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Employment Law & HR

It isn’t just that employment law is complex; it is forever changing. We can help you cut through the red tape and manage every aspect of being an employer: from rates of pay to health and safety and maternity and paternity rights.

If you have employees or you are planning to hire employees for the first time, you need to be clear about your obligations and rights as an employer. The work and dedication put in by employees can make your business possible, but employment disputes can be complex to handle.

Many employers leave themselves vulnerable to employment claims, simply because they didn’t know that the law had changed, or they were not aware of their obligations. It’s our job to keep 100% up to date with fast-changing legal requirements so that you can concentrate on running a successful business.

Employment disputes

We understand that employment disputes can be difficult to handle and that it is all too easy for things to get personal. Issues such as bullying, discrimination allegations and terminating contracts of employment must be handled with professionalism and sensitivity.

Contact us for a free initial consultation about a whole range of employment law issues, including:

  • Contracts of employment
  • Terminating contracts of employment
  • Disciplinary procedures
  • Employment tribunal procedure
  • Defending an unfair dismissal claim
  • Maternity and paternity rights
  • Allegations of sex/age/racial/other discrimination
  • Equal pay
  • Bullying and harassment
  • Health and safety
  • Transfer of undertakings
  • Advice on redundancy and compromise agreements

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We’re a team but we’re also proud of the individual people who work here. We’re confident you will find us approachable, understanding and experts in our field.

Commercial Legal Services

What our employment lawyers can do for you

We can assist employers with a broad range of employment law matters, from putting in place the contracts and policies you need to protect yourself to employment dispute resolution advice.

Contracts of employment and policies & procedures

Your employment contracts, policies and procedures are vital documents that underpin your relationship with your employees. Properly drafted contracts should comply with certain legal requirements, be crystal clear on both parties’ rights, and provide practical mechanisms for resolving grievances and disputes.

We provide specialist contract advice for employers. We can draft and review your employment contracts, as well as other documentation, ensuring terms are set out clearly and reducing the risk of disputes arising or escalating.

Dismissals and redundancy

When dismissing an employee, you must use a fair and reasonable procedure and comply with the employee’s rights about things like notice periods or redundancy consultations.

If you fire an employee unfairly or without complying with their rights, you may find yourself facing a legal claim, such as an unfair dismissal claim or a wrongful dismissal claim. If you treat an employee unfairly and they end up resigning, you may face a constructive dismissal claim, even though you did not technically fire them.

Our employment solicitors can provide support and guidance if you are planning to dismiss an employee or are facing a potential claim for dismissing an employee. Our service includes:

  • Reviewing and advising on employment contracts, policies, and procedures
  • Advising on redundancy processes
  • Negotiating settlement agreements
  • Representing you in employment tribunal proceedings

Grievances and disciplinaries

We can provide a wide range of advice to help your business manage and resolve grievance and disciplinary issues in the workplace, including drafting and reviewing your procedures, negotiating constructive outcomes, and advising on dismissals.

Discrimination

The Equality Act means that employers cannot discriminate against their employees or prospective employees based on a protected characteristic, such as:

  • Gender
  • Marital status
  • Maternity or paternity
  • Sexual orientation
  • Race
  • Disability
  • Religion or belief
  • Age

Discrimination comes in many forms, from directly treating someone unfairly to indirectly implementing policies that disadvantage specific groups of people. Workplaces also cannot victimise employees who support complaints of discrimination.

We realise how tricky it can be to get things right and how these often-emotive issues can escalate quickly. We can advise on best practices in approaching potential discrimination issues. We can also represent your business in cases of alleged discrimination, including providing employment tribunal representation.

Bullying and harassment

If an employee feels intimidated or offended at work, either because of treatment from their employer or other employees, they may be able to make a claim for bullying and harassment. As an employer, you have a duty to protect your employees and resolve any grievances appropriately. However, we realise that these can be sensitive and complex issues to approach.

Our employment lawyers can support you in all bullying and harassment matters, including reviewing your grievance procedures, helping you handle employee complaints, and representing you during any disputes.

Health and safety

Health and safety at work is critical. If an employer breaches their legal responsibilities, the worst-case scenario could be the death or serious injury of an employee.

Our health and safety employment solicitors assist a wide range of businesses across all sectors, from professional services to construction. We can advise on matters such as:

  • Regulatory compliance
  • Drafting and implementing health and safety policies and procedures
  • Assessing potential liability after health and safety incidents
  • Representing you during investigations into accidents at work and legal claims

TUPE (Transfers of Undertakings)

Our TUPE solicitors can provide specialist advice to help your business protect its interests and the rights of employees when acquiring or disposing of a business.

Settlement agreements (compromise agreements)

When a dispute arises between an employer and an employee, sometimes the best option to prevent matters from escalating is to compromise, and both go their separate ways.

A settlement agreement (formerly known as a compromise agreement) is a legally binding contract that formally ends an employee’s contract of employment. Usually, the employer will agree to pay a sum of money and potentially other benefits, and in exchange, the employee will agree to waive their legal claims, protecting your business from employment tribunal action.

We can advise on, draft and review settlement agreements to resolve all kinds of employment disputes, minimising risk and reducing costs for your business.

Employment tribunal representation

We can provide fierce representation in employment tribunal proceedings. From unfair dismissal claims to disputes about pay or maternity leave, we will take a strategic approach to help your business resolve the matter as amicably as possible while protecting your reputation and commercial interests.

Contact our employment law solicitors in Sheffield and Barnsley

Contact our expert employment lawyers in Sheffield and Barnsley for all the advice you need to enable positive employer-employee relationships, protect your business, and resolve disputes.

We have local offices across Sheffield on Attercliffe Road and in Gleadless and Hillsborough, plus an office in Barnsley.

Give us a call at your nearest branch or fill in our online enquiry form, and we’ll give you a call back as soon as possible.