1.3.

Identify and analyse the reasons why it is important to determine an individual’s employment
status – should be used at least two examples

1.3. It is highly recommended that HP is aware of the employment status in order to comply with the
legal obligation to respect the rights of the employees / self-employed / workers. More details are listed
in the Table 3 below.

 If, for example, somebody has a medical problem it is important for HP to know if that person is
entitled or not to medical leave and/or pay: employees are entitled to physical leave and pay,
workers are entitled only to pay (and not to physical leave) and self-employed are not entitled
to medical leave or pay.
 Should HP decide to dismiss somebody, it is essential to know that: employees have the right to
receive a notice period and a statutory pay, while this is not applicable for workers and self-
employed.
 If HP receives a request for a flexible-working: employees have this right (if they have a seniority
within HP of minimum 26 weeks), while they can reject this type of request that is initiated by a
worker or a self-employed.

Table 3 Rights of the Employee / Self-employed / Worker

Criteria: Employee Self-employed Worker

When does the right start: 1st day of When the 1st day of work
work contract starts
Getting the National Minimum Wage Yes No Yes
Protection against unlawful deductions from Yes No Yes
wages
The statutory minimum level of paid holiday Yes No Yes
The statutory minimum length of rest breaks Yes No Yes
To not work more than 48 hours on average per Yes No Yes
week or to opt out of this right if they choose
Protection against unlawful discrimination Yes Yes Yes
Protection for ‘whistleblowing’ - reporting Yes No Yes
wrongdoing in the workplace
Statutory Sick Pay Yes, they are No Yes, but they
Statutory Maternity Pay entitled to can get only
Statutory Paternity Pay both leave pay, not also the
Statutory Adoption Pay and pay physical leave
Shared Parental Pay
Minimum notice periods if their employment will Yes No No
be ending, for example if an employer is
dismissing them
Protection against unfair dismissal
The right to request flexible working
Time off for emergencies
Statutory Redundancy Pay

https://www.gov.uk/employment-status/worker
https://www.gov.uk/employment-status/selfemployed-contractor
https://www.gov.uk/employment-status/employee

Respecting the contractual rights leads to a positive worker experience and engagement. It can also
prevent worker related litigations that can be very expensive for the company in both financial and
reputation terms.