Member Article

Recruiting for the first time? This is what you need to know

Taking on employees for the first time can be worrying as there is a lot to think about. That’s why it’s vital to be fully prepared beforehand. Gareth Matthews, an employment solicitor at MLP Law, gives his advice on what you need to do when recruiting staff.

Don’t discriminate

As per the Equality Act 2010, recruitment processes cannot discriminate against anyone from a Protected Characteristic, which includes sexuality, gender, race, age or disability. Consequently, job advertisements and supporting documents, such as the Person Specification and the Job Description, should not prevent anyone suitable for the role from applying.

Furthermore, the process of selecting the candidate must also not be discriminatory. This can be difficult at times, as discrimination can occur unintentionally, which is known as Indirect Discrimination. Indirect Discrimination can happen when a requirement or aspect of the role applies to everyone equally, but has a disproportionate effect on some applicants over others.

Make sure they have the right to work in the UK

Once you’ve decided who you want to employ, you also have to make sure your prospective new employee actually has the right to work in the UK. Employers who unknowingly employ an illegal worker can be fined up to £20,000 for each illegal employee, while employers who knowingly employ an illegal worker face criminal prosecution, and ultimately sanctions ranging from a substantial fine up to a prison sentence.

Conduct security checks

Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks, which were once known as CRB checks, are required in sectors where the integrity of the employee is key, such as banking, or where the role involves working with children and vulnerable adults, such as in schools or social care roles.

Know about employees’ rights

From their first day of employment, employees have a number of employment rights. These include the right to receive payslips, non-discrimination rights, maternity rights and the right to written terms of employment. Employees are also entitled to at least the National Minimum Wage, a minimum number of holidays and, if their employment is terminated, a minimum notice period.

Employees also acquire further rights the longer they work for you, including maternity pay and increased protection against unfair dismissal. Therefore, it is very important that you make sure you’re up to speed with these rights and have put all the right procedures in place, as breaching these rights can lead to potentially damaging consequences for your business, such as employment tribunal claims.

Make sure contracts and handbooks in place

One way of protecting your business is to make sure Contracts of Employment and staff handbooks are in place and set out clear workplace standards and procedures. For example, Contract of Employment clauses can be used to protect confidential information, intellectual property rights and company property, as well as prevent employees from working for a competitor if they leave the business. Moreover, rules, regulations and standards of behaviour governing employee conduct can be put in place by creating a Staff Handbook, which can also be used to clarify workplace procedures, such as disciplinary and grievance procedure policies.

If you’re unsure about the rules and regulations involved in employing staff for the first time, you should speak to an experienced employment lawyer who will be able to point you in the right direction.

For more information, please visit http://www.mlplaw.co.uk/

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by MLP Law .