy, the start of 2022 is set to hot up with the government setting out its response to feedback on the planning white paper.
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The Hospitality Industry’s Covid Balancing Act: Anna Sella writes for CLH News
26 November 2021From 19 July 2021 (dubbed 'Freedom Day' by some), the Government effectively transferred the responsibility for deciding what amounts to appropriate measures to keep workers and customers safe into individual businesses. And there is no one-size-fits-all answer - even businesses in the same sector will need to take into account very different considerations.
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Class pay gap reporting: a social mobility tool for employers?
24 November 2021There’s a growing trend in employment law towards using transparency as a method of driving change. Whilst mandatory class pay gap reporting might not be imminent, this article considers the drivers behind an increasing number of organisations reporting voluntarily in this area as a measure to address social mobility disadvantage in the workplace and identifies the legal and practical issues employers need to consider.
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Lewis Silkin improves ranking in Social Mobility Employer Index 2021 and is again recognised as a Top 75 employer
Press Release
24 November 2021For the second year running, Lewis Silkin has again been recognised as a Top 75 employer in the Social Mobility Employer Index, rising from 59th (out of 119) to 34th (out of 203).
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What Gove's appearance in front of MPs tells us about his priorities for changing the planning system: Sara Hanrahan comments for Planning Magazine
Press
22 November 2021The housing secretary revealed his latest thinking on planning changes when he appeared before MPs last week, including giving communities a greater say over new development and examining the impact of permitted development.
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A new report for the Future of Work Hub: “Eight drivers of change – the future of work” (By James Davies, Lewis Silkin LLP)
22 November 2021The last few years have marked a unique period of turbulence and uncertainty. The landscape of the world of work is changing as the world adjusts to the lasting effects of the pandemic alongside longer-term, large-scale drivers of change.
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What we can learn from contrasting ASA decisions on ‘green’ almond milk ads: Brinsley Dresden writes for The Grocer
19 November 2021Environmental claims should be based on an analysis of the full lifecycle of a product, including production, transportation, and retail.
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Government unveils scheme for binding arbitration in relation to COVID related rent arrears
17 November 2021On 9 November 2021 the government published its proposals regarding a new Code of Practice together with draft legislation, known as the Commercial Rent (Coronavirus) Bill, to deal with arrears accumulated during the Covid pandemic period.
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UK firms grapple with ethnicity pay gap reporting: Tom Heys comments for The Financial Times
Press
17 November 2021A growing chorus of voices in the City says the data is vital for boosting representation and should be mandatory.
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What can we expect from the new Global Business Mobility route?
17 November 2021The Home Office is due to launch the new Global Business Mobility route in Spring 2022. Last month the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) gave recommendations on certain aspects of the route, and these are currently under consideration by the Home Office. In this article we look at what we do (and don’t) know about the likely shape of the new category.