Employment Law
Employment law has undergone rapid change as businesses and work patterns continue to evolve. Our highly experienced team of employment law experts advises at the cutting edge of these changes.
We provide strategic advice to Irish and multinational companies in diverse sectors including education, retail, state bodies and other public sector organisations, credit unions, airlines and insurance.
We understand the dynamics of the employer-employee relationship and the demands it places on you and your business in a fast paced environment. The Hayes employment law team has the experience to provide practical commerical advice to both employers and employees on all types of contentious and non-contentious employment issues and situations. We guide our clients through the maze of employment legislation and regulation and provide support through pragmatic and flexible solutions.
Hayes has recognised expertise in many of the key specialist legal and regulatory areas that help shape employment law. These include Transfer Regulations (TUPE), outsourcing and restructuring, equality, health and safety, pensions, administrative and regulatory law, and industrial relations.
We have significant expertise and experience in administrative law and regulatory matters for the professions, and continue to develop our reputation in the area. Our international work includes advising on the differences between Ireland and the UK in employment and industrial relations and advice to US and European multinationals and their executives on Irish employment law issues.
Speed of response and accessibility are hallmarks of our service. We provide ongoing advices for daily queries, strategic advices on medium and long-term goals, best practice on procedures and representation in litigation.
Services
Our services cover:
- Agency workers
- Alternative dispute resolution, including arbitration and mediation
- Contracts, updating employment contracts, staff handbooks and employment permits
- Data protection, the obligations, responses to requests, and drafting policies
- Complaints, advising employers on bullying, harassment and work-related stress complaints
- Equality compliance from interviews to employment, and including litigation
- Fixed-term workers, drafting contracts, advising on renewals, obligations and disputes
- Freedom of information, advising on obligations and procedures
- Health and Safety, advising on all aspects, risk assessments, prosecutions and investigations
- Industrial relations, advising on strategies for change, negotiations and industrial action
- Information and consultation, EROs, REAs and Joint Labour Committees
- Investigations, advising on their conduct and fair procedures for positive outcome
- Leave, advising on maternity, adoptive, parental, carers, force-majeure and career breaks
- Outsourcing, advising on contractual implications for staff, fixed-term, agency, part-time and temporary workers
- Performance, advising on performance, managing absence, misconduct and professional difficulties towards preferred outcome
- Procedures, drafting and updating policies and procedures for workplace complaints including disciplinary, grievance, bullying and harassment, sexual harassment, internet and social media
- Record keeping, advising on Garda vetting and references
- Restructuring and Redundancy, advising on all aspects including claims
- Retirement, advising on issues in relation to age, pension, redundancy schemes
- Whistleblowing, drafting policies, advising on criminal prosecutions, claims and investigations.
Experience
Our employment law team is highly active in providing on-the-spot advice, case handling, dispute resolution and employment policy services to employers and employees across a wide range of sectors. Some examples of our work include:
- Advising on employment issues on the sale or transfer of a business. Advices in relation to Transfer Regulations including cross-border transfers
- Advising foreign companies establishing in Ireland or with an existing presence in relation to Irish HR issues
- Advising a large multinational in relation to removal of CEO/Director/Shareholder and other senior management team members
- Advising on company re-structuring and associated issues
- Representing parties in Court in relation to complex bullying and harassment/equality cases
- Representing senior management and employees in relation to exiting employment including attending mediation where appropriate.
What clients say: Employment Law
'The team at Hayes solicitors 'works very well together as a unified whole'
Recognised for "the speed at which they respond, the way they ask the right questions to gain a full understanding of the situation, and the fact that their responses are to the point."
“Very helpful in advising on difficult situations in the workplace"; "Responsive, extremely good and supportive."
"In-depth knowledge of employment law and the best ways to approach various situations."
"They give you that very personalised client service, they won't leave you waiting for anything"; "they tailor advice so it is appropriate to the client."
At Hayes Solicitors, practice head Breda O'Malley is a TUPE specialist. Anne Lyne is 'thorough, clear and organised and has a particular interest in equality'.
The Employment team's offering at Hayes is "efficient, effective and customer-friendly," adding that its lawyers are "practical, pragmatic and responsive."
Employment head Breda O'Malley focuses on assisting employers with issues such as unionisation and company reorganisation. "She is such an experienced lawyer and knows how businesspeople think. She is also very honest and challenges the client in the right way," say clients.
"We have developed a good relationship with this firm - the lawyers have got to know our business and have become like an in-house consultancy team."
Highly rated for advising on complex issues for employers involving business reorganisation, managed exits and redundancies, as well as offering experts focused on plaintiff work.
Anne Lyne is 'very easy to work with, getting to the nub of the issues quickly'.
"Hayes Solicitors is commercially aware and excellent value."
"Her responsiveness is great, and her strength is that she is approachable, connecting with people very well."