Companies have a core mission that they are looking to achieve. To reach this, they require human resource. While company leaders may be experts at product and service creation, assistance may be required for human resource management and employee relations. Working closely with an employee relations lawyer will ensure that the company has the right policies in place to deal with legal issues of employment.

Rather than seeking to add an employee relations lawyer to the company, it is more practical to enlist the services of a Labor Relations law firm. From the firm, a company can work with a designated labor relations and employment lawyer to oversee the employees as required. Here are some factors to consider when choosing a labor relations law firm.

1. Select a labor relations lawyer that is well conversant with federal, state and local laws. This individual will be responsible for offering council on the rights and responsibilities of both the employers and the employees. This is to ensure that everyone’s interests can be protected.
2. To ensure excellent workforce relations and elevate productivity, the labor relations and employment lawyer will need to ensure that there are clear employee handouts and brochures with policies for employees.
3. Work closely with the human resource department to draft employment contracts and agreements, as well as detailed offer letters.
4. Employment relations law includes both litigation and counselling. Litigation is necessary for handling disputes that are raised. The lawyer will deal with ensuring that all matters are settled as amicably as possible and being on hand to defend a position when necessary. With counselling, the law firm chosen will need to be at hand to offer immediate advice when contacted by the human resource for a firm. Issues that are raised are often compliance and disciplinary issues, or annual audits for proper employee management.

There are benefits that come with working hand in hand with law firms for labor law, as opposed to simply employing a lawyer who is permanent in house. The first is resources. A single lawyer can handle small day to day disputes that are raised. However, there may be an instance where it is necessary to deal with matters that require trial or serious litigation. With a law firm, one will benefit from a team working with an employer to get the best possible result.

From the perspective of the employee, it is important to have a labor relations firm to ensure that disputes are handled in-house as much as possible. Typical issues that are raised include sexual harassment in the workplace, healthcare, equal pay challenges, working conditions, discrimination and even wage and hour violations. With a labor firm in place, biases are out of the question as the third party can only deal with facts as they have been presented.

One final important element to consider when choosing a labor relations law firm is their record keeping. It is important for the business to have access to excellent records that can provide detailed information if required.