Employment Law

Less is more as far as we are concerned in terms of policies and we’ll make sure that we listen carefully to your requirements so that you have what you need to be compliant in terms of the law and your industry sector. Our policies are written in easy-to-understand language and you have the choice of illustrations throughout the handbook too.

All employers are legally obliged by Section 1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 to issue a statement of employment particulars or a contract of employment within two months of the employee’s commencement date. We’ll guide you on the most suitable contract for your employees – part-time, full-time, etc., and can either provide you with templates or prepare the individual contracts for you – it’s up to you.

Following discussion and agreement with the employee, any changes to a contract of employment must be put in writing by means of an Amendment to Contract letter and we can provide you with a template or we can prepare the letter for you.

Sometimes our clients ask us for assistance with these when they work with consultants or sub-contractors. We’ll chat the individual circumstances through with you and once we have all the facts, we’ll either provide you with appropriate templates or once again, we can prepare the agreement for you.

We offer full sponsorship licence support if you require to employ personnel from overseas including management of all Home Office applications and compliance with complex regulations.  Several of our existing clients have already utlised this service.

If you employ key people to act as Directors, they will undoubtedly have access to your business’s most valuable (and often confidential) information, including financial facts and figures, personnel details and, probably most importantly, your customers. We can provide you with protection from such risk by drawing up bespoke Directors’ Service Contracts including suitable restrictive covenants and accompanying shareholder agreements, if relevant.

In an ideal world, employment issues get resolved through talking, mediation or formal procedures, but when none of these works, there is another tool left in the box to mutually agree the end of an employment relationship – the settlement agreement. The negotiation process is complex but we have many years of experience in this area of employment law and are well used to guiding our clients from the start of negotiations through to conclusion, including the drawing up of a legally compliant settlement agreement.

Our qualified employment law specialists have considerable practical experience in dealing with every aspect of an Employment Tribunal case. They are able, on behalf of a client, to lodge an initial response, interact with the claimant’s representative, interact with ACAS, respond to or request an order for production of documents, prepare witnesses, research all relevant case law and legal precedents, and prepare the bundle of documents. On the day of the hearing, the specialist will deal with evidence-in-chief, cross-examination, re-examination, summation including the discussion of relevant case law and legal precedents to defend the client. We are able to offer competitive rates on Tribunal Insurance. Get in touch for a quotation.

TUPE preserves employees’ terms and conditions when a business or undertaking or part of one is transferred to a new employer. At Greig Melville HR, we have been involved in many transfers both incoming and outgoing and we are experts in this area of employment law. We’ll guide you through the process from beginning to end including preparation of all documentation, support with consultation and negotiation with trade unions where relevant.