Booth calls for legislation to reduce judge-made law

Employment: Common law contract no longer appropriate

The common law contract of employment is no longer the appropriate model for the future development of the law and should sit 'side by side' with government legislation, Cherie Booth QC told lawyers last week.Delivering the Employment Lawyers Association's annual lecture, she said the increasing need for flexibility in the British workplace should lead to legislative intervention that 'has the benefit of consistency, certainty and democratic legitimacy so that both individuals and businesses know where they stand rather than relying on the inherently ad hoc approach of judicial intervention'.Speaking on the need of partnerships as opposed to master-and-servant relationships in the workplace, Ms Booth said: 'It is not a concept contemplated by the contract of employment [which] alone has limitations that mean it cannot fully accommodate all workers in the modern British workplace.'She emphasised the need for employers to implement the concept of a work/life balance in order to achieve a 'win-win situation, in which the restructuring of the workplace promotes flexibility and productivity'.

Figures from the Industrial Relations Society employment review 2001 revealed that employers were already starting to respond to the changing face of the workplace.

Companies offering flexible hours rose from 44% to 51% in 1999-2000 and 81% of companies now offer part-time work.

'It appears that the long-term economic benefits of flexibility and investment in the workforce are being recognised by British employers,' said Ms Booth.Andrew Towler