‘Tis the season to be agreeable…
Employers cannot now use settlement agreements to stop any future case against them, according to a new tribunal decision.
In November 2022, when reviewing the case, Technip Singapore PTE Limited (Technip) v Bathgate, an Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) ruled that a settlement agreement had to specify a particular claim in order to prevent an employee in the future making that particular claim.
Technip provided a settlement agreement to their 61-year-old chief officer, Mr. Bathgate rather than redundancy. But a dispute led to an employment tribunal claim that backed Technip when it had refused to add to the settlement agreement a special payment given to other employees.
Mr. Bathgate complained to the tribunal that the refusal was down to age discrimination yet he had already signed the settlement agreement promising not to lodge any legal claims.
The tribunal ruling was appealed, and judges decided Mr. Bathgate could not waive his right to sue the company for age discrimination when it was not a concern at the time he signed. Judges found that the specific circumstances had changed after the settlement agreement was signed.
Seasonal settlements and redundancies
Employers and employees can use a settlement agreement to mutually end an employment contract and also prevent any future claims by the employee.
This recent legal decision could shake up employers’ approaches to settlement agreements, and result in an increase in tribunal claims.
In Mr. Bathgate’s case, the EAT considered signing away age-related rights contradicted the 2010 Equality Act. Appeal judges were also concerned about employees signing away statutory rights before they knew whether or not they had a claim.
The EAT noted that “the Claimant had the benefit of advice from a solicitor” when signing the settlement agreement. Mr. Bathgate had good employment law advice and judges commented that this turned out to be a very good decision by him.
Christmas is a notoriously busy time for settlement agreements as companies sort out redundancies and let staff go. With this new ruling giving more protection to employees, HR will have to pay very close attention to detail to prevent future claims by unhappy former staff.
Related News Stories
An advanced mental health practitioner was recently awarded over £60,000 after he was sacked without a fair process. An employment…
The CBI has been rocked by accusations of rape and sexual misconduct. With its reputation in tatters, members leaving by…
Swearing at work was ruled acceptable by one employment tribunal judge, while another gave out £71,000 in compensation when a…
Government agency bosses used a flawed procedure when firing a top foreign envoy for a sexual harassment accusation. The British…
Employers risk making poor and costly decisions in response to employees asking to work from their homes. Two cases have…
A judge slapped down an employer who failed to follow a fair procedure when sacking a nurse for being racist.…
A well-known clothes store's flawed promotion and assessment process landed them with a £96,208 judgement at an employment tribunal. Bristol…
An employer lost an unfair dismissal case after summarily sacking an employee rather than go through a fair procedure. London…
The government has increased the scope for employers to sack employees without the threat of court cases. The new law…
A high street giant’s attempt to cut their staff bill was slapped down recently due to employment law. The High…
A landmark court ruling has boosted employment lawyers’ chances of protecting ‘sex change’ workers from harassment and unfair dismissal. Birmingham…
Government have changed their advice on telling employees to return to the workplace due to a spike in virus infections.…
The looming end to the government’s job subsidies in November will lead to some cynical bosses using redundancy to victimise…
A rail company did not need extensive medical evidence to sack an employee for being too sick to work. Employment…
An employment tribunal in November 2016 decided that a company fairly dismissed a worker when her refusal to do overtime…
Foreign workers have a right to appeal if they face dismissal over doubts about their UK residency status, appeal judges…
New legislation compels people in a workplace dispute to talk before going into legal battle in a court. Whether they…