Other Employment

Many Businesses and individuals in the UK have working relationships with each other which will not be regarded as an Employer / Employee relationship as defined within the Employment Rights Act 1996. This means that certain obligations and rights such as unfair dismissal and the right to a redundancy payment do not apply but other aspects of employment legislation do apply in certain circumstances. It is very important not to overlook this!

These types of workers are often referred to as “atypical” and would include for example people such contractors, agency workers, home–workers, self employed, commercial agents, Police and Armed forces, volunteers, people working outside of the UK for UK companies, religious officers, on-demand workers, seasonal workers and ministers / officers of religion.

It is important to note, that even if it is agreed in writing that there is not to be an employer / employee relationship that is not conclusive. It is how the relationship works in practice and what the obligations of the parties are which is more relevant to determining the legal status of the parties and therefore the rights and obligations that go with that status.

If you are one of these types of workers or you are an agency or an organisation that uses these types of workers then there are certain rights and obligations that you must be aware of that may apply depending on the relationship. For example it will still be unlawful to discriminate on the grounds of Sex, Age, Race, Disability, Sexual Orientation and Religion or Belief. Liability for discrimination is joint and several which means that a worker who believes they have been discriminated against could claim both against the agency and the business where they are placed.

If you believe you are an atypical worker, or your organisation uses workers who may be atypical and you require advice on your position or you would like further information on your rights and obligations please do not hesitate to contact us.