INTERESTING THINGS YOU NEVER HEARD ABOUT EMPLOYMENT LAW Lina Franco
 It
is an unavoidable demand for running any business that an employer must have a good knowledge of employment law whether they are self-employed and/or employ other staff.
 They
should have an awareness of the rights of the employee, the employer themselves and where each party stands in the unfortunate event that the normal working relationship breaks down. This article addresses the three key areas that employers and HR departments need to consider when dealing with employment law in the USA by Lina Franco.
HOW YOU DEFINE EMPLOYEES AND EMPLOYERS ï‚¢ It
is important, before delving into the intricacies of employment law to have a clear idea of the parties that are involved and how their roles should be defined.
EMPLOYED VS. SELF EMPLOYED  This
distinction can be less apparent than you may think. If a worker has agreed to provide a service/work under contract for an organization then they will be a worker employed by that organization unless the organization is actually employing the services of that individual's business, in which case the worker is selfemployed and thus not a direct employee of the organization.
 An
example of such a scenario would be a contractor who offers his services to an employer via his own business rather than agrees on a direct contract of employment himself.
TYPES OF LAWYERS
PART-TIME VS. FULL TIME  Lina
Franco says this is a heavily contextualized concept as the hours a full-time employee works in one organization could be the same as the hours worked by a part-time employee in another. Once an organization has set the hours that a full-time employee is expected to work, a part-time employee is defined as a worker employed on the same contractual basis but for reduced hours.
 The
key thing to remember here is that part-time employees should not be treated any less favorably in comparison to their full-time counterparts purely because of the difference in hours that they work unless their hours are a justifiable factor in the decision process.
 For
example, pay should always be awarded on a pro-rata basis for part-time workers in comparison to an equivalent full-time role. Employees have the right to challenge and demand written explanations if they think that they are being treated differently on this basis alone.
THE CONTRACT  Perhaps
the most important element of an employer-employee relationship is the contract of employment. All parties will have certain statutory rights as mentioned above but the finer details and practicalities of the relationship will be contained in the employment contract.
 The
contract will determine the procedures to follow in the event of staff under-performance or disciplinary proceedings, any employee benefits and concessions above and beyond their statutory entitlements (e.g., maternity leave, compassionate leave) and ultimately the conditions and processes of releasing staff either through dismissal, redundancy or resignation.
HEALTH AND SAFETY  An
employer is obliged by common law to provide a safe working environment and to ensure that their workers are fully competent in the roles they are filling. However, employers are also bound by statutory requirements that reinforce these obligations and the fact that all employees must, at all times, be fully capable, be trained in the safety procedures that they must follow and be aware of the Health & Safety Act 1974.
 To
this end, employers are also required to perform regular assessments of the risk in the workplace, not only to their own employees but any other individuals who may be affected. Employers of at least five members of staff must document these assessments and are in addition required to produce a documented health and safety policy which is communicated to all members of staff.
ROLE OF THE LAWYER
 There
are many more requirements that an employer must be aware of to fulfill these objectives and specific additional regulations which apply to particular industries and workplaces.
 As
you can see employment law is a very broad and nuanced topic and it takes a fair amount of effort and time to become familiar with it. Therefore, if you are in doubt, or you need guidance on a specific circumstance you should seek advice from a qualified employment law specialist, such as Lina Franco to make sure you take the easiest and most economical path to a resolution.