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Employment

Specialist guidance, advocacy and protection for everyday matters and contentious issues.

Experienced advice you can rely on

Managing employment law issues can be a time-consuming and costly distraction from your everyday business. We provide reassurance and guidance when you need it most, and act for both employers and employees. You can turn to us for experienced advice on anything from day-to-day employment queries, including contentious and non-contentious matters, through to advocacy in employment tribunals.

Sensitive, practical problem solving

We’re proud to have an excellent reputation for taking care of conflict work sensitively and professionally, often during difficult periods such as business closures. We work hard to understand your needs and goals and are able to work within your timeframe. You’ll get clear advice, that’s both commercially focused and empathetic, responsive service and a hands-on approach to problem-solving.

Training to keep you updated

To help ensure you’re equipped to prevent or manage any difficult situations, we hold regular training sessions in all our offices. They’re often run in partnership with recruitment businesses, accountants and banks, and are designed to keep you updated on changes in legislation and topical issues. We also provide in-house training for senior staff on subjects such as disciplinaries, grievances and performance procedures.

Specialist fixed-fee support

We know it’s important you have access to quick, clear, up-to-date advice, so our specialist support service is there whenever you need it. Called HELP, it’s our fixed-cost package for human resources and employment law protection. For an annual fee, you get expert advice tailored to you, a review of your current practices and, if needed, insurance against potential employment tribunal claims.

What our clients say

“Customer service is genuinely outstanding, you always get an immediate answer which supports effective case management.” Tracy Nash Share MAT
“They have gone above and beyond everything I’ve expected and are a great group of people who are passionate and genuinely care about what they do.” Chambers and Partners
“Their advice is always clear and consistent and speed of response is exceptional.” Lyn Ayrton Lake Legal
“They look at issues as if they were their own – taking real ownership rather than advising from the sidelines.” Legal 500

What areas do we cover?

  • Advice on family friendly policies and procedures
  • Changing terms and conditions of employment
  • Discrimination and equal pay claims
  • Misconduct, poor performance and sickness absence issue

 

 

 

  • Representation at employment tribunals
  • Redundancies and restructures
  • TUPE advice
  • Unfair and wrongful dismissal claims
  • HELP
  • Migrant workers
  • HR Health Check
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Settlement agreements

Settling employee claims legally

Settlement agreements are used to resolve employment-related claims. Typically, they involve an employee receiving money in exchange for agreeing to terminate their employment and settle any claims. For the agreement to be legally binding, the employee must get legal advice on the terms of the agreement, and employers usually contribute towards the cost of this.

Guidance for employers

If you need to arrange a settlement agreement, the whole process needs handling with care as getting it wrong can lead to costly claims. We can guide you through the procedures and protected conversations it involves. We’ll explain how to approach the employee and agree terms, and can conduct negotiations for you if needed.

Support for employees

If you’re an employee and have been offered a settlement agreement by your employer, we can also advise you. We can reassure you as to the fairness of the offer or negotiate for a better deal on your behalf, if necessary.

Capacity for large volumes, UK wide

In difficult times, employers may need to conduct large-scale redundancy procedures and need numerous employees to enter into settlement agreements quickly. We can handle this kind of high-volume work and meet tight deadlines, and welcome referrals from other law firms that don’t have this capacity. We advise clients across the country and can provide prompt guidance remotely.

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HELP

Timely fixed-fee support
HELP is our retainer service for HR, employment law and health and safety protection, giving you prompt, clear guidance from experts you can trust. For an annual fee, you get specialist legal advice and a review of your current practices. Plus, the reassurance that whatever issues you come up against in this area, you can turn to us for support.

Access to unlimited advice
We agree the cost of your HELP package with you at the outset, so you can be confident there’ll be no unexpected charges. This fee includes unlimited telephone, email and written advice from our experienced team of qualified solicitors. It also includes regular updates on HR and employment law matters and two free places at all our employment law seminars.

Health and Safety
How compliant is your premises? Check your risk using our calculator.
Ensuring your employees, customers and other third-party visitors are safe on your premises is not only good business practice but also a legal requirement. Our partner Crysp  provides an add-on to your HELP package, giving your business the health and safety protection it needs. Crysp offers a unique portal to fully manage the compliance process, which includes health and safety inspections, fire risk assessments and e- learning tools.

A package tailored to you
If you’d like additional services, we can design a HELP package tailored to your specific needs and budget. This might include, for example, meetings, drafting contracts of employment, employment tribunal proceedings and more. If you’d like the comfort of extra protection, we can provide an insurance package too to cover the legal costs of employment disputes and the cost of settlements or awards.

Packages are based on one of three fixed-fee options:

Option 1: Unlimited telephone, email and written advice for matters relating to HR or employment law.
Option 2: The benefits of option 1, plus preliminary advice (usually up to half an hour per issue) for general legal concerns, including disputes, property and commercial matters.
Option 3: The options above plus Health and Safety advice from Crysp.  Centralise and manage your compliance with an online portal, gain insight and support tailored to your individual requirements.

Contact us to discuss your requirements and find a package that suits you.

Our packages

Option 1 – HR/employment law support
This option includes genuinely unlimited telephone, email and written advice from our experienced team of qualified solicitors. It also includes regular updates on HR and employment law matters and two free places at all our employment law seminars.

• Changing terms and conditions
• Drafting and negotiating compromise agreements
• Disciplinary and/or performance issues
• Drafting responses to discrimination questionnaires
• Grievance procedures
• Reviewing and/or drafting letters to employees or unions
• Unlimited telephone, email and written advice
• Regular updates on HR and employment law issues
• Redundancies
• Sickness absence issues
• TUPE
• Two free places at all Schofield Sweeney employment seminars

Option 2 – Additional specialist commercial legal advice
For an additional fixed fee, Option 2 provides all of the above plus 30 minutes of advice via phone or email on any business legal matter, including:

• Contractual disputes
• Property disputes
• Commercial property
• Planning
• Environmental
• Regulatory
• Data protection
• Intellectual property
• Acquisitions/disposals

Option 3  – Health and Safety support and online portal
Crysp is able to offer a unique platform that takes the administrative and management burden away as well providing specialist insight and support tailored to your individual requirements, including:

• Provide physical and workplace health and safety inspections
• Physical fire risk assessment
• Provision to provide a fully managed compliance process on your behalf
• Fire, first aid, stress management and Health and safety e-learning modules
• A market leading digital platform to support these points as well other features that really give you and your business the protections it needs.

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Migrant workers

Reducing complexity and risk

A shortage of skills in the UK makes recruiting workers from abroad an attractive option. Red tape can make the process laborious and complicated, however, and it’s likely to become more challenging when Britain leaves the EU. We’re here to help.

Ensure you avoid criminal sanctions

As it’s a criminal offence to employ someone who doesn’t have the right to work in the UK, it’s crucial to know and follow the rules. We can guide you through the whole process, helping you to navigate the various procedures and dealing with the red tape on your behalf.

Support for recruitment and settlement

We can also help you to obtain sponsorship licences and certificates of sponsorship. And we can advise you on the most appropriate route to the visa needed for each employee, and the settlement and pre-settlement schemes for EU nationals.

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HR Health Check

For additional reassurance, we are now offering a HR Health Check to help employers identify potential deficiencies in their employment contracts and policies.

Once you have completed the questionnaire, you’ll receive a copy of the results.

We’re here to help if you have any questions or would like us to review your employment contracts and policies.

Take our free HR Health Check. 

If you would like to speak to a member of the team, email employment@schofieldsweeney.co.uk  or call 0800 368 9818.

Key contacts

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Simon Shepherd

Partner
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Alex Clements

Partner
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John Robinson

Partner
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Annie Gray

Associate
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For advice you can rely on, contact us today

0113 849 4000
enquiries@schofieldsweeney.co.uk

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