The Common Law Constitution at Work: R (on the application of UNISON) v Lord Chancellor |
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| Authors: | Alan Bogg |
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| Affiliation: | Professor of Labour Law, University of Bristol. I am extremely grateful to Ruth Dukes, Keith Ewing and Michael Ford QC for comments on a draft. I am also grateful to participants at a staff seminar at the University of Bristol for critical comments on an early sketch of the ideas. I record my gratitude to the Philip Leverhulme Trust for its generous support of my work. All errors are mine alone. |
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| Abstract: | This note considers the radical significance of Supreme Court's judgment in R (on the Application of UNISON) v Lord Chancellor (UNISON) on the unlawfulness of tribunal fees. It argues that the decision marks the coming of age of the ‘common law constitution at work’. The radical potential of UNISON lies in its generation of horizontal legal effects in disputes between private parties. Recent litigation on employment status in the ‘gig economy’ is analysed through the lens of UNISON and common law fundamental rights. The note identifies the various ways in which the common law tests of employment status might be ‘constitutionalised’ in the light of UNISON. |
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| Keywords: | employment status worker Gig Economy fundamental rights access to a court |
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