Family rights
Family Rights
If you’re a business owner, employer, or HR professional, you may know that the legislation surrounding family rights for employees is constantly evolving. Family rights cover areas such as maternity leave and pay, paternity leave and pay, adoption leave and shared parental leave, but also time off for dependents, and flexible working and leave. There are many areas and legal definitions relating to family rights for employees, and as an employer, you have a duty to comply with them, as well as attempting to safeguard your organisation from any legal risk of discrimination.
Comprehensive working policies and procedures need to be in place to ensure you are upholding the family rights of your employers, and not running any risks when it comes to inadvertently discriminating against an employee. For example:
- Where you carry out a redundancy exercise and fail to consult with an employee who is off on maternity leave.
- Where you have a suitable alternative vacancy and fail to offer it to a pregnant employee who is at risk of redundancy.
- Where an employee returns from maternity leave and submits a flexible working request, but you reject the request without a justifiable reason.
Family rights for employees can be a daunting area for business owners, but with our expert employment lawyers to support you, you can ensure you are fully compliant, with policies and procedures that support your business and its objectives.
How we help you
- We ensure you have a comprehensive set of policies and procedures fully compliant with the up-to-date legislation in the area of family rights, as well as advise you with our supportive, down-to-earth approach, as and when issues arise.
- We take the time to understand the commercial needs of your business and its goals so our advice, and any policies and procedures we provide, are in line with your objectives. Discrimination claims can be of high value and we will always aim to avoid any legal risk, costly litigation and adverse publicity for your business.
- We are always upfront and transparent regarding costs, according to the support, one-off as well as ongoing, you may need. Every business is different with varying levels of work in this area.
If you are a business owner, employer or HR professional and have any queries in relation to family rights, or feel you need specialist family rights support for your organisation, get in touch with our experienced family rights lawyers. We are here and ready to help, with an initial consultation.


