Employment Solicitors for Employers

Employment Solicitors for Employers

Employment Lawyers for Employers

Continual changes in employment legislation and what may, at times, seem like an unceasing stream of employment case law being generating by our country’s courts and tribunals can often leave businesses feeling unsure as to what their obligations are to those they employ. Even the most diligent and conscientious of employers can find themselves caught out by the complexities, nuances and changes in employment law with serious financial consequences and reputational damage to their businesses sometimes being the end result. It is important, therefore, that employers receive accurate and up-to-date advice on this ever-evolving area of our law in order to mitigate risk and protect their interests.

Summerfield Browne offers a wide range of employment law services to employers, including those described below.

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0800 567 7595

Chris is excellent at getting to grips quickly with our members’ legal issues, and giving practical, succinct and jargon-free advice.

Sarah Watts, Institute of Directors

Our Employment Solicitors provide the following legal advice

Contract drafting and negotiation

The foundation of the employment relationship is the contract of employment between the employer and employee. Whether you are hiring a new member of staff or negotiating a contract variation with an existing employee, our employment solicitors can advise on and draft contractual provisions which are appropriate to the specific circumstances.

Workplace policies and procedures

In addition to the contract of employment, it is advisable to have written workplace (or employment) policies and procedures in place. We also recommend that you ensure that your employment policies and procedures are regularly reviewed to ensure that they remain legally compliant and in accordance with the latest best practice. Examples of the types of employment policies and procedures on which we can advise include:

Disciplinary and grievance procedures
Equality, diversity and inclusion policy
Flexible working policy
Health and safety policy
IT and data protection policies
Social media policy
Whistleblowing policy
Capability policy
Drugs and alcohol policy
Expenses policy
Family leave policy (including maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave)
Sickness absence policy

Redundancy procedures

No business likes making redundancies. But on the occasions when redundancies are necessary for the long-term viability of the business, for example, it is crucial that the correct procedures are followed. Redundancies should always be treated with sensitivity and there is a requirement that employees be treated fairly. Conducting a redundancy process can be complex and time consuming and it is advisable to seek expert legal advice and assistance to minimise the risk of a claim.

Our employment solicitors can advise you on navigating this complex area of law, including:

Considering ways to avoid compulsory redundancies
Identifying selection pools
Seeking volunteers for redundancy
Consultation with employees
Identifying appropriate selection criteria and applying the criteria fairly
Offering suitable alternative employment
Providing employees who have been given notice of dismissal by reason of redundancy a reasonable amount of time off to look for work

TUPE

The Transfer of Undertaking (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (‘TUPE Regulations’) protect the rights of employees in the following scenarios:

  • where an organisation, or part of it, is transferred from one employer to another (a business transfer); and
  • where there is a service provision change.
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The precise definition of a ‘service provision change’ is contained in reg 3(1)(b) of the TUPE Regulations, but can be summarised as covering the following three situations:

  • Contracting out/outsourcing – for example, where an organisation outsources an activity (e.g. cleaning services) which it previously carried out on its own behalf;
  • Retendering – for example, where a contract for services ceases to be performed by one contractor and is subsequently performed by another contractor;
  • Contracting in/insourcing – for example, where a service performed by a contractor is subsequently brought in-house.

TUPE is a notoriously complex area of employment law. Therefore, if you are contemplating the sale or purchase of a business or are involved in a service provision change, it is advisable to consult specialist employment lawyers to ensure that you follow the correct procedures and are aware of all your obligations and liabilities under TUPE.

Handling disciplinary and grievance processes

While we advise employers to have robust policies and procedures in place for handling disciplinary and capability issues, they do not operate as a guarantee against a disgruntled employee bringing a claim. Many claims of unfair dismissal and unlawful discrimination which reach the employment tribunal arise out of situations where management failed to correctly follow their own perfectly good procedures or misapplied a policy in the circumstances of a particular case. It is for this reason that we strongly urge employers to consider seeking expert advice where issues of misconduct or capability may be present, especially where the facts may be complicated.

Like with disciplinary procedures, all employers should have a clear, well-written and easily accessible grievance procedure, which, as a minimum, follows the ACAS Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures. A written grievance procedure is an important document that explains how an employee should go about raising a grievance if they have a problem at work. Many grievances which arise in the workplace are handled informally, but, where an employee submits a formal grievance, the formal grievance procedure should be adopted. The handling and resolution of grievances can often become complex where there are two or more related grievances, a grievance is raised by an employee who is subject to a disciplinary process, or a grievance raises complex or sensitive issues. In scenarios such as these, seeking expert legal advice at an early stage is likely to result in a speedier resolution of the grievance and reduce the risk of an expensive legal dispute developing.

ACAS Early Conciliation

Unless an exemption applies, an employee must comply with the requirements for ACAS Early Conciliation before presenting a claim to an employment tribunal. Once the procedure is initiated, ACAS is under a duty to “endeavour to promote a settlement” of the dispute. Where a settlement can be reached, it will usually be recorded in a legally binding agreement known as a COT3.

Summerfield Browne’s employment solicitors can advise on the pre-claim conciliation process and on the negotiation of any terms of settlement to be included in the COT3 document.

Responding to Employment Tribunal Claims

If you have received an employment tribunal claim our employment lawyers can advise you on your prospects of successfully defending the claim as well as assist you at every stage of the tribunal proceedings, including:

Drafting the Response Form (ET3) and Grounds of Resistance
Disclosure/discovery of documents
Preparing and exchanging witness statements
Preparing bundles of documents
Preparing an agreed list of issues, chronology and cast list
Conducting settlement negotiations
Representation at tribunal hearings

Our fees

Details of our fees for defending employment tribunal claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal can be viewed here.

If your situation involves another type of employment matter, please contact us for a fee estimate.

For details of our fees click on the link below.

Offices & geographic areas

We have offices in London, Birmingham, Cambridge, Oxford (all by appointment only), Leicester and our administrative office is in Market Harborough, Leicestershire.

All correspondence and post should be sent to our Administrative office in Market Harborough and we shall not be liable in the event that correspondence is sent elsewhere.

We provide legal services for

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Get in touch with us today!

Contact us on 0800 567 7595 or alternatively on the various office telephone numbers as follows: All correspondence and post should be sent to our Administrative office in Market Harborough and we shall not be liable in the event that correspondence is sent elsewhere.

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Summerfield Browne Solicitors

Harborough Innovation Centre,
Leicester Road, Market Harborough,
Leicestershire, LE16 7WB
Please note that our telephone calls may be recorded for record, monitoring and staff training and development purposes.
Summerfield Browne Solicitors is the trading name of Summerfield Browne Limited a private limited company registered in England and Wales under number 07937576 with registered address at Harborough Innovation Centre, Airfield Business Park, Market Harborough, Leicestershire LE16 7WB. Summerfield Browne Limited is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority - SRA number: 598802. A list of directors is open to inspection at the registered address.
© Summerfield Browne Limited. All Rights Reserved. All trademarks Acknowledged.
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