Why practise employment law

Employment law is the collection of laws and rules that regulate relationships between employers and employees. Employment laws say when an employer can hire employees and when the employees can work.

The laws cover what an employer must pay the employee for their work. They create minimum requirements for working conditions for employees. There are minimum wage laws that require the employer to pay a certain amount. There are laws that prohibit the employer from discriminating against applicants or employees based on certain characteristics.

Employers must provide a safe working environment. In some cases, they must provide health insurance options. Employers must collect and submit payroll taxes on behalf of the employee.

With so many regulations to comply with, employers are often overwhelmed. Employers turn to lawyers to help them follow the law. At the same time, employees want labor laws enforced.

They may need help from an employment lawyer to understand what the laws are and whether their employer has violated the law. The Fair Labor Standards Act of sets a federal minimum wage. Many states also have minimum wage laws. Different types of employees might have special considerations. Employees have the right to overtime pay. The Fair Labor Standards Act says that an employer must pay time and half for any hours that an hourly employee works over 40 hours per week.

The United States has no requirement for paid medical leave. However, the Family and Medical Leave Act of says that large employers must offer up to 12 weeks of unpaid family leave. An employee can use family leave after the birth of a child or after an adoption. They can use it for their own health problem or to care for a spouse, child or parent who has a serious health condition. Employees have a right to organize collective bargaining with an employer.

If more than 50 percent of a workforce wants to organize, a company must negotiate in good faith. Employees have a right to safe working conditions. The Occupational Safety and Health Act of OSHA protects employees from foreseeable hazards at work including chemicals, extreme temperatures, noise, sanitation problems and conditions that are likely to cause injuries.

Employers must be careful to avoid discrimination against employees. They may not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin. The Civil Rights Act of prevents an employer from discriminating based on these qualifications in both the hiring process and when making a decision about a dismissal. There are some exceptions that employment lawyers should be aware of. For example, casting directors are able to make decisions that are consistent with their creative vision.

The employee must be able to fulfill the essential duties of the job, but they can have reasonable accommodations. Employees have First Amendment rights. However, employers have a right to go about their business without interference from employees. For example, in Pickering v Board of Education , a school wrongfully terminated a teacher for criticizing the school board. However, in Connick v. Myers , the court said that it was okay to fire a disgruntled employee for circulating a questionnaire on management practices.

Employees have a right to privacy in their own handbags and even in private telephone conversations. In many ways, that unpredictability keeps the working day interesting but it can mean that prioritising work is tricky. We always make sure that we understand what deadlines our clients need us to work to, which really helps us to know how work needs to be prioritised.

What sort of daily responsibilities does a partner have in employment law? How does it differ from an associate role? Like any employment lawyer a large part of my role involves me providing advice to clients, or colleagues in other specialisms e.

Corporate , on employment law matters. Can you give us an idea of the sort of projects you manage from day to day? Which aspect of employment law is dealt with most frequently by Shoosmiths?

The work that I do is varied and like most employment lawyers it tends to be a mixture of contentious and non-contentious matters. On the contentious side, it usually involves me managing employment tribunal claims for clients by helping them to generally defend proceedings that have been brought against them. I also give a lot of day to day advice on matters such as senior employee exists, or helping then to deal with employee grievances.

We also help clients and colleagues in other teams on the employment law aspects of matters such as mergers and acquisitions, reorganisations and outsourcing. Our clients come from a wide variety of sectors and industries. For my part, I tend to work with a lot of clients who are retailers, manufacturers, professional services firms, education establishments, as well as a number of membership bodies and charities.

Practicing employment law is all about helping clients make sense of the complex legislation and case law which governs the relationship between employees and employers.

Employment lawyers typically carry out a mixture of contentious work, such as Employment Tribunal litigation, and non-contentious advisory work. For this reason, it is a really varied and interesting specialism.

It can involve anything from assisting an exiting employee in negotiating a settlement package with their employer to advising a company on a large scale redundancy or restructuring project. What are some of the daily tasks that you come across when working in this area of law?

Like most employment lawyers, I do a combination of contentious and non-contentious work. My typical day will see me advising HR directors or in-house Counsel on issues such as discrimination and dismissal procedures. I am likely to be working on several pieces of high value litigation, which may require me to draft applications or witness statements. Therefore, it is imperative you adopt a mindset of continuous learning in order to provide your clients with up-to-date and well informed counsel.

Employment lawyers are used across all areas of the legal industry. Whether it be in a commercial or private law firm, or in-house for a specific organisation, employment lawyers provide critical support whenever questions of correct industrial relations emerge. For these reasons, employment law is a highly recession-proof area of the law.

During times of economic growth, organisations are likely to require legal advice as they hire new recruits, negotiate contracts and consider expansion. During recessions, organisations tend to downsize, a process that often involves extensive legal consultation. Updating Results. Employment law is an area of legal practice that relates to everything that we do in the world of work.

The balance between employee and employer in both small family-run companies and multinational corporates is vital. This is the fundamental principle underpinning employment law. Employment law includes everything from resource-hiring, conduct, promotion and workplace grievances to employment termination — either voluntary or forced. An employment lawyer may represent an individual employee, group of employees or an employer.

The role of an employment lawyer is also to give advice against claims to the businesses and institutions involved, gather and explore HR policies focusing on all elements of the employment agreement, and carry out negotiations with both the employer and trade unions, when applicable. Sign up for our flagship Aspire conference for vital information and tips. Therefore, this area of law can be applied to all manners of instances that occur in the working life of both an employee and employer, including but not limited to :.

Employment law is here to protect every individual in the working world. Without it, there would be no clear authority on the multifaceted, complex and, at times, contentious area of employment. Matt Gingell , Managing Partner of Lombards law firm, has produced some informative bitesized employment law videos. Advertisement cookies to view the content. The Employment Rights Act governs the area of employment law.

This legislation is a comprehensive framework that underpins the modern working environment. Below is the most common step-by-step route for those wondering how to become an employment lawyer:. Please note: From , the route to becoming a solicitor is expected to change.

Barristers, who are self-employed, can enjoy higher salaries than solicitors, who are traditionally employed by a law firm. However, the working hours and associated costs with self-employment will need to be considered, so weighing up both options before embarking on either route is recommended. Watch another video by employment lawyer Matt Gingell on redundancy: Advertisement cookies to view the content.

There are plenty of law firms specialising in employment law and other firms with dedicated employment law departments. Examples of these UK firms in and outside of London include the following:. If you are unsure of the difference between a barrister and solicitor, or the qualifications and training processes for either career, read this page. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.

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