Employment

Getting the basics right is important in order to avoid the time and cost of potential conflict and having clear contracts, policies and procedures is essential. We will draft tailored terms and conditions which are right for your business and advise you on the correct application of those policies. 

Seeking the right advice at the right time is the best way to minimise the risk of claims. We are on hand to provide you when you need it with advice and solutions for your employment problems.

In all cases we will help you to find the most commercially viable solution to your problems whilst reducing the risk of claims. We will help you to achieve your commercial goals by the best and safest route. 

It is increasingly important to ensure that your staff, and your managers and key personnel in particular, are trained and knowledgeable in the rules, procedures and policies associated with employment law and that your employees feel positively about their working environment and are engaged with your business. 

Whatever restructure you are going through, whether redundancy or TUPE process, your business will be changing. In order to achieve the new structure you need, we can provide you with the right level of support throughout any consultation process whether with employees or unions.

When faced with the reality of an employment tribunal claim you need focussed, effective and commercially sound advice from someone who understands both you and the law. Our team of experienced employment lawyers take the time to get to know you and your business, so that if you are faced with the prospect of a claim you know that it is in safe hands.

Beyond this, we appreciate that the cost and efforts needed to address such claims are an unwelcome burden, we aim to ease that burden by offering a clear fee structure from the outset so there are no nasty surprises when the time comes to pay your bill.

The number of employee grievances continues to grow, disciplinary investigations and hearings accumulate and appeals have to be heard. Getting any of the processes wrong can be very expensive and unnecessary delays in scheduling hearings are frowned upon by tribunals.

As a team we work with many businesses taking away the distraction of internal procedures from their managers and ensuring an objective and legally sound outcome which will help to protect your business by stepping in to manage these processes for you.  

As a business your employees are likely to be your biggest asset, but occasionally there can be issues!

Our Employment Safety Net will allow you to deal quickly and effectively with work place issues with minimum fuss and cost.

Employment Safety Net provides:

• Advice – as and when you need it from experienced employment lawyers
• Contracts, Policies and Procedures – and audit and advice on all key policies and procedures in place in your business and notification of when they need to be updated
• Information – Newsflashes when urgent action is required
• Training – Free quarterly training based on your needs
• The ability to leave you free to get on with running your business.

For more information on Employment Safety Net contact Jon Taylor. 

As accredited mediators, we understand all the mediation routes so whether we're advising directors, partners or employees, we're able to assess both parties' positions with a level of fairness and accuracy. We also have extensive experience of designing and implementing in-house mediation in addition to undertaking the mediations ourselves. Whether proceedings have started or not, mediation is a successful way to resolve disputes at work. Mediation works best when:

• there is conflict between individuals or within a team
• an employer or employee feels bullied or harassed
• an individual feels discriminated against
• an employee is suffering from stress at work
• poor performance is an issue
• bonus or other contracted terms are in dispute
• there is dissatisfaction over equal pay

Whilst these are examples of the common use of mediation, to discuss your situation, please call Jon Taylor.

Many employers incorporate social media throughout their business strategy, whether in marketing their business or recruiting the right candidates. With no specific regulation of the use of social media by employees or employers in our national laws, the opportunity is there for you to tailor your policies on social media to fit your business with well thought out policies which are adapted to your needs but are consistent with general employment, data protection and privacy laws. However, without clear and consistent policies in place resolving issues and disputes with employees regarding their use of social media can pose a complex challenge which our employment team is becoming increasingly accustomed to facing.

Whether you believe that prevention is better than cure, or whether you are faced with an issue linked to an employee’s social media use, you can be comfortable in the knowledge that we will present a strategy that meets your goals.

Our experienced team provide mediation training for directors, managers and HR specialists. All our training courses are designed to give delegates the confidence to deal promptly and effectively with difficult issues. The team can deliver pre-designed mediation courses or can design and deliver bespoke individually tailored courses.

For more information on training sessions, please contact Jon Taylor.