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	HR Consulting Associates

Employment law & HR policies

The related subjects of employment law and policies are a major area of our work. Reflecting on the reasons:

Employment law changes make policy (and practice) development essential.
HR departments are no longer staffed to be an advice line. But, managers seldom have the tools and knowledge to manage without effective support materials.
Technology is changing the game. Networked policy and procedure materials really do allow for central "control" but decentralised practice.
Decentralised management responsibility requires a radical rethink of policy presentation. It must be diagnostic, interactive if possible, supportive (e.g. including access to standard letters) and free of HR jargon. Most Policy Manuals fail this test.

HR policies &

Employment law

Equal pay

Outplacement

Outsourced HR

Employee surveys

Remuneration systems

Employee handbooks

Employment law training

Employment lawyers

New employment law and internal HR policy initiatives cut across many policies. Try implementing a Harassment Policy without looking at Grievance... then Discipline... then the role of any EAP provider... and so on.

Our general consulting approach of looking at integrated processes and materials works well in the area of employment law and policies. For instance, there is - should be - a clear link between Terms & Conditions, contractual letters, staff handbooks and policies. In particular, there needs to be clarity as to what is and is not intended to be contractual.

In particular, employment materials really must be bespoke to the particular organisation.

Style must be in keeping with your intended image.
Content must reflect your context. For example, in a regulated environment there will be critical compliance policies which are completely irrelevant to other organisations.

"Off the shelf" really does not work. Every organisation is different - policies are not just about legal compliance, they are also about communicating the employer's specific ethos & requirements.

In developing policies for clients we have the considerable advantage of our significant experience in dealing with real-life employment law problems, including tribunal representation. We also deliver very well-regarded employment law training programmes. One of our directors is a member of the CBI Equal Opportunities Specialist Advisory Forum - particularly looking at the implications of forthcoming employment law for UK businesses.

Our work ranges from major HR policy integration in the context of significant mergers, periodic HR policy reviews ("audits" for employment law & best practices), to specific advice on one-off policies. We also provide the necessary "compliance" materials for smaller organisations without straying into over-complication.

This all means that we bring considerable knowledge and insight to our work on development of HR policies (and the related area of employee handbooks).