Offering Internships? You May Have to Pay the National Minimum Wage

Employers who offer unpaid internships often feel that they are acting benevolently in giving inexperienced people a chance to learn the ropes. However, many interns have a legal right to be paid the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and, as one case showed, a failure to remunerate them accordingly…

Aug 17, 2022

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The case concerned two former unpaid interns at an online publishing company who complained to HM Revenue and Customs that they had not been paid the NMW. An investigation ensued, which culminated in the company being issued with a notice of underpayment. It was directed to pay the interns a total of more than £5,000 and received a penalty of £9,207 for its failure to pay the NMW.

Challenging that outcome, the company asserted that the interns were not ‘workers’ within the meaning of the National Minimum Wage Act 1998 and were therefore not entitled to receive the NMW. It said that they were mainly engaged in shadowing experienced personnel and that tasks they performed were for their own benefit and of no benefit to the company. It contended that, had it considered them workers, it would have sacked them for their slow and under-par performance.

Rejecting the appeal, however, an Employment Tribunal noted that, by virtue of Section 28 of the Act, there is a presumption that an individual qualifies for the NMW unless proved otherwise. The interns, who were not students or volunteers, did not fall into the category of workers undergoing training or work experience who are excluded from entitlement to the NMW.

Their roles were not confined to shadowing and some of the tasks they carried out were clearly in furtherance of the company’s business. The suggestion that they provided no benefit to the company was disingenuous. There was a verbal contract between them and the company, and they were expected to work to it. They could not substitute others to perform their tasks and, far from being free to come and go as they pleased, they were required to be in the office for eight hours a day.

Workplace Banter May Be Fine, But Not If it Tips Over Into Harassment

A certain amount of foul-mouthed banter is only to be expected in a robust working environment. As an Employment Tribunal (ET) ruling showed, however, employers who allow it to tip over into hostile and discriminatory abuse are likely to pay a high financial and reputational price. The case concerned a white worker, aged in his early 50s, who was employed by a tyre recycling company. He worked as part of a small team in which white people were in a minority. He said that a younger black…

School Inspector Sacked for Touching Pupil Succeeds in Unfair Dismissal Claim

It is obviously impractical for employers to have in place disciplinary policies that set out each and every form of frowned-upon conduct. However, as an Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) ruling showed, employees are generally entitled to some forewarning of the types of behaviour that may result in immediate dismissal. The case involved a school inspector who, during an inspection visit, encountered a group of pupils who had come in soaking from the rain. He brushed water from the hair or…

Adjusted Right to Work Checks Extended

The government has announced that the end date for the temporary adjusted checks has now been deferred to 5 April 2022. The following temporary changes were made on 30 March 2020 and now remain in place until 5 April 2022: checks can currently be carried out over video callsjob applicants and existing workers can send scanned documents or a photo of documents for checks using email or a mobile app, rather than sending originalsemployers should use the Home Office Employer Checking Service if a…