CHECKLIST: Hiring an employee

As a result of the substantial rights of employees in their relations with their employers, there are a whole host of legal issues that any business should consider when recruiting a new employee:

1 Before advertising. Make sure all staff involved in the recruitment process have had equal opportunities training. Draw up a job description setting out the title and main purpose of the job, the place of the job within the business and the main tasks of the post. Draw up a person specification detailing the experience know how, qualifications skills and abilities necessary for the job in question. Ensure none of the requirements in either document discriminates against any group of employees e.g. in relation to specific qualifications, working hours or times, travel, age ranges or dress, etc.. Are such requirements necessary for the job in question?

Consider whether the job needs to be full time or whether it is open to part time, home working, flexible working or job sharing. If you specify a job is full time you may need to be able to justify your decision.

2 The Advert. Decide whether you want the job to be advertised internally externally or both. Consider using specialist publications, websites and agencies to target different communities, ages and sexes. Think carefully when writing the advert. Avoid using language that might imply only someone of a certain age would be suitable or a person of a certain gender or religion or belief. Ensure any employees absent from work (including women on maternity leave or those on long term sick leave) are informed of the vacancy to enable them to apply. Failure to do so could amount to discrimination.

3 The application. Use a standard application form to allow the business to directly compare individual applicants' answers against the selection criteria more easily and to help avoid potential unlawful discrimination claims. Draw up a short list using the same criteria used in the job description and the person specification. Mark applicants against these criteria to help avoid potential unlawful discrimination claims. If your business is making redundancies, you must consider applications for suitable vacancies from employees selected for redundancy ahead of external applicants.

4 The interview. Does the venue have access for disabled candidates? Are you proposing to hold the interview during a religious holiday for people of a particular religious persuasion? Bear in mind that candidates with children may require the interview to be conducted at a particular time. Ideally, all shortlisted candidates should be asked the same or similar questions to afford a proper comparison of answers and to avoid the possibility of a discrimination claim. Do not ask questions about the candidates' personal life unless they are directly relevant to the requirements of the job (e.g. you cannot ask a female candidate whether she plans to have children). Keep a paper trail through the process to demonstrate how the decision on selection of the successful candidate has been reached including selection criteria, notes on short listing, interview questions and notes of assessments of interviewees. Be prepared to provide feedback to unsuccessful candidates if requested.

5 The offer. Make a written offer to the successful candidate and consider setting a time limit for acceptance, specifying that acceptance should be in writing. An offer can be made conditional on providing satisfactory references or confirmation that the employee is free to work in the UK or has an appropriate work permit or immigration approval to work. Before making an offer make sure the applicant confirms that they are not bound by any restrictive covenants from their previous job (you could be liable to their former employer otherwise).

6 The contract. Consider whether the contract should be permanent or for a fixed term. Consider whether there should be a probationary period included in the contract to enable you to assess the employee (and visa versa). The probation period may also give flexibility to dismiss someone using a shorter notice period - at least one week. Probationary periods typically last between 3 and 6 months.

If you have any queries about the contents of this checklist please contact Robert Brightley - robert@brightley.com. Please note that this article does not constitute legal advice but is provided for general information purposes only. Please ensure that you obtain proper legal advice for any specific situation.