Employment

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Over recent years, employment law has become increasingly wide-ranging and ever more complex.  Employment law is subject to constant change through legislation, the courts’ interpretation and even ministerial diktat.  Consequently we assist employers in taking a pro-active approach in managing their employees and the working environment.

Our specialist unit has extensive experience in all aspects of employment law as it relates to the maintained and independent school sector, and our advice is tailored to the particular needs of our clients.  We know that what is “right” for commercial organisations is not necessarily “right” for educational institutions whose culture is often so different.  However, our expertise in the commercial sector can be of significant value to our education clients.  In addition to working alongside both in-house and local authority HR departments to provide day-to-day advice, we can also offer our own HR function to our clients where necessary.

Our expertise includes:

  • Contracts and terms of employment (including STPCD and the Burgundy Book);
  • Disciplinary, grievance and capability procedures;
  • Equal opportunities, including defending equal pay litigation;
  • Working time rules and calculations;
  • Part time and fixed term employees;
  • Age, disability, race, sex, sexual orientation and religious discrimination;
  • Dismissals, including advice on unfair, constructive, wrongful, redundancy and retirement dismissals;
  • TUPE and related issues;
  • Pensions – occupational, personal and public sector, including Teachers’ Pensions and the LGPS;
  • Restrictive covenants;
  • Family friendly working issues;
  • Compromise agreements;
  • Human rights;
  • Employment of non-EEA nationals;
  • Appraisal systems;
  • Whistle blowing;
  • Representation at employment tribunals.

Unusually for a firm of solicitors we have a HR Adviser within our employment team who is able to assist our clients on day to day HR issues as well as on specific projects.  The distinct advantage of this is that you know our HR Adviser has the full support or our experienced employment lawyers. Click here for further details.

We also provide an employment law “hotline” facility for clients on an annual retainer basis as well as a thrice-yearly newsletter and a monthly e-mail bulletin highlighting all of the latest important developments in employment law.