A to Z of Employment - Entries for G
Gender Reassignment
This is the personal, social and medical process by which a person's gender identity is changed.
Individuals have had the right not to be discriminated against because they are proposing to undergo, are undergoing or have undergone gender reassignment. Protection begins from the date when the individual made it known to a medical practitioner that they intended to undergo gender reassignment.
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=519&detailid=1024
http://www.equalityni.org/sections/default.asp?secid=8
Genuine Occupational Qualifications (GOQ)
In very limited circumstances it may be lawful for an employer to discriminate against individuals on the grounds of their race, sex, sexual orientation, age etc, in respect of certain jobs, where the requirement to do so is necessary to fulfil the requirements of the role. For example, an employer may recruit specifically for a member of one sex for a role in a single sex establishment, or for a member of a particular race/nationality for a modelling or acting role.
Grievances
If an employee wishes to use a grievance as the basis of a complaint to an industrial tribunal they must first complete step one of the statutory grievance procedure.
The statutory procedure has three steps:
- step one: the employee informs the employer of the grievance in writing
- step two: meeting to discuss the grievance and
- step three: hold an appeal, if requested
Tribunals may adjust any award of compensation by between 10 and 50 per cent for failure by either party to follow relevant steps of the statutory procedure.
LRA Code of Practice – Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures
Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures- Sample Letters and Flowcharts
Gross Misconduct
An act of misconduct which permits an employer to dismiss an employee on the first occurrence of the offence is usually viewed as Gross Misconduct. Although the definition of gross misconduct is likely to vary from company to company, in general it includes offences such as theft, physical violence, very serious breaches of health and safety rules, etc.
LRA Code of Practice – Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures
Guarantee Payments
This is a statutory payment made to employees with one month's service with their employer, who are not provided with work throughout a day during which they would normally be required to work under their contracts of employment.
Payment is limited to a maximum of five days in any period of three months but the entitlement cannot exceed the number of days a week the employee is contracted to work in a normal week. Guaranteed pay is currently £20.40 a day (from 2nd March 2008) and this figure is renewed annually.
See Lay-Off & Short-Time Working
DEL ER Booklet 14 - Guarantee Payments