Unfair dismissal - No employment rights on a nil hours contract? Please help...

[Tatsmith]

Hi there can anyone help me? I have tried to decipher some sections of legal employment acts and sections but I find it really hard to understand!

I am currently working for the council under a nil hours contract (?) on their bank of temporary administrators. I have now been dismissed twice due to some information they have pulled up on me through a child protection check. This information was sought only because they previously offered me another job that involved working with children which I subsequently turned down in order to accept this one. The assignment (s) that I am currently undertaking do not even require a standard CRB check. My CRB has not yet been received and I believe it to be absolutely fine when it does finally come through.

Human Resources say that I ,quote, 'lied' on a form permitting them to check for Child Protection issues when I was offered the first job. This form was to disclose whether or not myself or my child had ever been on the child protection register. It seems I actually did fill the form in incorrectly but this was due to some genuine circumstances which I have tried to explain to them and still am trying to explain to them. To be honest they dont seem to care a jot - surprise! The information that they have been given is more in a capacity of being a victim than an 'abuser or criminal' yet they continue to say that it makes me an inapropriate employee for the council, regardless of the fact that I am only requesting to apply for non child orientated assignments. Had I not been offered the initial job in the children's centre then they would never have even run this check on me for the current role I am in and it would not even be an issue!

I have spoken to UNISON who tried to persuade HR to review my case. They say that they have done this but again, because I quote - lied - on my application form they are still going to dismiss me entirely. UNISON seem to feel I have no employment rights at all as a 'bank' administrator. Is this really true? I am desperate to keep this job. It took me so long to get in the current economy and is going to enable me to pay for a debt relief order (which will be useless to me without an income to start a-fresh on). It also leaves me with a massively tarred employment record in the sector that all my previous experience is based in.

I have one final meeting with HR at 10am tomorrow (thursday) - is there anyone out here who can give me some advice please? I dont even think someone from UNISON is available to attend the meeting to help me.

THANKS

[natweststaffmember]

Re: Unfair dismissal - No employment rights on a nil hours contract? Please help...

I think they are right. You are classed as a temporary worker and so they have the right to more or less say they no longer wish to hire you.

It might be worth you asking for some confidential advice through ACAS.
I would say that if UNISON have spoken to you and you have explained in full what happened that they should be able to give you more information on your employment rights.

[Amethyst]

Re: Unfair dismissal - No employment rights on a nil hours contract? Please help...

How long have you worked on this contract ? A nil (or zero) hours contract carries the same rights now as other contracts as the minimum hours requirement has been abolished so if you have been under that contract for over a year then you have the same rights as other permanent employees.

[Amethyst]

Re: Unfair dismissal - No employment rights on a nil hours contract? Please help...

You need to check your contract

Zero Hours Contracts

A ‘zero hours contract’ is a permanent (as opposed to casual) contract with no defined hours, but instead a requirement made by the employer that the employee will work hours as set by the employer. These hours may alter from day to day, or week to week. For example, a worker may work 35 hours one week, and none the following week, whilst at the same time remaining an employee. As can be seen, there exists a mutual obligation, and therefore a permanent contract.
Understandably vilified when used by exploitative employers, zero hours contracts can also be seen as a positive reaction to the ambiguities about the position of a ‘casual’. A zero hours contract can be seen as a positive move - acknowledging that a worker is an employee with certain rights, and providing a place to specify those rights, whilst at the same time acknowledging that the employer cannot guarantee any particular amount of work.
A zero hours contract can resolve a potentially expensive conflict as to whether, for example, a casual selected from a pool or bank is in fact an employee with continuity of employment, because of the custom and practice of reselecting from the pool.
Workers on a zero hours contract are entitled to rights, including the right to paid leave. Entitlements to paid leave have to be calculated according to a prescribed formula: when a worker takes a week’s leave, that week’s pay should be worked out by taking the average pay over the 12 weeks immediately preceding the week in question – but weeks where an employee has not worked at all (for example has been off sick, or not offered any work) should not be counted.
Other rights to pay when not at work – including during maternity, paternity and sick leave – need to be calculated according to the same formula.

[Tatsmith]

Re: Unfair dismissal - No employment rights on a nil hours contract? Please help...

Unfortunately I have only been here since beginning of May, but Ill check it all out tonight. Thanks guys

[orfoster]

Re: Unfair dismissal - No employment rights on a nil hours contract? Please help...

I am a UNISON rep, and am dealing with a similar issue at another council. It would seem that there can be an argument as stated above that you may be a permenent employee on a nil hours contract, it all depends on the nature of the issue and the individual contract, you can still have employment rights, have the council allowed you to join the pension scheme?

If you aren't happy and want to know more detail have a chat with your steward dealing with the case, failing that contact your Branch Secretary or the Regional Office in your area, it sounds like this case will have gone through the legal adviceline so they will be able to give you more detail on the issue.

Unison also have a "professional registration unit" that deal with defending these issues, UNISON Professional registration-representation unit | the public service union check that your branch has followed the protocal within the webpage above.

Kind regards

[orfoster]

Re: Unfair dismissal - No employment rights on a nil hours contract? Please help...

See the enclosed attachment, hope that helps. Found at the above public link under useful documents.