As we previously wrote in our blog on dealing with employees who feel unsafe and refuse to return to work, employees have the right not to be subjected to a detriment where they raise health and safety concerns. This right is contained in section 44 of the Employment Rights Act 1996. New regulations have updated section 44 to extend this right to include workers.
This is important in the context of the coronavirus pandemic where workers who are not employees are can now claim protection from an Employment Tribunal if they are subjected to a detriment because they reasonably believed that being at work would place them or someone else in serious imminent danger.
Employers should be aware that the extension of this right to workers applies to any detriment occurring on or after 31 May 2021.
The question of employment status (i.e. whether someone is an employee, a worker or self-employed) creates important legal distinctions in terms of key rights. The extension to section 44 follows a growing trend in statutory rights being granted to workers.
If you have any questions arising from this update, please do not hesitate to contact a member of our Employment team.
