Farmers Fined After Man Killed by Herd of Cows

Two farmers have been fined for failing to protect members of the public from their cattle following an incident in which a man was killed by a herd of cows while out running with his two dogs.

The man, a father-of-three and former teacher, was crossing a public right of way over a field…

Mar 20, 2025

Low view of a group of cows on green grass 1024x683

Two farmers have been fined for failing to protect members of the public from their cattle following an incident in which a man was killed by a herd of cows while out running with his two dogs.

The man, a father-of-three and former teacher, was crossing a public right of way over a field belonging to the farmers when he was surrounded by cows. He was knocked to the ground, and one of the cows then ran towards him, causing a fatal blow to his chest.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the farmers had failed to display signs of an alternative route to the right of way. They were prosecuted by the HSE, and pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(2) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

One of the farmers was fined £1,589 and the other £1,390. They were also ordered to pay costs of £1,500 each.

EAT Rejects Unauthorised Deduction from Wages Claim

The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has rejected an appeal against the dismissal of an employee’s complaint that unauthorised deductions had been made from his wages because he did not receive an additional day’s pay or a day off in lieu when he worked on bank holidays. The employee’s contract of employment stated that he could be required to work on bank holidays, and that he would be paid at double time for those days and given an alternative day of leave in lieu. When he worked on a bank…

Company That Labelled Employees as Self-Employed Receives Comeuppance

Many businesses that persist in labelling their employed staff as self-employed have met their comeuppance during the COVID-19 pandemic. That was certainly so in the case of a company that was ordered to pay compensation of more than £50,000 to a woman who was sacked after asserting her colleagues’ employment rights. The company ran a beauty salon at which the woman was engaged to work as PA to the founder and to provide treatments. Her contract was labelled as a consultancy agreement. When the…

COVID-19 Whistleblower Succeeds in Automatic Unfair Dismissal Claim

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many employees have complained that social distancing and other precautions were not enforced with sufficient rigour in their workplaces. As an Employment Tribunal (ET) ruling in a whistleblowing case made plain, employers are obliged to treat such concerns with the utmost seriousness. A sales assistant was extremely worried that rules in place to counter the pandemic were not being consistently followed in the shop where she worked. Amongst other things, she told…