Over the last three months I have seen an increase in cases where my employee clients are being given Settlement Agreements. This post answers some key questions about what a Settlement Agreement is, why you may have been given one, and how expert advice can help you achieve a better all round deal….
Receiving a Settlement Agreement from your employer can bring the worry of financial uncertainty and questions over where your career is heading next. However, with the right solicitor on your side, you could achieve a great outcome ensuring you have sufficient time and freedom to start the next chapter in your employment story.
What is a Settlement Agreement?
A Settlement Agreement is a legal contract between an employer and an employee. There are lots of reasons why Settlement Agreements are offered to employees. They could be offered as a means of providing an enhanced redundancy payment, to resolve a grievance or misconduct dispute or even at the request of the employee.
Whatever the reason for the Agreement, the important thing to remember is that once it is signed off by the employee and their independent legal advisor, the employee will be prohibited from pursuing various claims against the employer.
Important Settlement Agreement Considerations?
Compensation. As I say above, once an employee has signed a Settlement Agreement they will be prohibited from pursuing employment law claims against their employer. For this reason, it is hugely important that an appropriate and fair amount of compensation is being paid. I always assess what potential claims the employee has, what compensation an Employment Tribunal would be likely to award for those claims, and give advice on what a reasonable level of compensation to accept would be.
The waiver of claims. The waiver of claims is the list of claims the employee gives up once the Agreement is concluded and the employee needs to be aware of how wide ranging this is. Usually there are no issues. However, and by way of example, if the employee has an existing personal injury claim they want to pursue, it is important the Agreement takes that into account.
Future restrictions. Employers tend to want to include various restrictions in Settlement Agreements, such as that the employee will not work for a competitor or has not already obtained new work. These restrictions may well be fair but it is always important to check the facts and limitations with clients to ensure they can abide by them.
I Can Help You
If you have been offered a Settlement Agreement or have any employment law problems, I can help. Please call me on 01522 440512, email sophie.goodwill@lincslaw.com or visit our website www.lincslaw.co.uk for more information about the services we provide. Alternatively, you can view our settlement agreement pages at https://lincslaw.co.uk/services/settlement-agreement/
Sophie Goodwill
Specialist Employment Law Solicitor
Tags: Employment Tribunal Advice Local Employment Solicitors settlement agreement settlement agreement negotiation Specialist Employment Solicitors