Professional sector – Useful Employment Law & HR
information
RBS
Mentor can help your
professional business with its Employment Law compliance and HR
needs.
Because disciplinary action can result in professional
sanctions, extra care needs to be taken when handling disciplinary
issues
If a disciplinary procedure could result in a person being
barred from working again in the sector, you will need to take
particular care in handling the matter. In particular, employment
tribunals have held that a professional person might have the right
to legal assistance and representation at disciplinary hearings
which might result in his or her dismissal if that also involves
making a report to the relevant professional or regulatory body.
You should also take care to follow closely any contractual
disciplinary procedures.
If you don’t get it right, you could find yourself on the wrong
side of an unfair dismissal claim – or worse, a breach contract
claim in court – and liable to pay significant compensation.
You should:
- Always take care to follow any contractual disciplinary
procedure when dealing with professional staff
- Take expert advice if disciplinary action might result in a
requirement to report the matter to a professional or regulatory
body.
RBS
Mentor can provide:
- Guidance on appropriate disciplinary and grievance
procedures
- 24/7 telephone advice during disciplinary and grievance
proceedings
If passing exams is part of the package, make sure
things are clear in the contract of employment
In many professional jobs, it will be necessary for employees to
either pass exams, keep up continuing professional development, or
stay free of criminal convictions. Where you have these
expectations, it’s always best to set them out clearly in the
employee’s contract of employment. If you don’t, it may be
difficult to prove later what was agreed, and what are reasonable
grounds for terminating the employment.
You should:
- Ensure all training, professional competence and qualification
requirements are set out in the employee’s contract of
employment.
RBS
Mentor can provide:
- Appropriate terms and conditions of employment and contract
documentation
- An Employee Handbook containing procedures appropriate to your
business
- 24/7 telephone advice and support.
If you use agency temps to help out, take care you don’t
breach the Agency Workers regulations
All offices need extra help from time to time, and agency staff
are often called upon to fill in gaps when permanent staff are away
– on maternity leave for example. Since October 2011 however, new
rules apply which mean that agency staff who are with you for 12
weeks or longer must have the same pay and other conditions as the
permanent staff they work alongside.
This may alter the way you look at agency
temps – you might, for example, consider hiring temporary workers
directly to cover longer absences such as maternity leave.