Monday to Sunday
1.1. We subscribe to the promotion of high standards, ethical awareness and best practice. As part of those standards, engagement terms are issued and agreed prior to any work being undertaken.
1.2. This letter has been prepared following discussions with you at the commencement of work and, together with Annex 1, sets out the terms on which our services will be provided. Please read all the information carefully and contact us if you have any concerns or require clarification.
1.3. In this letter, “we” and “us” and “our” relate to this HR and Employment Law Consultancy and “you” and “your” relate to you, the Client.
2. Scope of Services
2.1. Our services will be provided by Andrew Bourke and designated staff, and we will advise you of any proposed change. The services to be provided, timescales and fees are listed in Annex 1
3. Responsibilities
Our responsibilities are to:
3.1. Observe current Employment Law and HR Best Practice.
3.2. Keep and maintain records of work completed and make them available to you upon request.
3.3. Provide regular reports on the progress of any work being completed on your behalf.
3.4. Raise any issues or concerns that may be found during the Term of the Engagement.
3.5. Return any information owned by you within 10 working days upon termination of the engagement and once payment for work carried out by the practice has been made. This does not apply to our proprietary and copyrighted material.
3.6. Keep records in compliance with the Data Protection legislation.
Your responsibilities as the client are to:
3.7. Provide updates on any relevant action you require us to undertake on your behalf.
3.8. Ensure that records of your business activities are correct and updated and maintained to meet the relevant requirements in the event of any issues with your Company.
3.9. Disclose all relevant information to enable us to complete the work within agreed timescales as set in Annex 1.
3.10. Keep us appraised as to any on-going or new issues, as and when they happen if you expect them to have a bearing on any matters arising.
4. Fees
4.1. Our fees fixed annually on an estimate of full year of work you require us to deliver and then paid monthly over a 12 month period. Annex 1 lists the services we agree to supply within the scope of our fixed fee agreement. Any additional work required which is not covered by these terms will be agreed with you and will result in an addendum to Annex 1 being issued.
4.2. Payments of fees rendered by invoice are due within 30 days, via Lloyds TSB, our appointed Invoice Finance provider. Assignation is noted on your invoices.
4.3. Interest may be applied to any overdue accounts at a rate of 8.5%. Where payment has not been received we reserve the right to withhold services, documents and information, and have the right to cease to work on your account, and to terminate the engagement if payments are unduly delayed.
4.4. Any expenses incurred whilst working on your behalf will be charged and appropriate records will be kept and will be available for inspection. Such expenses may include the use of meeting rooms and other facilities, internal printing, courier charges, and international but not national telephone calls.
4.5. Our listed initial take on fee (if appropriate) is separate to any annual fee and is based on the initial creation of your bespoke Company Handbooks and Company Contracts of Employment. Absolutely HR Limited, 16 Society Road, South Queensferry, Edinburgh, EH30 9RX, 07970 797 544, [email protected], www.absolutelyhr.co.uk, company reg no.: SC422882, vat reg no.: 135 8547 91
5. Holding Client Monies
5.1. We do not hold money on behalf of any of our clients.
6. Retaining and Accessing Records
6.1. Any information produced or relating to the work we undertake for you will be returned to you where required or requested and should be kept for a period as necessary.
6.2. You agree that any work completed and work in progress for which payment is outstanding will be held by us until all fees relating to it have been paid.
7. Confidentiality and conflicts
7.1. We agree never to share information relating to your business with any third party without prior consent, unless required to do so by law or to comply with regulations or quality control reviews. Likewise you agree not to use or copy or allow use of the output of the work we do for you with a third party without our prior permission.
7.2. You recognise that we may have to stop providing services to you in the event that a conflict arises between our duties to you and to another client. You will notify us if you have any reason to believe that such a conflict has arisen or may arise.
7.3. We may communicate with you electronically and you accept the risks associated with such communications, except anything arising through our negligence or wilful default.
8. Legislation and compliance
8.1. We are obliged to ensure that when appointed by you, the Client, we must inform you of any necessary Employment Law or Legislation and how this affects you as a Client. By agreeing to our Terms of Engagement you accept that we must inform you of your obligations under law as a Client, in respect of HR Legislation and/or Employment Law or Health & Safety.
8.2. We will inform you of any changes to UK Employment Law, Health & Safety or HR as they occur or as we are made aware of these changes. We will undertake to carry this out via a monthly newsletter or as from time to time may be necessary due to changes in the Law as required.
9. Liability
9.1. As an HR Consultancy, we have a duty of care to you and we must observe the highest standards of conduct and integrity. Our services to you will only be completed by Andrew Bourke or others as necessary and deemed competent to perform such work. We therefore accept liability to a maximum of £250,000 where any loss or damage has arisen as a result of negligence or a material breach of these terms of engagement.
9.2. Where any loss or damage occurs as the result of you providing misleading, incomplete or false information no liability will be accepted.
9.3. The advice we give you is not to be used by a third party without written consent. The practice also accepts no legal responsibility from third party use of the financial information provided by us.
9.4. We confirm that we as a Company have legal cover in place in the form of Professional Indemnity Insurance. We will provide you with the details of this and the amount insured, should you request this in writing, stating the reasons for this request.
10. Complaints and disputes
10.1.We want you to be entirely satisfied with the services provided to you. If, however, you are not, please refer to the Complaints Handling Procedure at Annex 2 of this letter.
10.2. Any disputes arising from our engagement by you will, subject to the procedure at Annex 2, be governed by Scottish law.
11. Continuity Arrangement
11.1. In the event that we become unable to provide the services agreed through incapacity or death, or similar third party event a Continuity Arrangement has been made with another HR Consultancy. Details of this can be provided on request. The purpose of this agreement is to look after your interests by providing continuity of services. You will be contacted in the event of such circumstances arising and you will have the option to decline to be covered
by these arrangements. Absolutely HR Limited, 16 Society Road, South Queensferry, Edinburgh, EH30 9RX, 07970 797 544, [email protected], www.absolutelyhr.co.uk, company reg no.: SC422882, vat reg no.: 135 8547 91
12. Termination
12.1. You or we may terminate our engagement by giving 90 days written notice. All documents and information provided by you will be returned to you within 10 working days of receipt of the notice provided that all outstanding fees have been paid. This contract via these Terms of Engagement will be in force for a minimum of 12 months and unless notice has been served, will continue for a further 12 months as in effect a 12 months rolling contract.
Yours sincerely
Signed on behalf of Absolutely HR Limited
_______________________________________
Andrew Bourke
Before any work can be undertaken on your behalf, you are required to confirm acceptance of these Terms of Engagement by signing and returning the original of this letter to us at the address provided. Please retain a copy for your own records.
I confirm I have read, understand and agree to the terms and conditions set out above and in the annexes to this letter. [I confirm I have the authority to act on behalf of the company].
…………………………………….
Absolutely HR Limited, 16 Society Road, South Queensferry, Edinburgh, EH30 9RX, 07970 797 544, [email protected], www.absolutelyhr.co.uk, company reg no.: SC422882, vat reg no.: 135 8547 91
ANNEX 1 Schedule of Services
This Annex is effective from the date of signature of the copy of the covering engagement letter. It gives details of your advised service requirements. Fees are listed below as variable or fixed. If service requirements change, this Annex must be replaced with a new version agreed with you.
Services Offered
Service and description Fee Timescale
Free Initial HR Health Check Free On Engagement
Bespoke Creation of Company Handbook and Contracts of Employment pursuant to required legislation in force at take on. Delivery of said documentation back to employees and client.
As agreed on a client by client basis.
As per agreement.
A/ To provide 24/7 HR & Employment Law support to offer advice on any relevant staff issues.
For the provision of services
A/ B/ and C/ £ + VAT per month. Monthly in arrears.
Monthly On-going
B/ To update any new Contracts of Employment as necessary on an on-going monthly contract of support.
Monthly On-going
C/ To make client aware of any changes as required to Contracts of Employment or Company Handbooks as rendered necessary by any and all changes to UK Employment Law. Normally necessitated by changes to Acts of Parliament each April and October.
Monthly On-going Absolutely HR Limited, 16 Society Road, South Queensferry, Edinburgh, EH30 9RX, 07970 797 544, [email protected], www.absolutelyhr.co.uk, company reg no.: SC422882, vat reg no.: 135 8547 91
ANNEX 2 Complaints Handling Procedure
1 .Purpose
1.1 Absolutely HR Limited are committed to upholding best practice through a high quality service to all our clients. This Annex sets out the procedure we will operate in dealing with complaints arising from the provision of services under our Terms of Engagement.
2. Raising an Issue
2.1 In the first instance please contact Andrew Bourke, [email protected], 07970 797 544, to discuss any concerns you have, so that the matter can be looked into immediately.
3. Making an Informal Complaint
3.1 An informal complaint can be made by telephone, or by speaking, face to face or in writing to Andrew Bourke, [email protected], 07970 797 544. If the matter is not resolved at this stage, and you have not already issued a complaint in writing, you should do so. Please include specific details so that the matter can be thoroughly investigated.
4. Making a Formal Complaint
4.1 Upon receipt of your written formal complaint an acknowledgement will be sent to you within 5 working days. The name and contact details of the person who will be dealing with your case will be supplied to you at this point.
4.2 Within 10 working days from receipt of your written complaint you will receive in writing a summary of our understanding of your complaint. You will be asked at this time to provide any further evidence or information regarding the complaint and to confirm that we have understood all your concerns.
4.3 Following such confirmation, we will investigate the matter and write to you in reply within 10 working days unless it becomes apparent to us that the investigation may not be completed within this timescale. In these circumstances, a written explanation will be sent to you including a progress report. When a substantive reply is sent you, a summary of findings will be included along with details of any further action to be taken.
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