Employment Rights Act 1996

This is the original version (as it was originally enacted).

Chapter III Other interpretation provisions

230 Employees, workers etc

(1) In this Act “employee” means an individual who has entered into or works under (or, where the employment has ceased, worked under) a contract of employment.

(2) In this Act “contract of employment” means a contract of service or apprenticeship, whether express or implied, and (if it is express) whether oral or in writing.

(3) In this Act “worker” (except in the phrases “shop worker” and “betting worker”) means an individual who has entered into or works under (or, where the employment has ceased, worked under)—

(a) a contract of employment, or

(b) any other contract, whether express or implied and (if it is express) whether oral or in writing, whereby the individual undertakes to do or perform personally any work or services for another party to the contract whose status is not by virtue of the contract that of a client or customer of any profession or business undertaking carried on by the individual;

and any reference to a worker’s contract shall be construed accordingly.

(4) In this Act “employer”, in relation to an employee or a worker, means the person by whom the employee or worker is (or, where the employment has ceased, was) employed.

(5) In this Act “employment”—

(a) in relation to an employee, means (except for the purposes of section 171) employment under a contract of employment, and

(b) in relation to a worker, means employment under his contract;

and “employed” shall be construed accordingly.

231 Associated employers

For the purposes of this Act any two employers shall be treated as associated if—

(a) one is a company of which the other (directly or indirectly) has control, or

(b) both are companies of which a third person (directly or indirectly) has control;

and “associated employer” shall be construed accordingly.

232 Shop workers

(1) In this Act “shop worker” means an employee who, under his contract of employment, is or may be required to do shop work.

(2) In this Act “shop work” means work in or about a shop in England or Wales on a day on which the shop is open for the serving of customers.

(3) Subject to subsection (4), in this Act “shop” includes any premises where any retail trade or business is carried on.

(4) Where premises are used mainly for purposes other than those of retail trade or business and would not (apart from subsection (3)) be regarded as a shop, only such part of the premises as—

(a) is used wholly or mainly for the purposes of retail trade or business, or

(b) is used both for the purposes of retail trade or business and for the purposes of wholesale trade and is used wholly or mainly for those two purposes considered together,

is to be regarded as a shop for the purposes of this Act.

(5) In subsection (4)(b) “wholesale trade” means the sale of goods for use or resale in the course of a business or the hire of goods for use in the course of a business.

(6) In this section “retail trade or business” includes—

(a) the business of a barber or hairdresser,

(b) the business of hiring goods otherwise than for use in the course of a trade or business, and

(c) retail sales by auction,

but does not include catering business or the sale at theatres and places of amusement of programmes, catalogues and similar items.

(7) In subsection (6) “catering business” means—

(a) the sale of meals, refreshments or intoxicating liquor for consumption on the premises on which they are sold, or

(b) the sale of meals or refreshments prepared to order for immediate consumption off the premises;

and in paragraph (a) “intoxicating liquor” has the same meaning as in the [1964 c. 26.] Licensing Act 1964.

• “notice period”, in relation to an opted-out shop worker, has the meaning given by section 41(3),
• “opted-out”, in relation to a shop worker, shall be construed in accordance with section 41(1) and (2),
• “opting-in notice”, in relation to a shop worker, has the meaning given by section 36(6),
• “opting-out notice”, in relation to a shop worker, has the meaning given by section 40(2), and
• “protected”, in relation to a shop worker, shall be construed in accordance with section 36(1) to (5).

233 Betting workers

(1) In this Act “betting worker” means an employee who, under his contract of employment, is or may be required to do betting work.

(2) In this Act “betting work” means—

(a) work at a track in England or Wales for a bookmaker on a day on which the bookmaker acts as such at the track, being work which consists of or includes dealing with betting transactions, and

(b) work in a licensed betting office in England or Wales on a day on which the office is open for use for the effecting of betting transactions.

(3) In subsection (2) “betting transactions” includes the collection or payment of winnings on a bet and any transaction in which one or more of the parties is acting as a bookmaker.

(4) In this section “bookmaker” means any person who—

(a) whether on his own account or as servant or agent to any other person, carries on (whether occasionally or regularly) the business of receiving or negotiating bets or conducting pool betting operations, or

(b) by way of business in any manner holds himself out, or permits himself to be held out, as a person who receives or negotiates bets or conducts such operations.

(5) Expressions used in this section and in the [1963 c. 2.] Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Act 1963 have the same meaning in this section as in that Act.

• “notice period”, in relation to an opted-out betting worker, has the meaning given by section 41(3),
• “opted-out”, in relation to a betting worker, shall be construed in accordance with section 41(1) and (2),
• “opting-in notice”, in relation to a betting worker, has the meaning given by section 36(6),
• “opting-out notice”, in relation to a betting worker, has the meaning given by section 40(2), and
• “protected”, in relation to a betting worker, shall be construed in accordance with section 36(1) to (5).

234 Normal working hours

(1) Where an employee is entitled to overtime pay when employed for more than a fixed number of hours in a week or other period, there are for the purposes of this Act normal working hours in his case.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), the normal working hours in such a case are the fixed number of hours.

(3) Where in such a case—

(a) the contract of employment fixes the number, or minimum number, of hours of employment in a week or other period (whether or not it also provides for the reduction of that number or minimum in certain circumstances), and

(b) that number or minimum number of hours exceeds the number of hours without overtime,

the normal working hours are that number or minimum number of hours (and not the number of hours without overtime).

235 Other definitions

(1) In this Act, except in so far as the context otherwise requires—

• “act” and “action” each includes omission and references to doing an act or taking action shall be construed accordingly,
• “basic award of compensation for unfair dismissal” shall be construed in accordance with section 118,
• “business” includes a trade or profession and includes any activity carried on by a body of persons (whether corporate or unincorporated),
• “childbirth” means the birth of a living child or the birth of a child whether living or dead after twenty-four weeks of pregnancy,
• “collective agreement” has the meaning given by section 178(1) and (2) of the [1992 c. 52.] Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992,
• “conciliation officer” means an officer designated by the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service under section 211 of that Act,
• “dismissal procedures agreement” means an agreement in writing with respect to procedures relating to dismissal made by or on behalf of one or more independent trade unions and one or more employers or employers' associations,
• “employers' association” has the same meaning as in the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992,
• “expected week of childbirth” means the week, beginning with midnight between Saturday and Sunday, in which it is expected that childbirth will occur,
• “guarantee payment” has the meaning given by section 28,
• “independent trade union” means a trade union which—

is not under the domination or control of an employer or a group of employers or of one or more employers' associations, and

is not liable to interference by an employer or any such group or association (arising out of the provision of financial or material support or by any other means whatever) tending towards such control,