In a decision that will cheer even the most hardened HR Manager or business owner, the Employment Appeal Tribunal has held in Lyons v Mitie Security Ltd that annual leave not taken close to the end of the leave year can be lost by an employee, as long as the employer has made provision to deny unreasonable requests for leave within its procedures and conditions.

After many years of seeing them rise, the Employment Rights (Revision of Limits) Order 2009 came into force on 1 February 2010, bringing reductions in several limits applying to tribunal awards and other amounts payable under employment legislation. Where an event which results in an award or payment occurs on or after 1 February 2010, the new limits will apply. More information can be found on www.acas.org.uk

Following consultation in 2009, The Employment Relations Act 1999 (Blacklists) Regulations 2010 will soon be brought into force. This means that the compilation, distribution and use of lists by employers and employment agencies in order to facilitate discrimination against trade union members and activists will be prohibited. The Final Impact Assessment of January 2010 confirmed that the government plan to implement these regulations “at the earliest opportunity”.

by Alex Lyttle
alex.lyttle@wards.uk.com

The European Court of Justice has recently decided that employees who are on sick leave will still accrue the right to paid holiday leave. This applies whether they are on long term or short term sick leave. In the case they considered, an employee was injured some weeks before a pre-booked holiday. He was allowed to cancel the annual leave he had booked, and take the time off as sickness absence. That may not seem too unreasonable in the circumstances. The wider ramifications of the decision have caused a lot of concern with employers.