Scottbridge Construction Ltd v Wright | |
---|---|
Court | Court of Session |
Citations | [2002] ScotCS 285, [2003] IRLR 21 |
Keywords | |
Minimum wage, worker |
Scottbridge Construction Ltd v Wright [2002] ScotCS 285 is a UK labour law case regarding the National Minimum Wage Act 1998.
Mr Wright was a night watchman and was required to work seven nights a week from 5pm to 7am at the employer's office in Glasgow. He got £210 a week. He was permitted to sleep during his shifts. He had been given a mattress. He could have done so for all but four hours. If he had been paid a minimum wage for all the time on duty he would have had an extra £142.80 a week and a total of £34272.20 by the time of his claim.
The Tribunal held that the four hours when Mr Wright was required to be awake was the relevant time, and so he should be paid for the work when he was on call. The EAT reversed the Tribunal and the case was appealed again.
Lord President Cullen held that NMWR 1999 regulation 15(1) did not apply to Mr Wright, and he should be paid for all the time spent at work, even if asleep. The contract was paid according to a reference by time work. It was held that r 15(1) only applied to time on call, and not the present case.
Labour laws, labour code or employment laws are those that mediate the relationship between workers, employing entities, trade unions, and the government. Collective labour law relates to the tripartite relationship between employee, employer, and union.
United Kingdom labour law regulates the relations between workers, employers and trade unions. People at work in the UK have a minimum set of employment rights, from Acts of Parliament, Regulations, common law and equity. This includes the right to a minimum wage of £11.44 for over-23-year-olds from April 2023 under the National Minimum Wage Act 1998. The Working Time Regulations 1998 give the right to 28 days paid holidays, breaks from work, and attempt to limit long working hours. The Employment Rights Act 1996 gives the right to leave for child care, and the right to request flexible working patterns. The Pensions Act 2008 gives the right to be automatically enrolled in a basic occupational pension, whose funds must be protected according to the Pensions Act 1995. Workers must be able to vote for trustees of their occupational pensions under the Pensions Act 2004. In some enterprises, such as universities or NHS foundation trusts, staff can vote for the directors of the organisation. In enterprises with over 50 staff, workers must be negotiated with, with a view to agreement on any contract or workplace organisation changes, major economic developments or difficulties. The UK Corporate Governance Code recommends worker involvement in voting for a listed company's board of directors but does not yet follow international standards in protecting the right to vote in law. Collective bargaining, between democratically organised trade unions and the enterprise's management, has been seen as a "single channel" for individual workers to counteract the employer's abuse of power when it dismisses staff or fix the terms of work. Collective agreements are ultimately backed up by a trade union's right to strike: a fundamental requirement of democratic society in international law. Under the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 strike action is protected when it is "in contemplation or furtherance of a trade dispute".
The National Minimum Wage Act 1998 creates a minimum wage across the United Kingdom. From 1 April 2024, the minimum wage is £11.44 for people aged 21 and over, £8.60 for 18- to 20-year-olds, and £6.40 for 16- to 17-year-olds and apprentices.
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