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DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2015/2016

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : Business School : Common Courses (Management School)

Postgraduate Course: Employment Law (CMSE11178)

Course Outline
SchoolBusiness School CollegeCollege of Humanities and Social Science
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) AvailabilityAvailable to all students
SCQF Credits15 ECTS Credits7.5
SummaryKnowledge of employment law and the legal context in which employers, employees and trade unions operate is increasingly important for human resource professionals. The course will cover both the role of the common law in employer-employee relations, the existing (and expanding) statutory framework; the way in which relative standards of behaviour (for example, reasonableness or fairness) are interpreted and acted upon by tribunals and organisations; critiques of law and practice in this area; how employers, employees and their representatives have positioned themselves in relation to existing and proposed developments in employment law; and the role of the law in contributing positively to the management of organisations. The course includes a summary of the key areas which are relevant in practice, with in-depth consideration through case studies of topical issues.
Course description The course aims to equip students with the knowledge, understanding and skills required to brief organisations of the consequences of current and future developments in employment law, and to give up-to-date, timely and accurate advice regarding the practical application of legal principles at work. This course will equip human resource professionals to anticipate legal problems associated with organisational decisions and to play a leading role in effective handling of disputes in the workplace and in leading an organisation's response when a formal legal claim is contemplated or pursued. This course will encourage students to think critically about the way in which the law both constrains and facilitates relationships between parties within work organisations, and its relationship to effective organisational functioning. Consideration will be given to the implications of the relevant law and legal developments for the role of the human resource professionals.
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements For Business School PG students only, or by special permission of the School. Please contact the course secretary.
Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisitesNone
High Demand Course? Yes
Course Delivery Information
Academic year 2015/16, Available to all students (SV1) Quota:  None
Course Start Semester 2
Timetable Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 150 ( Lecture Hours 20, Summative Assessment Hours 2, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 3, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 125 )
Assessment (Further Info) Written Exam 70 %, Coursework 30 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment) The course will be assessed by a combination of continuous assessment and a written examination. One assignment is to be completed by the end of the semester, and will contribute 30% towards the final mark. It will take the form of a case study which will involve setting out the relevant law and legal regulation and giving advice to senior managers.

The exam will take place in April/May 2016 (exact date still to be confirmed) will contribute the remaining 70%.

Assessment criteria
Students will be required to show awareness of key legal frameworks, the application of the law in particular circumstances, the perspectives of key organisational stakeholders, and areas of critique/controversy in the existing legal framework. Candidates who are able to display a broader and deeper understanding and can draw upon appropriate material in support of their arguments will be awarded higher marks.

A case study format generally takes the form of a report setting out the relevant facts and the relevant law, and advising on the application of the law to the particular facts of this case study, usually by reference to statute and case law precedents. It will include options for the organisational response and the associated risks and make recommendations for action with supporting rationale.
Feedback Feedback on formative assessed work will be provided within 15 working days of submission, or in time to be of use in subsequent assessments within the course, whichever is sooner. Summative marks will be returned on a published timetable, which has been made clear to students at the start of the academic year.
Students will gain feedback on their understanding of the material when they discuss their answers to the tutorial questions in the tutorials. Students may also ask questions in Lectures to assess their knowledge.
Feedback format:
Informal feedback on student learning and contributions in class
Marks and generic feedback on assignment
Individual feedback and copy of formal feedback form
Exam Information
Exam Diet Paper Name Hours & Minutes
Main Exam Diet S2 (April/May)Employment Law CMSE111782:00
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. Explain the core principles that underpin employment law as it applies in the UK, their purpose, origin and practical implications
  2. Advise colleagues about significant legal implications of decisions, plans or proposals
  3. Advise about the appropriate action that should be taken in workplace scenarios where employment regulation applies
  4. Determine the appropriate organisational response when legal action on the part of a worker or employee is anticipated, threatened or taken.
  5. Know how to keep their knowledge of developments in employment law up to date
Reading List
The required text for this course is Taylor, S and Emir, A, Employment Law: An Introduction, published by Oxford University Press, 2015. It is essential that this most recent, fourth, edition is consulted.
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills Knowledge and Understanding
On completion of the course, students should:
- Have an extensive, detailed and critical knowledge and understanding of the institutions and law-making processes relevant to the management of employees
- have a critical understanding of the essential nature and terms of the employment contract
- have a critical understanding of the roles, rights and responsibilities of all parties to the employment relationship
- be able to identify underlying principles and objectives in legal regulation of the employment relationship and apply them in practical scenarios
- have a critical awareness of the current statutory framework and regulatory provisions and be able to apply that to a range of relevant scenarios

Cognitive Skills
On completion of the course, students should:
- be able to combine a theoretical understanding of employment regulation with an appreciation of the practical organisational issues arising from regulation
- exhibit an awareness of the concerns and experiences of a range of organisational stakeholders
- be able to evaluate and critically review the impact of the latest legal regulation on effective organisational functioning
- be able to identify the objectives and assumptions of currently proposed solutions to problems of regulating the employment relationship.
- Be able to deal with complex issues and make informed judgements in situations in the absence of complete or consistent data/information

Key Skills
On completion of the assessed work, students should:
- be able to identify the relevant legal issues and areas relating to particular workplace problems or incidents
- apply critical analytical skills to theoretical and practical issues arising in regulating the employment relationship
- be able to summarise and explain alternative/contending stakeholder positions
- be able to understand and demonstrate how relative standards in the employment relationship (e.g. fairness or reasonableness) are arrived at
- be able to demonstrate considerable conceptual, verbal and written clarity in addressing the issue of managing risks and disputes in the workplace
- communicate, using appropriate methods, to a range of audiences with different levels of knowledge/expertise, including peers, more senior colleagues and specialists
- Be able to apply their knowledge of employment law to a range of hypothetical problems

Subject specific skills
On completion of the course, students should be able to give a critical analysis of existing legal regulation, issues arising from the existing legal framework, and recent developments as well as proposals for change
KeywordsEL
Contacts
Course organiserDr Kristina Potocnik
Tel: (0131 6)50 4307
Email: Kristina.Potocnik@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMr Peter Newcombe
Tel: (0131 6)51 3013
Email: Peter.Newcombe@ed.ac.uk
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