Bah humbug to bad employers! Or, Christmas employment law advice from Charles Dickens Esq, novelist

Ebenezer Scrooge was the archetypal bad employer, Bob Cratchit, his put-upon clerk – over-worked, under-paid and exploited.

By the story’s close, Scrooge’s cold heart has been warmed by the spirit of Christmas. But what employment law advice could we give him 170-odd years later?

Holiday entitlement

Best not tell him about the Working Time Regulations…

Scrooge denounced paid holiday as offensive, decrying holiday pay for 25 December as “picking his pocket”. By the end of the tale, he has come to terms with paid time off on Christmas day. But all the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future might not reconcile him to the full extent of statutory holiday entitlement in 2019.

Not to mention rest breaks.

More health & safety

Bob Cratchit is left shivering in icy December weather when Scrooge refuses to let him put coal on his office fire.

While modern health and safety laws do not specify maximum and minimum temperatures, they do stipulate that the temperature inside buildings should be reasonable during working hours. As well as a visit to the Health and Safety Executive, Cratchit might well be presenting a claim of constructive dismissal at the Employment Tribunal.

But maybe Scrooge could justify his stinginess with the coal-scuttle through fears of global warming?

Discrimination by association

As well as putting in a flexible-working request to enable him to care for Tiny Tim, Cratchit would be protected from discrimination by reason of his association with his disabled son.

Minimum wage

Cratchit’s fifteen shillings a week doesn’t seem to be enough for him to support his, rather large, family. The living wage would help, but with London cost of living being what it is, modern-day Cratchits are still struggling.

The new government’s promise to increase the National Living Wage to two-thirds of average earnings may help a bit but we all know it’s an expensive time of year…

Don’t forget the Christmas party

Scrooge’s old boss, Fezziwig, earns employees’ everlasting gratitude for holding a Christmas Eve party, which has all the ingredients of successful work parties everywhere - plenty to eat and drink, followed by a dance.

As Scrooge finally recognises, a benevolent employer inspires an employee’s gratitude.

“He has the power to render us happy or unhappy; to make our service light or burdensome; a pleasure or a toil…”

Although Fezziwig may want to reconsider his mistletoe decorations in the age of #MeToo.

We’d suggest some urgent employment law advice may be needed in the New Year.

A Merry Christmas to us all!