Diane Gilhooley

Careful adherence to recruitment policies and procedure when hiring staff will help protect against charges of discrimination

Internal investigations involve often sensitive issues, and must be conducted carefully and judiciously

New Regulations come into force in October 2008, which will affect the rights of employees on additional maternity or adoption

Diane Gilhooley, HR expert in the education team at Eversheds, offers advice on transferring a service contract to two or more parties

Since the introduction of the statutory dispute resolution procedures in 2004, employers have grappled with the question of when an employee complaint must be treated as a grievance, to comply with step 1 of the statutory grievance procedures.

One of the main aims of the Work and Families Act 2006 was to encourage both parents to assume childcare responsibilities in the first year of a child’s life. As part of this aim, the Government proposed a new statutory right to additional paternity leave, allowing fathers to take up to 26 weeks’ leave (some of which will be paid) if the mother returns to work after six months but before the end of her maternity leave.