Can the UK Laws Protect Expatriate Employees and Peripatetic Employees

For people who love travelling, expatriate employment is a rewarding and life transforming opportunity.  Expatriates, often known as the “expats”, are individuals who come from all walks of life living within a different cultural or geographical setting, or both, whilst retaining strong ties to their roots.  These people may eventually choose to return to their native or settle down permanently abroad.

Expats should be distinguished from individuals with integral job aspects involving travelling and working at the same time, within a specific region, or from one country to another.  These people are “peripatetic employees”, with the term deriving from ancient Greek word περιπατητικός (peripatētikós), which also means “of walking”, arising out of Aristotle’s allegedAristotle’s alleged habit of walking while lecturing.

Before embarking on a thrilling journey navigating the picturesque views of harbour and hills of a foreign destination, individuals of these two categories should be thinking about their options should their employment relationship with the employer goes wrong.  If they wish to rely on the statutory protection of their employment rights within the UK, such as unfair dismissal and discrimination, the territorial scope of the UK domestic legislation and European Union laws will depend on which statute the individual is relying on, and whether case laws have casted light on its scope, regardless of whether the employment contract is governed by the English law under The Rome regulation on the law applicable to contractual obligations (EC) No 593/2008) (more commonly known as Rome I).

Therefore, discussing and achieving consensus on some common employment terms with your employer before travelling could be beneficial, for example:

• The main location they are expected to work from, or where is the beginning and end point of travel,

• The location of their main residence,

• Which currency will their wages be paid in,

• If they are subject to National Insurance.

For individuals who are already abroad and have not ascertained terms of employment with their employer, they might still enjoy the statutory protection under UK employment law if they have maintained a sufficiently strong connection with the UK.  Please write to us on info@lyint.co.uk if you are abroad but is experiencing difficulties with your British employer to find out if you can protect your employment rights within the UK. 

The cover picture is from <Library For Kids>