22 May 2020

Key teams at BTO Solicitors LLP have joined forces to create a one-stop shop for advising businesses on getting back to work safely and legally.

The purpose of this ‘package’ of legal services is to help businesses navigate Government guidance in a practical way, whilst remaining compliant and ensuring that their duties to provide a safe workplace are met, and taking cognisance of the differing approaches within the Government Guidance depending on where businesses are located in the UK.

This hand-picked team draws in expertise from the firm’s band 1 ranked Regulatory (Health & Safety) & Criminal Defence team and from its Data Protection and Employment law teams, both of which contain specialists, accredited in their respective fields by the Law Society of Scotland. It can also call upon the experience of the firm’s band 1 ranked personal injury team should any personal injury claims arise further down the line.

As well as assisting with compliance, this collaborative team will help businesses to avoid breaches of health and safety law and data breaches and to manage data subject access requests. Partner & Solicitor Advocate, Paul Motion, head of BTO’s Data Protection team said:

“This is undoubtedly a challenging time for employers who will be faced with thorny issues such as what they can reasonably ask their employees regarding COVID-19 symptoms, whether and if so when they can ask employees to take a COVID-19 test or to use a Contact Tracing App and the legal framework for sharing the resultant data. It is a daunting prospect and we would like to ease the burden.”

Employment law partner, Caroline Carr, commented:

“Addressing grievances and concerns raised by staff about health and safety and their return to work is a minefield which employers will need to cross in order to avoid potential discrimination claims and claims for compensation, whistleblowing, unpaid wages, unfair dismissal, breach of contract and more, and we can assist businesses in handling these issues.”

Clare Bone, Partner and Criminal Solicitor Advocate in BTO’s Health & Safety team added:

“We would like to help businesses avoid infringements of the law and we can also provide clarity for employers on when they have a duty to report a Covid-19 safety concern to the HSE under its RIDDOR reporting scheme and, should the need arise, we can assist with investigations carried out by the HSE in relation to possible breaches.”

If you would like the benefit of this team’s combined experience, to find out more, please click here to download: “Route out of lockdown - protecting your business - A one-stop shop for getting back to work safely and legally”.

Contacts

Data Protection: Paul Motion, Partner, Solicitor Advocate & Accredited Specialist: prm@bto.co.uk / 0131 222 2932

Health & Safety: Clare Bone, Partner & Criminal Solicitor Advocate: cbo@bto.co.uk / 0141 225 5268

Employment Law: Caroline Carr, Partner & Accredited Specialist: cac@bto.co.uk / 0141 225 5263

Personal Injury Claims: Clare White, Partner: cwh@bto.co.uk / 0141 225 5319.