C for Contract Variations

Kiera Lee, writes:

1. Introduction

The recent case of Bateman and others v Asda Stores Limited provided that ‘Asda’, the well known supermarket, was entitled to unilaterally impose a change to pay and working conditions because the terms of employees’ contracts of employment were wide enough to allow them to do so.

This case is particularly important in the current climate of pay cuts and other tactics adopted by employers trying to avoid redundancies. Birmingham City Council will not need to be convinced of the importance of getting it right. They have just announced planned flexible working for up to 26,000 employees. The union is already planning opposition to the changes and the Council