Employment Law

Employment Law protects both employees and business. The events that occur in the workplace are covered under Employment Law and sets firm obligations that both the employer and the employee must abide by.

Employment Law exists to protect employees from wrongful termination, being refused a promotion that was deserved, harassment or bullying, discrimination during recruitment, not being paid correctly, failing to be paid for overtime or being denied a benefit claim. It will also protect whistleblowers who expose unlawful practices from be retaliated against.

For example the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) falls under the jurisdiction of Employment Law and its purpose is to stop employers, employment agencies and labor unions from discriminating against an employee because of their disability. Under this act an employee is considered as having a disability if they have a physical or mental impairment that effects a major life activity, for example, sitting, standing, breathing, walking or hearing.

The Employment Law of this act dictates that if an individual with a disability is qualified to perform a job then the employer must make reasonable accommodations for the employee to do so. Reasonable accommodations may include:

• Modifying facilities used by employees to make them accessible by individuals with a disability,
• Modifying equipment, workstations or materials, or
• Modifying the work schedule,

The employer must make these accommodations unless of course doing so would impose an undue hardship on the business. To protect themselves some businesses choose consult with an Employment Law attorneys on all sensitive human resources issues.

As mentioned earlier Employment Law also protects individuals against unfair dismissal. Employers who are seeking to discipline or dismiss an employee you must check whether they are doing so legally. Before being able to fire an employee the employer must be able to present a set of proven facts and circumstances that are grounds for dismissal.

Secondly Employment Law states that the employer must have explained to the employee why their performance was not up to standard and give them a chance to improve. Employers cannot dismiss staff for unsatisfactory performance without first having notified them about it.  This means it is generally a good idea to individually performance manage the employee or give a written warning rather than relying on general instructions, staff meetings or memo's to get the point across.

Thirdly Employment Law dictates the employee must make sure that dismissal is the most appropriate action. Other forms of sanctions, warnings or change of role may be more appropriate than dismissal. Its also important to consider the individuals past employment history and view this in context with current circumstances.