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Chris Milsom and Ameer Ismail will appear before the Court of Appeal today and tomorrow in the appeal of Akester & ors v Department of Health and Social Care and another.
This appeal arises from claims brought by 127 care home workers who were dismissed following the Government’s introduction, in November 2021, of a mandatory statutory requirement that care home workers working in care homes must be vaccinated against Covid-19 or otherwise be clinically exempt from vaccination.
The central issue is whether the Government, through guidance issued by the Department of Health and Social Care, could arguably be held liable for instructing, causing, inducing or knowingly aiding unlawful discrimination by care home employers (presumed for the purposes of the strike out application at first instance) under sections 111 and 112 of the Equality Act 2010.
This appeal is set to address important issues relating to the scope of the exemption of liability under Schedule 22, paragraph 1 of the Equality Act and will build on recent authorities on secondary liability shaping the current legal landscape of section 111 and section 112. The outcome is expected to be of considerable interest to employment practitioners across the board.
Chris Milsom and Ameer Ismail act for the appellants/ claimants.
