Contracts, Policies & Procedures

We offer a range of services, from reviewing and updating your existing policies and contracts to drafting new ones. We’ll make sure you have the right procedures in place to deal with any problems that occur. Some of the areas we can help with include:

• Employment contracts – from directors and senior managers to casual or zero-hours employees or workers
• Disciplinary & grievance procedures – to manage your relationship with your staff
• Employee data protection – to make sure you’re GDPR compliant
• Modern Slavery Act – to ensure your Transparency Statement is fit for purpose
• Whistleblowing policy – having a clear policy in place can help support your business and protect against legal action
• HR advice – through our fixed-fee service IMhrplus
• Restrictive covenants – advice as and when you need it through our fixed-fee service IM Protect.

We can also advise you about the best way to deal with any member of staff who breaches the terms of their contract. If you decide to take disciplinary action, we can help you protect your interests and minimise the risk your staff making a claim against you. Our employment solicitors can help you review your staff polices to make sure your business is as strong as possible and is protected against problems further down the line.

We can provide your business with a wide range of policies to help you manage staff, from complete handbooks to individual policies on:

• Performance management
• Absence management
• Annual leave and compassionate leave
• Dignity at work (often referred to as equal opportunities)
• Relationships at work
• Family-friendly working environment (including maternity, paternity, and shared parental leave and time off to look after dependents)
• Flexible working and home-working
• IT, internet and social media use
• Retirement
• Severe weather
• Travel and expenses.

We can review your existing policies or draft new ones from scratch, depending on your business need. 

Well-written contracts and policies can protect employers from potential issues such as:

• Senior staff taking valuable information, clients and contacts with them when they leave
• Harassment, bullying and discrimination
• Misconduct and inappropriate behaviour
• Employment tribunals and legal action
• Fines and penalties.

It’s essential to get legal advice to ensure your policies and procedures protect you as much as possible for the future. 

Well-drafted policies and procedures provide a clear framework to manage staff. They set clear boundaries about what is and is not acceptable and what will happen if employees fail to meet these expectations.

Having fair procedures in place, clearly defined in writing, will help reduce the number of grievances raised by your staff. These also give you a firm foundation to defend against any claims if a disgruntled employee does want to take action.