In what is being referred to as one of the largest legislative processes ever undertaken, the Great Repeal Bill, now known as the European Union Withdrawal Bill, was published on 13 July. The Bill, which has received a mixed response, will allow all existing EU legislation to be converted into domestic UK law to ensure a smooth transition on the day the UK leaves the EU. The UK parliament will then have the power to ‘amend, repeal and improve’ the laws as necessary. Thousands of laws ranging from workers’ rights to the environment will ... Continue reading

A 57-year-old man’s employer has been fined £1m after an oxygen pipe exploded in front of him. The Sheffield Forgemasters Engineering Limited (SFEL) worker suffered life-changing injuries after the explosion on 9 August 2013. Sheffield Crown Court heard that work was carried out by an in-house contractor to fit a valve to an oxygen pipe that carried pure oxygen. The worker was carrying out checks when he heard hissing from the valve. While investigating the noise, the pipe and valve erupted in flames. The injured person suffered severe th... Continue reading

A bus driver who ran a red light has won his case for unfair dismissal, after a judge ruled that a “five second” lapse in judgement should not discount more than 30 years of good service. Abdul Jabbar had worked for National Express West Midlands and its predecessors for 37 years before he was fired for driving through a red traffic light on a major road in the West Midlands town of Dudley. Although the 59-year-old driver did not deny that he had skipped the lights, he claimed the company’s decision to sack him was too harsh and was inc... Continue reading

Employers are being warned not to fall for a scam involving the sale of fake certificates that suggest they do not have workplace pension duties. The Pensions Regulator (TPR) is investigating at least one company offering what it describes as 'Certificates of Auto Enrolment Exemption' to employers. A number of employers have been persuaded to pay for the documents, with the scammers claiming the paperwork means the holders do not have any workplace pension duties. While employers have been charged £58 for the certificates, the documents are... Continue reading

Line managers who supervise remote or distributed workers should work closely with occupational safety and health (OSH) practitioners to control the risks they face, a new study recommends. Nearly half of all workers in Western Europe (129.5 million) spend at least some time working away from a main office or location, a number that seems to be increasing. With limited regular face-to-face contact, problems accessing safety and health resources, and having more than one place of work – where risks might be harder to predict and control – ... Continue reading