EMPLOYMENT COURSEWORK

Employment Coursework



Employment Coursework

Employment Coursework

Introduction

The subject of employment law is the regulation of the relationship between employer (Little Stars Nursery ) and worker or, put in another way, the relationship between the user of labour and the supplier of labour. This regulation takes place at an individual level and at a collective level. At an individual level because the law takes the view that the contract of employment is like any other contract, namely a legally binding agreement that two equal parties have voluntarily entered into.

Discussion

The question explicitly states that she has been dismissed by her line manager. This type of dismissal, which has no accepted name, is sometimes called 'direct', 'express', or 'actual' dismissal and falls within s. 95(1)(a), ERA. Even if she had not been expressly dismissed, the giving of several warnings, if unjustified, could constitute a constructive dismissal: see Walker v Josiah Wedgwood & Sons Ltd [1978] ICR 744, EAT. A constructive dismissal according to Western Excavating (ECC) Ltd v Sharp [1978] QB 761, CA, occurs where the employers evince an intention no longer to be bound by the contract or they breach a fundamental term, one of which is the duty of trust and confidence, which is breached by giving unjustified warnings. Since there is an express dismissal, no discussion is needed of any other type of dismissal. The burden of proving dismissal lies on the applicant.

Potential fair reason s98

Any unjust act by an employer (Little Stars Nursery ), and particularly one that strikes at the heart of the employee (Maggie)/employer (Little Stars Nursery) relationship such as a dismissal, may be a violation of the psychological contract between the organisation and worker. A psychological contract can be defined as an expectation of an organisation to attend to the employee (Maggie )'s psychological needs in return for meeting the organisation's requirements. Employees invest time, effort, skills, and trust in an organisation and expect compensation in addition to pay in the form of respect and fair treatment.

Psychological contract violations are related to decreased trust in an employer (Little Stars Nursery ). Trust is forward looking and involves a willingness to be vulnerable, and once that trust is lost, employees no longer feel bound to live up to their end of the psychological contract. Fundamental violations of trust by organisations have been shown to lead to negative expectations of future employer (Little Stars Nursery ) conduct and to employee (Maggie ) cynicism. Moreover, researchers have found a consistent relationship between employee (Maggie ) perceptions of unfair treatment (also known as injustice) and reprisals and claims by employees. This line of research has focused primarily on employee (Maggie) perceptions of three types of organisational justice: distributive justice, the fairness of outcomes; procedural justice, the fairness of procedures that lead to outcomes; and interactional justice, the fairness of interpersonal treatment.

Closely aligned with distrust and perceived injustice, cynicism has been defined as an attitude associated with disillusionment and negative feelings toward an ...