Tom Street

Tom Street qualified as a solicitor in 2003 and has over 20 years experience in employment and litigation law. He studied law at the University of Manchester before undertaking the legal practice course at the College of Law in Guildford, going on to complete his legal training at a firm in Chancery Lane, London. Once fully qualified, he moved to a niche litigation practice in the City of London. In 2010, Tom set up his own legal practice, Tom Street & Co Solicitors and as part of this, in accordance with his strongly held objective to provide everyone with an easy pathway to justice he established the online portals Do I Have A Case? and Tribunal Claim. These websites are trading names of Tom Street & Co Solicitors.

I am a waitress. Am I entitled to my tips?

January 21, 2019December 8, 2018 by Tom Street

The recent announcement regarding the government’s plans for workers to receive the tips given to them has created much debate. While most employers do act in good faith, there are many who follow poor tipping practices. There are excessive deductions in the tips left by customers by the time it reaches the pocket of workers. … Read more

Should my Employer Report Ethnicity Pay Gaps?

March 26, 2019December 1, 2018 by Tom Street

In February 2017, the Government published an Independent review by Baroness McGregor-Smith considering the issues affecting black and minority ethnic (BME) groups in the workplace. The review titled: Race in the workplace stated that no employer can be honest enough to say that they are trying to improve the ethnic diversity in a workplace unless … Read more

Am I disabled? What is the legal definition of Disability

March 26, 2019November 30, 2018 by Tom Street

Under the Equality Act 2010, if you have a physical or mental impairment which has substantial and long term negative effects on your ability to perform normal daily functions, you can be considered disabled. What does ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ mean ‘substantial’ means more than minor, for example, it may take much longer for a person … Read more

Employment Contract – Bonus clause

June 11, 2019November 25, 2018 by Tom Street

It has been accepted, considering the various cases in the past, that there is nothing like unfettered discretion by an employer with regards to the payment of bonuses. A myriad of decisions in the court have decided that employers should exercise discretion on good grounds. Therefore, if an employee meets a criteria for a bonus, … Read more

What to Wear to Work – Dress Codes and Sex Discrimination

January 29, 2019November 17, 2018 by Tom Street

The UK Government Equalities Office has recently announced new guidelines for employers on implementing dress codes to avoid sex discrimination at work. The guidelines suggest that when policies on clothes or uniforms are an essential part of employer’s terms and conditions of employment, then similar standards of dressing must be maintained for both men and … Read more

Court of Appeal overturns National Minimum Wage rules for Sleep in workers

January 29, 2019November 15, 2018 by Tom Street

Over the past decade, EAT decisions appeared to have established that a myriad of sleep-in workers were liable to be paid minimum wages for every hour of their shift spent in the organisation, including the hours when they are asleep. In a recent case this year, the court of Appeal rejected the rule, stating that … Read more

Long Term Medical Sickness and Dismissal from Work

April 22, 2019November 13, 2018 by Tom Street

Can you be sacked due to long term sickness from work? We all believe that a sick employee’s job has to be kept open indefinitely by an employer. But this is far from truth. While it is mandatory to follow a fair procedure to manage a long term absence from work your employer has to … Read more

Employment References – New ACAS Guidance

March 26, 2019November 1, 2018 by Tom Street

What is an employment reference? An employment reference is meant to provide important information about the potential employee, that helps the employer in deciding whether the employee is suitable to be hired for the required job, or not. Does an employment reference have to be provided? Providing an employment reference is not legally binding; an … Read more

New ACAS Guidance on Overtime Rules

March 26, 2019October 27, 2018 by Tom Street

What is Overtime? Overtime is defined as hours that an employee has worked for, over and above their regular full time working hours. If an employee works fixed working hours, any additional amount of time worked can be considered as overtime. An employer may request overtime to meet with increasing demand for their services. For … Read more

Claiming Unfair Dismissal if Dismissed for Gross Misconduct just Shy of the Qualifying Period

April 22, 2019October 25, 2018 by Tom Street

In most cases, employees can file a claim for unfair dismissal against their employer only after completing minimum two years of service. Previously the claiming period was one year, however it was extended to two years in 2012. This gives the employers some flexibility when it comes to managing and dismissing staff with less than … Read more

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