Can someone help me with wording of (legal) letter?

[trickynicky]

I run a v. small business and one of part time employees who has been with me 14 years has resigned. She's a "tricky" character and I've arranged to pay her all her notice, holiday pay etc plus an ex gratia payment of a month, but I want her to sign a letter confirming that she will have no further claims/actions against the company. I'm wanting to draft a letter confirming receipt of her resignation and confirming her payment but I need a paragraph or something at the end to confirm the full and final settlement bit but I'm unsure of the wording.... can anyone help/suggest? Also, do I need to put "without prejudice" on the letter?

I can't afford to put this through legal and to be honest, it may be all unnecessary and just me being paranoid but I thought it would be better than nothing!

Thanks very much!

Why are you paying her an ex-gratia payment for her resigning? What do you think she'd put in a claim against you?

It sounds like you would want her to sign a settlement agreement but you would need to get this drawn up by a lawyer and then you would have to pay towards her getting legal advice on accepting the terms within it.

I would imagine anything you draft and get her to sign, is likely to not be worth the paper it's written on.

*Why, not what

I know it's closing the gate after the horse has bolted, but you need to make arrangements to get access to legal advice without huge costs. Why on earth would you make an ex gratia payment to someone who has resigned?

She has been a begrudging, but reliable employee. I live in a very small community and she's actually quite unwell. She has a son who is also very unwell. She also has a hideous partner who is very controlling and it's really him I don't trust....Basically she's unlikely to work again and it's a small token of gratitude/thanks which I'm happy to pay. On the other hand, the twit she lives with may push her into claiming more. I realise it's probably not worth the paper it's written on but where I live, if you sign something stating you'll not try anything on then it's unlikely they would bother going through the hassle of trying anything. I do realise it all sounds flaky but it's the way things work here!

I would imagine anything you draft and get her to sign, is likely to not be worth the paper it's written on

Agreed. If she has no valid claim this makes it look as if she has.

If she has a valid claim this makes no difference.

Please don't whatever you do add "without prejudice"

If you've already told her she is getting the ex gratis payment it will be difficult to backtrack but I would suggest you present it as a leaving gift.

If you think her resignation has the potential of being a constructive dismissal (i.e she is leaving but only because you and/ or other employees made staying unbearable ) you need proper legal advice before she goes.

Well, wherever it is the laws of the land still apply so do make sure you are covered. I think presenting the extra payment as a gift could be a good idea.

I agree - make the payment a leaving 'gift' if you can, and just accept resignation as pps have mentioned. Do NOT say anything about full and final settlement etc.

If you are in the UK she will have to go through ACAS before taking a claim, so that will give you further opportunity to 'settle' if you need to. To take out an ET claim she would have to pay the fee. I can't remember the full details of tribunal costs but
it's hundreds of pounds, so she would be daft to make a claim on a 'punt'.

Coming to this late but for her to validly waive any employment claims she may feel she has, she would need to sign a formal compromise agreement. She also would need to have independent legal advice from a solicitor in order for it to be valid - this is normally paid for by the firm.

I think this is what you want www.acas.org.uk/settlementagreements

You do have to pay a "reasonable amount" for the employee to have legal advice prior to signing- around £250 -£300.

C

I am afraid it only works as said above if she has a compriomise agreement AND a separate solicitor which often the employer pays for certifies they have advised her.