Employment Law and Health and Safety at Work
Employment law sets minimum legal standards for how a UK business treats its employees, covering areas such as the National Minimum Wage, the Equality Act 2010's ban on discrimination, working time and unfair dismissal protections, and the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974's duty to protect employee wellbeing.
Method
- Identify whether the issue is employment law, pay, discrimination, dismissal or contracts, or health and safety law, risk to physical wellbeing at work, since they are assessed differently.
- For pay questions, identify whether the business is paying at least the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage rate that applies to the employee's age.
- For discrimination questions, identify the protected characteristic involved, e.g. age, sex, disability, and the specific unequal treatment described.
- For health and safety questions, identify the specific hazard, then the duty the employer has to manage it, e.g. carrying out a risk assessment, providing training, or providing PPE.
- For explain questions, identify the cost of compliance for the business, e.g. the cost of PPE or of paying at least minimum wage, and link it to the benefit of avoiding a specific, worse outcome, e.g. an injury, a tribunal claim, or a fine.
- For evaluate questions on whether a business should go beyond the legal minimum, e.g. offering more training or safety equipment than the law requires, weigh the extra cost against the benefit to staff motivation, retention, and reduced accident or claim risk, using detail from the case.
- Remember that breaching employment or health and safety law can result in an employment tribunal claim, employee versus employer, or, for serious health and safety breaches, prosecution by the Health and Safety Executive, which are different routes of enforcement.
Worked example
Danecroft Warehousing employs staff to operate forklift trucks. A new employee was allowed to operate a forklift on his first day without any training, and was later involved in a minor collision. Explain one way Danecroft Warehousing may have failed in its legal duties, and one cost this could create for the business.
- Identify the relevant law: the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, which requires employers to protect employee safety, including through adequate training for hazardous tasks.
- Identify the specific failure: letting an untrained employee operate a forklift truck, a task with a clear risk of injury or damage if done without training.
- Identify the consequence that occurred: a collision took place, which is the kind of incident training and risk assessment is meant to prevent.
- Identify the cost this creates for Danecroft: potential prosecution or a fine from the Health and Safety Executive, compensation to anyone injured or whose property was damaged, and reputational damage.
- Write the explained answer: Danecroft appears to have breached its health and safety duty by letting an employee operate a forklift with no training, and the resulting collision creates the risk of a Health and Safety Executive investigation, fines, and compensation costs, alongside reputational damage to the business.
Practice questions
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Q1Name the UK law that requires employers to protect the health, safety and welfare of their employees.Show answer
Answer: The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Q2State what the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage are.Show answer
Answer: The lowest hourly rate of pay an employer can legally pay an employee, which varies by age.
Q3Name the UK law that makes it illegal to discriminate against employees based on protected characteristics such as age, sex or disability.Show answer
Answer: The Equality Act 2010.
Q4Give one example of a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010.Show answer
Answer: For example, age, sex, disability, race, or religion.
Q5State one duty an employer has under health and safety law.Show answer
Answer: For example, to carry out risk assessments, provide training, or provide personal protective equipment (PPE) for hazardous tasks.
Q6Give one cost to a business of providing full health and safety training to all staff.Show answer
Answer: For example, paid staff time spent training rather than working, or the cost of hiring a trainer.
Q7Explain one benefit to a business of complying fully with employment and health and safety law.Show answer
Answer: It reduces the risk of costly tribunal claims, fines or prosecution, and can improve staff morale and retention since employees feel fairly treated and safe.
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE Business exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Explain two reasons why a business should provide personal protective equipment (PPE) to staff working with hazardous machinery.
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Corbridge Construction has been paying two 17-year-old apprentices 5.50 pounds an hour, below the National Minimum Wage rate that applies to their age, and has not provided hard hats on site, despite this being standard practice in the industry. A recent near-miss involved a falling brick close to one apprentice. Evaluate the risks Corbridge Construction is taking by continuing in this way.
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See real GCSE Business past-paper questions, with official mark schemes →
Free printable worksheet
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