Employment Law--Whitakers Fine Wines Limited - Essay Example

Some of these mistakes include are discussed herein. Principle and application of law relating to Adam’s employment At the time of his inclusion into the firm, Adam had his job specifically spelled out for him. His job entailed overseeing general sales as a manager. This he has done effectively and is yielding positive returns. According to the Employment Rights Act 1996, before taking up a job, one is normally briefed on his or her scope of operation which to Adam was the state of Surrey. When the sales manager for the Hampshire area eventually falls sick and is not therefore able to respond to his official duties, the company must find a replacement as soon as possible and ensure that the interests of the company are upheld.

Some of the known ways of filling such vacancies have been through appointing an assistant to the victim to take over his position or to request assistance from another employee of equal rank. The firm opted for the later but failed to realise that in such a circumstance, the solicited services are offered on an interim basis which should not always last more than three weeks (Kidner, 2013). When Collins fails to return to work by the third month, the firm ought to have found a permanent solution to his truancy (United Bank Ltd v.

Akhtar [1989] IRLR 507). Adam, being a dedicated employee, does both the tasks diligently despite the fact that he is overwhelmed. When he can bear the strain no longer, he lodges a formal complaint with his bosses. This was a formal and an expected way of handling such issues. His bosses assure him that they will look into the matter and find an amicable solution sooner; this assurance however, is given verbally by an immediate boss. This, according to the Equality Act 2010, is a clear show that the firm treats its employees with a lot of negligence.

An employee communicates officially with his employers over very pertinent issues of production and the best the firm does is to device mechanisms of avoiding claims by merely failing to respond to the letters sent to them and the responsible officer is left to give an unbinding verbal communication in response. Adam eventually develops a life threatening condition from his employment. Given the nature of the disease, it is clear that he developed it out of the frustrations he experienced out of his work place.

In case of a court case, it will be very difficult to exonerate the firm since it is clear that the firm bears all the claims. After admitting responsibility of the above faults, the firm should send a formal invitation to Adam expressing regret in the maltreatment he underwent and offer him an opportunity for talks. The receipt of this letter may prompt Adam to take the case to court since it will be evidence of the laxity shown to him by his employers and an admission of culpability. Conclusion The company has shown a lot of laxity in handling its employees.

Issues affecting employees is not amicably looked into and the level of negligence specifically shown to Adam’s case is unacceptable. The company risks facing serious industrial actions should the case be filed in a court of law. The firm must therefore carry out very prudent restructuring strategies to try and convince its employees that in deed it holds their interests at heart and avert any legal tussle. On Adam’s case, a great deal of mistake has taken place, the