As workplaces are generally environments where people with different beliefs and personalities mix together, disputes and misunderstandings are inevitable. Therefore, if you are a business owner, it is in your best interests to ensure that you are fully prepared for any eventualities in order to avoid disruption to your operations and, most importantly, ensure your employees’ protection and well-being.
If you are looking for reliable employment law advice for employers, you have come to the right place. At Astons Solicitors, we provide specialist expert advice to employers on all aspects of employment law. As we practise exclusively in this domain, we work with business owners on a daily basis, helping them deal with the various employment issues that can arise in their offices and workplaces.
Why Choose Astons Solicitors?
Founded in 1989, Astons Solicitors specialises in employment law for employees and employers. Throughout the years, we have served a wide array of clients in the UK, ranging from small family businesses to multinational companies. We also provide employment law advice to private individuals who require professional help.
We pride ourselves on our friendly, reliable and cost-effective legal services, and our solicitors are renowned for resolving a wide range of employment and HR issues. Because we recognise that speed, efficiency and favourable outcomes are essential to our clientele, we always strive hard to ensure that we meet all their expectations and provide optimum satisfaction.
Whether you are looking to update or renew your current employment policies and procedures, make some redundancies, restructure your company, or contest a claim that has been made against you in an employment tribunal, we can provide you with clear, practical and expert employment law advice at extremely competitive rates. In short, we do not just tell you what the law states, we deliver practical business solutions.
How We Will Assist You
At Astons Solicitors, we offer a whole host of employment law services to employers, providing a one-stop shop for all your legal needs. Our extremely proficient and competent solicitors will ensure that you receive the legal assistance you require in all aspects of employment law, including the following areas.
1. Contracts of Employment
If you are hiring an individual to work for your business, a contract of employment is essential. This contract should contain vital information about the duties and responsibilities of both parties. For example, it should specify the terms and conditions, the required working hours, the rates of pay, holiday entitlement, and the benefits available, among other things. Making sure that you have a clear and concise employment contract in place is an excellent way of avoiding future disputes or complications. Therefore, it is recommended that you seek advice from employment law solicitors (such as Astons) when drafting a contract between your business and your employees.
2. Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures
Section 3 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 states that employees should be provided with a written statement that sets out your company’s disciplinary policies. As an employer, you are required by law to implement specific disciplinary procedures before terminating an individual’s employment. Otherwise, you may find yourself facing a claim for unfair dismissal.
Similarly, your company must also have a grievance policy in place. It should be drafted in such a way as to encourage staff to speak out and air their complaints without any fear of being dismissed or persecuted. This is vital to the growth of your company as it will allow you to address any issues effectively.
Having comprehensive disciplinary and grievance procedures in place can help prevent any claims for unfair dismissal or other similar liabilities against you. To ensure the best possible outcome, it is crucial that you seek employment law advice for employers.
3. Discrimination
In any business, discrimination is a very serious offence. If an employee alleges that they have been discriminated against in your workplace, it can affect not only your other employees’ morale but also your company’s reputation. This could have a snowball effect on your business, potentially leading to undesirable results, such as a reduction in sales and profits.
Please note that you can be held liable for any act of discrimination or harassment made by an individual employee during their employment. However, if you can demonstrate that you have taken all the necessary steps to prevent such incidents from occurring, only the employee will be held responsible. Therefore, in order to prevent discrimination in your workplace, it is crucial that you enlist the help of expert employment law solicitors to draft clear policies and implement appropriate procedures.
4. Unfair Dismissal
A claim for unfair dismissal can arise if an employer terminates an employee’s work contract for unjust reasons or without following the appropriate investigative or disciplinary procedures. As discussed earlier, clear and concise disciplinary policies should be put in place to avoid such issues. However, if you do find yourself facing this type of allegation despite your best efforts, it would be wise to seek legal advice to determine the most suitable course of action.
5. Redundancy
A redundancy occurs when a job an employee is hired to do ceases to exist and the person tasked to undertake it is dismissed. It is one of the fair grounds for dismissal, as stated in the Employment Rights Act 1996. However, before making an employee redundant, you must prove that there is indeed a need for redundancies within your company. You also have to show that you have acted fairly and reasonably when addressing this issue. Otherwise, you may be accused of unfair dismissal. Fortunately, at Astons Solicitors, we will offer you employment law advice for employers to ensure that you will handle redundancies with compassion and in line with the law.
Proactive Services
Besides the legal advice discussed above, we can also provide a range of proactive services to employers, from reviewing policies and procedures to identifying HR issues. We also offer in-house training to staff on any aspect of employment law, including how to conduct disciplinary action, carry out investigations and ensure equal opportunities are supported. Our in-house training programmes are individually tailored to our clients’ needs so please get in touch with us for more information about how we can help.
We also provide regular employment law updates in our public seminars where attendance is open to all and not just clients of Astons Solicitors.
Speak With Us Today
At Astons Solicitors, we strongly advise business owners to adopt a proactive approach to running their company as this is vital to their success. We are delighted to be able to provide employment law services that will ensure that all of your employment and HR issues are handled in a professional manner.
Contact our employment law solicitors today by calling the telephone number listed on this page or by completing the form below.
Please click on the below links for more information about specific areas of employment law.
- Contracts of Employment
- Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures
- Unfair Dismissal
- Unfair Constructive Dismissal
- Discrimination – Sex, Race, Age, Disability, Religion or Belief
- Transfers of Undertaking
- Redundancy
- Settlement Agreements (Previously known as Compromise Agreements)
- Working Practices and Procedures
- Equal Opportunities
- Family Rights
- National Minimum wage
- Working Time Regulations
- Equal Pay Claims
- Bespoke Training Courses