Employment Law (with FAQ)

employment

Employment Law

We are Employment Law Solicitors based in Swindon. We can advise you with:

  • Settlement Agreement
  • Unfair Dismissal
  • Constructive Dismissal
  • Wrongful dismissal
  • TUPE
  • Redundancy
  • Health and Safety matter at work
  • Direct and indirect discrimination
  • Drafting Employment Contract and so on.

    We can also advise on all issues regarding Furlough.

 
Length of time:
If a settlement is reached during pre-claim conciliation, your case is likely to take 2-4 weeks. The aim of employment tribunals is to conclude all cases within 26 weeks of the claim starting but in reality, it may take longer to conclude, often 40-60 weeks from the claim starting to the final hearing.
Services:
  • Disciplinary and grievance procedures, absence and performance management
  • Discrimination claims
  • Employment disputes and litigation
  • Disciplinary and grievance procedures, absence and performance management
  • Employment disputes and litigation
  • Restrictive covenants and team moves
  • Terminations and settlement agreements
  • Transactions, redundancies, restructurings and outsourcing
  • Disciplinary and grievance procedures, absence and performance management
  • Employment contracts, policies and procedures
  • Flexible working and family friendly rights at work
  • Global mobility and employment law
  • GDPR and data protection
  • Senior managers and certification regime (SMCR)
Services not included:
We advise on employment but not on tax or pensions. If you need specific advice on these matters, we can arrange for you to receive this from other specialists in these fields. When advocacy is required, we generally instruct counsel save for some preliminary hearings which we conduct ourselves.

Charges/Fees


Disbursements (payable to third parties e.g. counsel’s fees, expert’s fees, travel expenses and court fees) Typical fees for counsel are as follows:
Simple case: Brief fee £500-£1000 (No VAT)
Medium complexity case: Brief fee £1500-£5000 (No VAT)
High complexity case: Brief fee £6000-10,000 (No VAT

Grade A Solicitor (Grade A Solicitors and Fellows with over eight years' PQE, including at least eight years' litigation experience) - £217 per hour
Grade B Solicitor (Solicitors and Fellows with over four years' PQE, including at least four litigation experience) - £192 per hour
Grade C Solicitor (Grade C Other solicitors, Fellows, and fee-earners of equivalent experience) - £161 per hour
 

FAQ - Employment Law

How much notice should my employer have given me?
If your employer has chosen to make you redundant, they must give you sufficient notice. The law prescribes a statutory minimum length of notice that employers must give: 12+ years worked = 12 weeks Under 2 years worked = 1 week Between 2 and 12 years worked = 1 week for each year worked Once you have worked out the minimum amount of notice that your employer must give you, you need to look at what your employment contract says. Whichever period of notice is longer is what you are entitled to. If you have not been given sufficient notice, this could be a ground for unfair dismissal.
What is unfair dismissal?
You may claim unfair dismissal if you are an employee of a company and have worked there for 2 continuous years. A dismissal will be unfair if it cannot be justified under one of five headings: capability, conduct, redundancy, statutory illegality, or some other substantial reason. Where one of these reasons cannot be identified, the case will depend on whether the employer acted reasonably in terms of their size and administrative resources. You can appeal the decision to dismiss you, and if you are successful, a tribunal may order that your employer reinstates you or pays you compensation.
Can I be made redundant if I am on maternity leave?
Your employer can make you redundant while you are on maternity leave, but their reason for making you redundant cannot be that you are on maternity leave. If it is, then this will be seen as automatic unfair dismissal and discrimination. If you are on maternity leave and there is a genuine reason to make your role redundant, your employer must offer you suitable alternative work if they have it.
What are my rights to equal pay?
Every person who is doing equal work of equal value must be paid equally. The work each person does may not have to be exactly the same, so if the work is of the same or a broadly similar nature and there is no genuine reason for the difference in pay, you may still have a claim. If you cannot resolve this issue informally or via the employer’s complaints route, you can bring a claim under the Equality Act 2010, or in front of an Employment Tribunal. Stella Maris Solicitors LLP can help you understand which steps you need to take to make a claim.
What is a settlement agreement?
A settlement agreement might involve your employer promising to pay you some money, to stop treating you unlawfully, or both. It means that you agree that you will give up your right to make a claim in a tribunal against your employer. Before negotiating an agreement, we strongly advise that you contact Stella Maris Solicitors LLP for advice on how much your case is worth, negotiations and whether your employer’s offer is reasonable.
What do I do if one of my employees has a grievance?
It is best to try and settle their grievance informally between yourselves. If this is not possible, then the employee will need to go through your formal complaints procedure. Make sure that you have an appropriate and reliable complaints procedure to save you hassle should the complaints process not work and your case has to go before a tribunal.
How long do I have to bring a claim before a tribunal?
In most cases, you will have 3 months from the date of misconduct to file a claim. This is strict and the court will bar cases if they are submitted late. If you want to file a claim, make sure that you contact us as soon as you become aware of misconduct so that we can help you to begin the process as quickly as possible.
Our Prices
Typical fees for counsel are as follows:
  1. Simple case:
    2. Brief fee £500-£1000 (Counsel charges VAT)
  2. Medium complexity case:
    3. Brief fee £1500-£5000 (Counsel charges VAT)
  3. High complexity case:
    4. Brief fee £6000-10,000 (Counsel charges VAT)

Grade A Solicitor (Grade A Solicitors and Fellows with over eight years' PQE, including at least eight years' litigation experience) - £217 per hour

Grade B Solicitor (Solicitors and Fellows with over four years' PQE, including at least four litigation experience) - £192 per hour

Grade C Solicitor (Grade C Other solicitors, Fellows, and fee-earners of equivalent experience) - £161 per hour