Our employment law solicitors are specialists in their field and this section outlines how they can help you with day to day employment advice; family friendly issues; employee privacy and data protection; and documentation, contract and policy.
Day to day employment advice
Our employment solicitors provide advice in relation to a vast range of day to day employment disputes and issues, including:
- Grievance and disciplinary issues;
- Absence management;
- Stress claims;
- Managing poor performance;
- Mediation;
- Working Time Regulations;
- Employment status; and
- Typical or flexible working arrangements
Where an employee is performing poorly, acting unprofessionally or inappropriately or has made a complaint regarding their treatment at work, it is important for employers to carefully follow written grievance and disciplinary procedures, taking into account the ACAS Code on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures.
If you fail to follow the ACAS Code, this could negatively impact your position during any Employment Tribunal proceedings.
We can help clients resolve these kinds of issues proficiently, avoiding unnecessary stress. For example, for issues involving flexible working requests, we can provide advice on whether the request is reasonable, how you could accommodate the request, whether you can validly refuse, and whether there are any Equality Act considerations to take into account.
Family friendly issues
Work-life balance is essential for maintaining committed, happy, and productive employees. Employers have strict legal obligations to accommodate and not discriminate against employees for family-related matters. Our expertise includes:
- Maternity leave;
- Adoption leave;
- Bonus issues;
- Paternity leave;
- Parental leave;
- Shared parental leave;
- Time-off rights; and
- Flexible working.
Employee privacy and data protection
Under the Data Protection Act 2018, employers have strict duties regarding the collection, processing and distribution of employees’ personal data.
If employers breach data protection rules, it could also amount to other serious issues such as breach of contract or constructive dismissal. The key for avoiding issues is to be open with your employees about the kinds of data you collect and how you store it. Our employee privacy and data protection expertise includes:
- Vetting;
- References;
- Monitoring;
- Security issues;
- Dealing with subject access requests; and
- Retention of documents.
Documentation, contract and policy
The entire employer-employee relationship is underpinned by contracts of employment and the various procedures and policies implemented by the employer in the workplace. The interpretation of such documents can ultimately define the outcome of any grievance or dispute. Our documentation, contract and policy expertise includes:
- Employment contracts;
- Employment policies and procedures;
- Service agreements;
- Staff handbooks;
- Employment letters;
- Consultancy agreements; and
- Standard form documents.
