First Tuesday Q&A

The claimant was dismissed by reason of gross misconduct and in particular.

How far Back can an NI Employee Claim for Underpayments of Holiday Pay?

Posted in: First Tuesday Q&A NI on 07/11/2023 On 4 October 2023, the UK Supreme Court (the “UKSC”) delivered its much-anticipated judgment in the case of the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland and another (PSNI / respondents) v Agnew and Others (claimants) [2023] UKSC 33, finding that employees can claim for any underpay...
This article is listed under the following topics:
Pay Leave

Are Employees Automatically Entitled to Bank and Public Holidays?

Posted in: First Tuesday Q&A NI on 06/09/2023 In Northern Ireland, there are ten bank and public holidays and employees are not automatically entitled bank and public holidays. There is no statutory right for employees to have these days off. In fact, employers may choose to allow employees to take paid leave on bank and public holidays. Emplo...
This article is listed under the following topics:
Leave

How much Leave are Employees Entitled to Annually?

Posted in: First Tuesday Q&A NI on 04/07/2023 With the summer holidays beginning, employers can expect the next few months to be filled with annual leave requests from their employees. It is therefore important for employers to refresh their understanding regarding the annual leave entitlements afforded to their employees. The Working Time Reg...
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Leave

Whilst on Maternity Leave, are there any Consequences for an Employee taking more than 10 Keeping in Touch (KIT) Days?

Posted in: First Tuesday Q&A NI on 02/05/2023 All pregnant employees are legally entitled to take up to 52 weeks’ statutory maternity leave, made up of 26 weeks’ Ordinary Maternity Leave and 26 week’s Additional Maternity Leave, provided it is a single continuous period of leave. Employers can appreciate that this is a significant period of ti...
This article is listed under the following topics:
Contracts of Employment Policies and Procedures Leave Family Friendly Rights

What are an Employee’s Rights when they Suffer the Death of a Child?

Posted in: First Tuesday Q&A NI on 10/03/2023 An employee is entitled to take time off work if they have a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy or if their child dies before turning 18. Under the Parental Bereavement (Leave and Pay) Act (Northern Ireland) 2022, an employee is entitled to two weeks’ parental bereavement leave regardless of th...
This article is listed under the following topics:
Absence and Sickness Leave Family Friendly Rights Wellbeing

If a woman takes shared parental leave (SPL), is she entitled to return to the same job when she returns to work between discontinuous blocks of leave?

Posted in: First Tuesday Q&A NI on 10/03/2023 Whilst shared parental leave (SPL) must be taken in complete weeks, it can be taken as one continuous period or in discontinuous periods. When returning to work after a period of SPL (or any combination of SPL, Statutory Maternity Leave or Statutory Adoption Leave) of 26 weeks or less, the employee...
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Leave

Are employees Entitled to take time off for IVF appointments?

Posted in: First Tuesday Q&A NI on 10/03/2023 There is currently no specific statutory right to time off for IVF treatment, but employees can still ask you for time off. If this cannot be accommodated in the circumstances, you might wish to offer the employee the option of taking annual leave instead to attend such appointments. The Equality C...
This article is listed under the following topics:
Policies and Procedures Leave Family Friendly Rights

Harpur Trust v Brazel Case – Implications for Employers

Posted in: First Tuesday Q&A NI on 01/11/2022 In light of the judgment in Harpur Trust v Brazel, how do you calculate holiday pay for workers on permanent contracts with no regular working hours (i.e. zero-hours)? The UK Supreme Court in Harpur Trust v Brazel [2022] UKSC 21 removed the widely accepted method of calculating holiday pay in a una...
This article is listed under the following topics:
Contracts of Employment Leave

What is 'safe leave’ and what does this mean for employees who have experienced domestic abuse?

Posted in: First Tuesday Q&A NI on 03/05/2022 Northern Ireland has become the first jurisdiction in the United Kingdom to provide support to victims of domestic abuse at work. Legislation has been introduced and is awaiting Royal Assent to provide employees who are victims of domestic abuse with the right of up to ten days of paid leave a year...
This article is listed under the following topics:
Policies and Procedures Leave

What notice should employees give in order to take parental bereavement leave?

Posted in: First Tuesday Q&A NI on 01/03/2022 The rules regarding notification will be set out in the forthcoming regulations. However, by way of indication, we expect that that new rules will largely correspond with those applicable in Great Britain. In order to take parental bereavement leave in Great Britain, employees must give the employe...
This article is listed under the following topics:
Absence and Sickness Policies and Procedures Pay Leave Family Friendly Rights