In Heafield v Times Newspaper Ltd [2012] UKEAT/1305/12/BA, Mr Heafield, a practising Roman Catholic, worked as a sub-contractor for the Times newspaper at the time when the Pope was visiting London in 2010.

There can often be a fine line between dismissing an employee for the inappropriate manner in which they have raised an allegation and dismissing an employee because of the allegation itself.

It has recently been announced that the European Commission has begun drafting a proposal that will force Europe's listed companies to reserve at least 40 per cent of their non-executive director board seats for women by 2020.

In Royal Bank of Scotland plc v Morris UKEAT/0436/10, a black employee complained about his manager, Mr Tigue’s conduct.

In Smith v Trafford Housing Trust Mr Smith was employed by Trafford Housing Trust as a manager.

In Lancaster v TBWA Manchester UKEAT/0460/10 the Claimant was at risk of redundancy and had a disability.

The EAT has given some useful guidance to employers undertaking collective redundancies, in the case of Phillips v Xtera Communications Ltd UKEAT/0244/10.

Christou and another v London Borough of Haringey was a case brought by social workers involved in the "Baby P" scandal at Haringey council.

The Supreme Court has held, in Birmingham City Council v Abdulla, that employees have up to six years in which they can bring equal pay claims in the High Court.

It has long been the case that employees are protected against victimisation which occurs after the termination of employment.

The Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill has been laid before Parliament.

Business Secretary Vince Cable has unveiled a number of proposed changes to employment law, in an attempt to cut unemployment levels and boost the economy.

The Government has begun a consultation in relation to a proposal to remove provisions in the Equality Act 2010.

The second case involves an allegation of indirect age discrimination. In HM Land Registry v Benson employees of the Land Registry applied for early retirement as part of a voluntary redundancy programme.

In the case of Samsung Electronics (UK) Ltd v Monte-D’Cruz [2012] UKEAT 0039/11, the EAT has confirmed that when an at risk employee is being considered for suitable alternative employment in a redundancy process, the employer has considerable flexibility when assessing the individual’s suitability for the role.

Goldman v HMRC is a case concerning the tax treatment of a termination payment. Mr Goldman’s employment contract stated that if his employment was terminated (other than for performance or conduct) his employer must make a payment of 12 months’ salary in lieu of notice within 14 days of the termination date.

In general terms, in discrimination claims if an employee can show a ‘prima facie’ case of discrimination – in effect that something has occurred which looks like discrimination unless there is a proper explanation for it – the burden of proof shifts to the employer who then has to disprove that discrimination occurred.

Welcome to HR Bytes for February 2012, another month when the Government's approach to employment law is creating plenty of news.

In the case of Nejjary v Aramark Ltd the Employment Appeal Tribunal considered what could be taken into account when determining whether a misconduct dismissal was fair.

The introduction of the Senior Managers and Certification Regime ("SMCR") a year ago has seen an increased focus on accountability and standards of fitness and propriety.