Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act amendments - Melissa Ritchie The Immigration (Employment of Adults Subject to Immigration Control) (Maximum Penalty) Order 2008 states that the maximum penalty per illegal employee is £10,000 which is a sobering thought and should inspire you to read on! While most of the news has been about the ‘points system’ for immigrant workers the other changes are going to have an impact on all employers.  The amendment to the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 made by The Immigration (Restrictions on Employment) Order 2007 came into force on 29th February (so much for introducing legislation in April and October!) and is available on http://www.england-legislation.hmso.gov.uk/si/si2007/uksi_20073290_en_1 for scrutiny.  However, the key changes are that the checks of documents for prospective employees should be carried out BEFORE the employee starts work to give immunity from penalty for the period of the employment or after if the documents are from List A.  If documentation is from List B and is checked AFTER employment commences the immunity is for 12 months from the checks being carried out and will then need to be repeated. Employers need to ensure that they have:  taken all reasonable steps to check the validity of the document;  retained copies of documents securely for a period of not less than two years after the employment has come to an end;  satisfied themselves that any photograph on the documents supplied is of the prospective employee; satisfied themselves that the date of birth is consistent with the appearance of the prospective employee or employee;  taken all other reasonable steps to check that the prospective employee or employee is the rightful owner of the document;  retained a copy of whole of the document in a format which cannot be subsequently altered if the document is not a passport or other travel document; copied the following pages of that document in a format which cannot be subsequently altered if the document is not a passport or other travel document:  (i) the front cover;  (ii) any page containing the holder’s personal details including nationality;  (iii) any page containing the holder’s photograph; (iv) any page containing the holder’s signature;  (v) any page containing the date of expiry; and  (vi) any page containing information indicating the holder has an entitlement to enter or remain in the UK and undertake the work in question.  You should therefore put in place a procedure for making these checks and recording them as well as altering your offer letter to ensure it covers these changes and lists the documents in List A and B.  If you would like any assistance with this please do not hesitate to contact us.

 

Corporate Manslaughter legislation - John Bartlett The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 will become law on 6 April 2008, after many years of debate.  The Act has been brought in to make it easier to prosecute organisations when their gross negligence leads to death. Previously, an organisation could be prosecuted at common law for manslaughter, although attempts to do so have been mostly unsuccessful. Over the past ten years there have only been seven successful prosecutions against a company for manslaughter, none of which have been large companies.  However, many critics of the Act do not think the legislation goes far enough to deter organisations from being complacent in their attitudes towards health and safety, or to put health and safety at the top of directors’ agendas. Barrister Gerard Forlin believes “it is impossible to get a big organisation for corporate manslaughter”, but emphasises that the Act will certainly hit companies harder than previous legislation – mainly in the direction of their pockets. The highest fine to date has been for Transco, who were fined £15m for health and safety offences in 1999. However, this could be just a drop in the ocean when the new Act comes into place, which can impose fines of between 2½ and 10% of a company’s turnover for a first conviction of corporate manslaughter. It does not take a genius to imagine how much the fines might be if certain large oil firms in the UK had an accident.  The Act will have to be tested in the courts. Are you managing your risks adequately? Stay safe  JB