This week’s news in brief
Dismissal damages
The Court of Appeal has ruled that an employee may be able to claim damages
for dismissal and to make a separate claim for the manner of the dismissal.
Sarah Lamont, partner at employment law specialists Bevan Ashford, explains the
implications of the ruling for employers in our legal opinion this week.
Pay offer rejected
Transport and General Workers’ Union members at MG Rover, Longbridge, have
voted to reject a pay offer from the company in a consultative ballot.
Eighty-one per cent of members rejected the offer, and unions at MG Rover will
now apply for a postal ballot of members on industrial action. www.tgwu.org.uk
Asda to keep temps
Supermarket group Asda has offered permanent jobs to 2,000 of the Christmas
temps it employed last year. The temps joined Asda on three-month contracts
last September, but a strong start to 2003 has led to a need for more staff. www.asda.co.uk
Higher limit on awards
New limits on awards for unfair dismissal and redundancy payments have been
introduced in line with inflation. The higher limits will affect statutory
redundancy payments; the basic and compensatory awards for unfair dismissal;
the limits on guarantee payments and the minimum basic award for unfair
dismissal in health & safety cases. www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk
Payouts for Tesco staff
Nearly 40,000 Tesco staff are to share £68m as two of the company’s Save As
You Earn (SAYE) schemes mature. Staff, including checkout assistants, dotcom
delivery drivers and managers, who have been saving between £5 and £250 a month
for three or five years, received their payouts last week. www.tesco.com
