The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has issued new guidance on the use of confidentiality agreements (often referred to interchangeably as “non-disclosure agreements” “NDAs”, “gagging clauses” or “confidentiality clauses”) in discrimination cases. The stated aim of the guidance is to “clarify the law on confidentiality agreements in employment and to set out good practice … Continue Reading
Last week we issued an alert about the UK government’s plans to introduce new legislation to tackle alleged misuse of confidentiality clauses in employment contracts and settlement agreements. The consultation has been launched primarily in response to concerns that some employers are using confidentiality clauses (sometimes referred to as “non-disclosure agreements”) to “gag” victims of … Continue Reading
Apparently, said the Court of Appeal, the unlawful retention and circulation of confidential material by a union representative “was not a sufficient departure from good industrial relations practice” to justify his dismissal, a conclusion which initially seems little short of perverse, let alone an alarming comment on the state of industrial relations in the UK’s … Continue Reading
News out this week that a committee of MPs is to look into workplace harassment, and in particular the use of confidentiality wording in settlement agreements arising from harassment allegations. Critics allege, says the BBC New Online, that such clauses are “abused by employers and legal experts to cover up wrongdoing” and used to “buy … Continue Reading
A new manager arrives in the department. He is notably unburdened by people skills. Employees begin to leave. The protagonist of this story (let us call her Sarah) does not actually get it in the neck from Bad Boss very much, but she can see his actions having a toxic effect on the team. She … Continue Reading
“The system will not work if people think they can ignore court orders and destroy evidence. Those who so can expect terms of imprisonment.” Mr Dadi was an employee of OCS, an aviation cleaning contractor working at Heathrow for (amongst others) British Airways. OCS lost the British Airways contract to a competing firm Omni Serv … Continue Reading
Proponents of workplace mediation often stress its confidential and voluntary nature and the ability to fail to agree without there necessarily being any adverse consequences. It is all about listening and rapport and trust, say those commentaries, making the whole process sound as cuddly and unthreatening as your favourite puppy. In fact, there are a … Continue Reading
“We want to ensure that when used, covenants are justified, well-constructed, targeted and reasonable. There needs to be a balance which ensures the employer can protect its business interests when staff move on and the worker is not unfairly disadvantaged when they (SIC) decide to leave or start up their own business“. So says the … Continue Reading
Last month the Government was hard at work, looking at ways to drive forward the UK economy. What was it doing, I hear you ask…was it Brexit? Was it the EU-US Free Trade Agreement? A potential saviour for the Port Talbot steelworks? British Home Stores? In a word, no. Dissatisfied with the UK placing second … Continue Reading
Here is a question for you – do you know what an agronomist is? Anybody? Well, he/she applies the science and technology of producing and using plants for such purposes as food, fuel, and soil management. Well done if you got that. If not, you heard it first at the Employment Law Worldview blog. I … Continue Reading
One of the most litigated but least legislated aspects of the UK employment relationship is the concept of the trade secret. Over the years there have been many cases in senior Courts across the UK, but each is to a large extent dependant on its own facts. The key questions of exactly what is and … Continue Reading
So there it is – in a tremendous boost for transatlantic relations, the European Court of Justice has decided that America is not to be trusted with the personal data of EU residents. That is not exactly the way the decision is phrased, of course, which (so far as relevant to UK HR) is more … Continue Reading
Taking a stand against jilted ex-lovers, Western Australia has joined the UK and USA to fight the war on ‘revenge porn’. Revenge porn occurs when the (either actually or imminently) ex-partner posts nude or intimate pictures or videos online without consent. In the absence of appropriate laws, perpetrators have often escaped liability. In response, countries … Continue Reading
This is the next in our re-run of a series of posts on employment mediations. In Part 1 of this series I referred to some of the basic principles underlying a successful mediation. But why should the parties consider themselves bound by them? This is where the formal mediation agreement comes in. CEDR mediators will … Continue Reading
The European Commission has published proposals to reform trade secrets law across Europe, in an effort to make it easier for national courts to deal with employees and former employees unlawfully taking, using and profiting from confidential business information. The reforms are set out in a new EU Directive. More detail on the content of … Continue Reading
Thomson v Apem (High Court) “Can you stop 18 employees leaving for a competitor” A recent High Court case (Thomson Ecology Limited & Others v Apem Limited, Hall & Others) serves as a useful reminder to employers about the importance of ensuring that you have appropriate restrictive covenants and confidentiality clauses in place for key … Continue Reading
A sharp little lesson in the Metro yesterday in relation to the practical value of confidentiality clauses in Tribunal settlement agreements. Readers of more advanced years will perhaps recall the settlement of an Employment Tribunal claim brought by one of Princess Di’s staff against some part of the Royal Household many years ago. The prospect … Continue Reading
