TABLE OF CONTENTS Laws and regulations affect employment in many ways. For example, the law has brought about changes, generally for the better, in working practices. In 1842, a law was passed forbidding the employment of children under ten years of age in coal mines. At that time workers had virtually no rights. Today the working population is protected in a number of ways, through a series of Acts of Parliament.
This is one area of law employee protection law.
Other kinds of law which affect the workplace include:
health and safety law;
laws governing the conduct of unions;
contract law;
insurance law;
consumer protection law;
laws controlling the carriage of goods;
company law, which deals with the registration of companies and the auditing of company finances.
Can you think of any laws or regulations in the last decade or so that have forced organizations to introduce change either in the way they treat their staff, in the processes they employ, or in the products or services they provide? Jot down a couple of examples.
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One comparatively recent example of a law that has affected conditions for staff is the introduction of the minimum wage in 1999. Before its introduction many organizations protested about it and said that it would cause job losses and even put some of them out of business. In fact, it had none of the feared effects.
As far as products are concerned, among the legal measures that...
