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Employment Solicitors

Welcome to QLAW’s employment law homepage! We hope you find everything you are looking for.

Our expert employment law solicitors look after both employers and employees. We have a whole host of FREE employment law guides on everything from settlement agreements, to discrimination at work, the grievance and disciplinary processes, through to how work fits in with family life. We also have a number of free downloads, as well as full details on the cost of our employment law services.

Check out our latest feature where you can instruct us immediately if you are an employee looking to have your settlement agreement signed off!

Discrimination at work

Discrimination at work is where an employee is treated unfairly because of their sex; gender; pregnancy or maternity leave; race; colour; age; disability; amongst other things.

If you feel you have been discriminated against and need the expert help of our employment solicitors – we can help! Whether you need an employment solicitor in Reigate, Redcar, or Reading – QLAW can help! Although our head office is in Reigate, we act for people all over the UK and overseas too.

Settlement Agreements

A settlement agreement is a binding document between employer and employee which is often entered into when the employee’s employment ends. By signing a settlement agreement, both employee and employer agree to a ‘clean break’ removing any scope for either party bringing court action against the other. When you sign your settlement agreement (as an employee) you must have it witnessed by an independent solicitor who must advise you on the content and impact of the settlement agreement. As settlement agreement solicitors, we are able to provide that independent advice to employees, and equally to advise employers who may want to issue settlement agreements – for example in a redundancy situation. Your employer will usually pay for most or all of the legal fee for getting your settlement agreement signed off. Check out our Settlement Agreement section which will answer all of your employment law questions including:-

• How much does a settlement agreement cost?
• How do I get a settlement agreement signed by a solicitor?
• Settlement agreement solicitor fees
• Do I have to sign a settlement agreement?

Disciplinary Policy & Process

Disciplinary policy & process is an employer’s framework for managing the performance and behaviour of their workforce. All employers should have a disciplinary policy which would typically be made available to employees via the ‘office manual’ or ‘staff handbook’. In the event of an employee underperforming, or their behaviour being out of line with company policy, the employer would then follow their process in accordance with their disciplinary policy. If an employer fails to follow that due process and an employee brings an employment tribunal, it can leave the employer liable to pay additional comp[ensation if the employee wins.

Grievance Policy & Process

A grievance policy is rather like a disciplinary policy but in favour of employees. Whereas a disciplinary process is designed to allow employers to bring concerns to an employee, a grievance policy and process is designed to give a legal framework to an employee raising concerns with their employer. A grievance process typically follows a similar path to the disciplinary process, with notice of the concerns being given, an investigation, a hearing, and a decision. There will typically also be an appeal process for an employee who has raised a grievance with their employer.

Misconduct at work

Misconduct at work can be anything from timekeeping, through to something serious like being intoxicated or fighting! Perhaps inevitably, it links with so many other areas of the employment law field such as

• Settlement agreements
• Disciplinary policy & process
• Grievance policy & process
• Discrimination at work

The level of seriousness of misconduct at work will impact the course of action that can be taken against an errant employee who may have committed misconduct at work. The most serious incidents at work can be deemed gross misconduct and even result in instant dismissal without pay of holiday. Reach out to our expert employment solicitors if you have been accused of misconduct at work, or you are an employer and have a problem employee.

Maternity & Family

Whilst there is now a considerable body of law protecting against mistreatment of employees around maternity and family in the workplace, we see all too many cases where an employee has been treated unfairly whilst pregnant or on maternity leave. This is potentially discrimination! We offer a FREE initial chat so if you have employment issues relating to your family or maternity leave or pregnancy, reach out to our expert team of employment lawyers.

Dismissal at work

Dismissal at work is where the employee finds themselves having ‘lost office’. That may be for any number of reasons, and as so often with employment it may incorporate any number of the employment law subjects our website covers. For example, a problem employee might raise any one or a combination of the following employment law subject matters:-

• Performance issues – requiring management under the disciplinary or performance management procedure
• Misconduct – forming part of those issues
• Grievance process – the employee may feel hard done by and raise a grievance
• Contract of employment – there may not be a written one causing issues
• Constructive dismissal – the employee may feel forced out
• Settlement Agreement – and as always any dispute might be ‘wrapped up’ in a settlement agreement

Employment Tribunals

When employment law problems don’t get resolved between employee and employer (or the employment solicitor on their behalf) then the final destination is an employment tribunal. In our employment tribunal section you can find all of your answer to questions like:-

• What is a tribunal?
• What powers does a tribunal have?
• How do I make a tribunal claim?

Our employment solicitors can help with these and any other employment law questions you have.

Contracts of Employment

Every employee should have a written contract of employment. And, every employer should provide one to their employees. A well drafted contract is the starting point of protecting both employer and employee in the event that things start to go wrong at work. So check out our section on contracts of employment where you will all of your employment law questions answered, such as:-

• How much does a contract of employment cost?
• Does a contract of employment need to be in writing?
• When do I get a contract of employment?
• Can my contract of employment be changed by my employer?

Holiday Sickness & Leave

If you find yourself in dispute with your employer on any aspect relating to holiday sickness and leave – reach out to our expert employment law solicitors. This is an area of employment law that can straddle various areas of the legal framework of the workplace. For example, you want answers to the following questions:

• Is it discrimination if I am sick from work because of disability?
• Can I be disciplined for being ill from work?
• Can I be dismissed for being sick (unfair dismissal)?
• Settlement agreements might be used to end an employment contract where sickness is a problem

Health & wellbeing at work

Health & wellbeing is at the top of the list for employees and employers – but of course when things go wrong at work, or indeed if you are an employer and want to prevent things going wrong, it may still be something that you need the help of an expert employment lawyer with. In our health & wellbeing at work section you can find how our employment solicitors can help you with things such as:-

• How to prepare a health & wellbeing policy
• Health & wellbeing policy templates
• What does a health & wellbeing policy cover?

TUPE Transfers

TUPE (transfer of undertakings of protected employment) Regulations 2006) is where one company buys another, and where your employment rights continue from the old company to the new. It is a minefield for employment lawyers! In our TUPE articles you will find helpful information on:-

• TUPE and redundancy
• TUPE – a simple guide
• Can I refuse TUPE?

Working Hours

Your working hours are an important part of your contract of employment. The pandemic gave rise to a more flexible approach by many employers to how where and when their employees fulfilled their employment working hours. Take a look at our articles covering all sorts of stuff around working hours.

Flexible Working

Working hours were something that witnessed change enforced by the pandemic, and something that many employees and employers have embraced despite the workplace going back to normal post COVID. So for many, flexible working has become that new norm. Flexible working is not without its challenges, and perhaps the most important thing as an employer is to do the ground work – managing flexible working head on. Speak to our expert employment lawyers about your office manual, staff handbook, and we can even help you with consultant HR consultants to proactively manage the challenges of flexible working with your employees.

Pay & wages

Let’s face it, not many employees would work without their employer paying their wages! As an important part of employment, it can become relevant in so many scenarios including dismissal and redundancy just by way of two examples. Check out our pay and wages guides including details on the national minimum wage.

Redundancy

No employer wants to lose employees, but sometimes economic factors, and even technological advances can leave positions ‘redundant’. It can be a difficult time for both employee and employer if cuts are needed in business costs. The critical thing with redundancy is to remember that it is the position that becomes redundant – from where (if there are more than one possible ‘candidates’ to lose their position), then all sorts of protocols kick in to make sure that any selection process is fair and proper. Our employment solicitors have put together a selection of redundancy guides that cover (amongst other things):-

• Where do I find my company’s redundancy policy
• Can redundancy be discrimination?
• How does my employer select who gets made redundant?
• What is a consultation period
• What are the stages of redundancy
• Do I get a settlement agreement on redundancy?

Whistleblowing

Whistleblowing at work is where an employee shares information about wrongdoing they have seen in the workplace. It might relate to criminal wrongdoing, regulatory wrongdoing, or breach of the organisation’s obligations to others.

• How do I raise a concern by whistleblowing
• What is whistleblowing at work