Documents Busby, Nicole 4 results

"This article considers the future development of the constitutionalization of labour rights, in particular non-discrimination rights and collective labour rights, within the European Union's legal order following the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty and in light of the EU's impending accession to the Council of Europe. The accession throws a spotlight on the relationship between the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU). The two courts' respective interpretations of certain labour rights contain elements of overlap and, in some respects, conflict which will presumably have to be reconciled under the new legal order within which the courts will find themselves. It is argued that the constitutionalization of labour rights would offer some important protections that should be fundamentally guaranteed and thus available to all workers but which are under threat due to transnational changes resulting from globalization. Furthermore, as the case law analysis demonstrates, the traditional hierarchy of rights by which civil and political rights were prioritized over their economic and social counterparts, has given way to an EU legal order whereby the economic imperative remains paramount, with social provisions, in the context of labour rights, subjugated and subject to further divisions."

"This paper reports on pilot study research which sought to explore perceptions and experiences of vulnerable employees who attempted to use the Employment Tribunal (ET) system to resolve disputes. We interviewed clients of a Citizens Advice Bureau seeking to explore the concerns of those for whom the system potentially poses the greatest barriers—those who cannot afford legal advice and/or are not trade union members. We conclude that the ETs, and the mediating role played by Acas, produce barriers to justice for vulnerable employees. Furthermore, the role played by Citizens Advice is critical in reclaiming labour law's public law function, by which private disputes between individuals are translated into matters of public concern. "

" The conceptualisation of access to justice in the Employment Tribunal (ET) as a public benefit essential for the realisation of the rule of law has recently been reaffirmed by the Supreme Court's judgment in R v Lord Chancellor [2017] UKSC 51. However, reforms to the law and policy framework in recent years have been framed by Government as providing a necessary shift away from the use of full hearings due to the costs incurred by both the public and business. This article reports on the findings of research which tracked workers with ET claims who could not afford to pay for legal advice and representation. Their experiences and perceptions shed valuable light on the operation of the ET system. Many claimants were left dissatisfied, in particular those whose cases did not make it to full hearing. The data identify a range of barriers to justice, which impact on the ability of individuals to advance their claims and to enforce remedies. The article considers the use of ‘worker vulnerability' in this context and the different interpretations applied by policy-makers. With reference to the research findings, we argue that vulnerability is universal and that, to counter it, the State has a central role to play in building individual and institutional resilience. We conclude by calling for the need to reclaim the concept of access to the civil justice system as a public good, capable of transcending private interests and providing fundamental protections against worker exploitation."