Pictured above: Louise Dunkley
Employers must be cautious of the wording in the new-enacted
Equality Act which could make it impossible to settle through a
compromise agreement according to Louise Dunkley, Employment
Solicitor at Nottingham-based law firm Fraser Brown.
A compromise agreement is a legally binding agreement following
the termination of employment after a dispute. Often an employee
will receive a severance payout from their former employer and
agree not to take their case to an employment tribunal.
However changes in the wording relating to compromise agreements
in the Equality Act undermines the ability of an employee and
employer to settle discrimination claims by insisting that the
lawyer who advises the employee is "independent".
"The wording of the Act is ambiguous therefore employers must be
advised to take every precaution when settling compromise
agreements. At the moment, because employees will be dealing with
issues of discrimination which occurred prior to the act coming
into force, this shouldn't be an issue, but going forward employers
should enter agreements through ACAS (Advisory, Conciliation and
Arbitration Service) to avoid any uncertainty about the validity of
an agreement arising."