Non-contentious advice for employers

Drafting employment documentation - contracts of employment and staff handbooks
It is vital that the documentation governing the employment relationship is right from the start. Ensuring the contract and other documentation is up to date and properly drafted will reduce the risk of a dispute arising with an employee and will put you in the best possible position to successfully defend any claim that may be made.

Restrictive covenants
If you want to prevent your employees and ex-employees from poaching your clients or customers, taking your confidential information to a competitor or unfairly competing with your business it is important that any restrictions contained in their contracts of employment are enforceable. In order to achieve this the restrictions must be no more than is reasonably necessary to protect your legitimate business interests. It is vital that any such restrictions are properly drafted and are tailored to the specific situation.

Bonus schemes
It is important to incentivise and reward your staff and many employers introduce bonus or commission schemes to achieve this. However such schemes can lead to disputes, particularly where the employment relationship is coming to an end. To minimise the risk of a dispute arising, we can assist with ensuring that the rules of the are tightly drafted.

Redundancy
At different times and for different reasons organisations may need to reduce the number of employees they have or reorganise the work those employees do. This may lead to a redundancy situation. We will guide you through the entire redundancy process in a fair and sensible way, providing standard letters, guidance and document packs if required.

Compromise agreements
It can often be important for an organisation to ensure that departing employees will not be able to pursue any claims. The only way to effectively do this is to enter into a compromise agreement. Such an agreement is only legally binding on the employee if they have had independent legal advice on the terms of the agreement. We can guide you through the whole process making sure the agreement is concluded swiftly and cost effectively. We will undertake any negotiations on your behalf if required, draft and agree the document itself and ensure it is correctly completed. Transfer of Undertakings (TUPE) following acquisitions or outsourcing.

The TUPE regulations do not just apply if you take over a business as a going concern or an organisation outsources a particular aspect of its work. They also cover the situation where there is a change in an outsourced service provider.

We advise businesses on the practical impact of TUPE to their organisation and provide commercial and cost effective solutions to TUPE problems.