Engineering Case Study: AB Engineering

AB Engineering Case Study

Law is a set of enforced rules and regulations that society must follow. It controls and governs our activities and if broken may result in some form of punishment.

The way in which all businesses can operate are controlled by legislation imposed by both UK and European Union courts and government. The main areas of legislation that affect a business are Employment Law, Consumer Protection and Competition Law. All businesses have a responsibility to ensure they are following all relevant rules and regulations, keeping up to date with any changes that may occur. When the Equality Act 2010 came into force, it replaced several previous pieces of legislation (such as Race Relations Act 1976, Disability Act 1995

The company is operating without a dedicated Human Recourses (HR) department which although is not against the law may be detrimental to the way the company operates. An HR department deals with the issues of managing people within a business or organization and is responsible for suitable recruitment, employee welfare, safety & training in the workplace as well are being aware of current workplace legislation. (UCL,

(ACAS, n.d.) Access to the factory floor is via a flight of stairs with no lift making it unsuitable for a person with a disability resulting in a breach of the Disability Discrimination regulations that are also governed under the Equality Act 2010. They must also be aware of the Equal Pay Act by which men and women are given equal treatment in the terms and conditions of their employment contract. All employees must have an employment contract with their employer that states their rights, responsibilities, employment conditions and duties. The company employs full & part time workers and most the part time employees are teenagers. All employees working hours, holidays, and timed breaks are governed by the working time directive or working time regulations and some of these regulations differ for employees aged 16 and 17 years old and limit the amount of hours they can legally work. The company may not be complying with the nation minimum wage which most workers will be entitled to with rates that also differ depending on age and as of October 1st, 2014 these rates have now changed. AB Engineering’s