What Is The Law Relating To Casual Workers?

During an economic downturn, many employers find it difficult to justify hiring employees to cover busy times but still require extra hands during the Christmas period. If you are considering bringing on board casual workers, keep reading to discover the employment law issues you must be aware of.

What is the difference between an employee and a worker?

An employee is someone who works under the terms of an employment contract (either express or implied). Worker status is often seen as a halfway house between an employee and a self-employed person. Workers enjoy fewer rights than employees, for example, the right to redundancy pay and not to be unfairly dismissed only applies to employees. However, workers are entitled to protection from discrimination,, to be paid the national minimum wage and to paid holiday.

Is a casual worker entitled to a written statement of terms?

Yes, any worker commencing work on or after 6 April 2020 must be given a written statement of employment particulars on or before their first day of employment. Written statements for casual workers can be tricky to draft, therefore, it is advisable to instruct an experienced employment law solicitor to do this for you.

How do I calculate holiday pay for a casual worker?

Until the recently, holiday entitlement for casual workers was calculated using a percentage of the hours worked in the relevant period. However, the recent Supreme Court decision in Harpur Trust v Brazel [2022] UKSC 21, has confirmed that that this method was not compliant with the Working Time Regulations 1998.

To calculate the holiday pay of a casual worker who does not have fixed/regular hours, employers should base their sums on the average pay the worker received over the previous 52 weeks, discounting any weeks where they did not receive any remuneration

Where a worker has been employed for fewer than 52 weeks, your calculations should be based on their average pay over the number of full weeks for which they have been employed, discounting any weeks where they received no remuneration.

Wrapping up

The rules around casual workers, especially concerning holiday pay following the decision in Harpur Trust v Brazel, are complex and it is easy to inadvertently breach your employment law compliance obligations. In particular, if you fail to bring the worker’s engagement to an end, for example after your seasonal period, they continue to accrue holiday pay, despite the fact they may not be undertaking any work. Our expert employment law solicitors can provide the advice you need to get things right.

Through our Ask HR and HR Genie we can alleviate the burden of staff management, so you can focus on your business rather than worrying about an employee bringing an Employment Tribunal claim. To talk to us about any points made in this article, please call us on 02476 231000 or email enquiries@askewslegal.co