Independent HR Advice for Employees - would this be useful?

[mammaneedsadrink]

Hi everyone,

I’m an HR professional with experience across a range of industries, and I’m thinking about offering support directly to employees who are facing difficult situations at work.

This could include things like:
Understanding processes like PIPs, disciplinary or grievance procedures
Drafting letters or responses
Preparing for meetings and offering accompaniment if you want a supportive presence
Guidance on settlement agreements, redundancy discussions, or tricky HR process

I’m curious — would a service like this help someone navigate a settlement agreement process or similar situations?

I’d love to hear your thoughts, experiences, or whether you think something like this would be useful. If you prefer, I can DM you to chat privately.

Thanks so much!

Do you mean a paid service?

I don’t think you would be able to earn much with this , I can see your thinking (and agree that it would be valuable) BUT most people in a situation that would need your advice are not going to be keen on paying for advice that you can access for free.

Are you looking for a job change or specifically to go self employed?

When I've needed that kind of support ACAS have been brilliant for free. How would your offer differ?

Any employee would be much better off seeking advice from a solicitor who specialises in employment law than an HR specialist.

An HR specialist can advise on what the process should be but they cannot offer formal legal support to challenge an outcome or how to navigate a legal challenge at tribunal.

Plus ACAS offer what you suggest for free, so why would someone pay for it?

I would advise them to contact ACAS and then if needed contact an employment law specialist.

i think lots of people would appreciate this service but not be prepared to pay for it

HR is purely for the benefit of the company. Anyone needing this assistance will be in this situation because of HR, so might not feel predisposed to your service, given you are not a lawyer yourself.

Wishing you success etc

I posted earlier but not sure where it went??!

Basically yes I used this service, I was delighted to pay and it worked out very well for me.

she held my hand through a maternity leave redundancy and was invaluable and negotiated my settlement

If I needed the service I’d pay for an employment lawyer.

yes
hr but on your side!

there’s a lot of psychology in hr - it’s not really all legal stuff

Hello @mammaneedsadrink did you get any further with this? I am also thinking about something similar so would be interested to hear.

Is this not what people pay union fees for? I can't see why this would be preferable to joining a union.

Did you know that you can’t actually give advice and charge for if without being registered with the FCA. Ridiculously anyone giving such advice about any sort of dispute is seen as a claims company. Needs CIPD to challenge but they won’t as independent HR a small part of membership.

https://www.cipd.org/uk/the-people-profession/careers/routes-into-profession/claims-management/

A way round it is to set yourself up as an HR union. If you google you will see someone has set up a pay as you go HR and Workers union.

As you can see on this thread, people value legal advice more. If you want to create a viable business follow the money. Work for businesses who are about to have a very tough time with the Employment Rights Act.

Many workplaces don’t have established unions. Likewise if you join a union often the people representing you have limited training and qualifications. A union is great if in a profession - like teaching etc but not if you are working in business.

HR professionals can actually represent at ET in place of a lawyer. In most organisations HR is in charge, bringing in legal services. HR therefore know the art of the possible. Most employment disputes don’t go to Tribunal. It comes down to negotiation of a settlement. An example on this thread. HR care for the whole person. A big legal dispute is not always the right thing. Can be v damaging.

HR do not care for the whole person, unless that person is their boss/ management team!

That’s internal HR. On the payroll.It co was down to who the client is. Company or individual.

This. I suspect you would struggle to monetise what you’re offering as ACAS offer this for free

It's not the newest thread, but just came across this. I own a business like this and there is indeed a demand! My focus is around preparing employees for diffciult meetings and conversations, we discuss whether to raise a grievance or not, concerns about materity leave, provide advice on risk, complex appeals, prepring employees for high risk disciplinaeries etc. It's cheaper than legal advice, and yes ACAS is free, but ACAS are also swamped and will usually help you more at escalation point and to mediate to avoid a tribunal. In America these services are becoming more and more popular and I have been quite busy for a new business. So despite the comments here, there is absolutely a market for this.

I agree with you @northernmu - I used to do this in my business (maybe about 2o% of turnover) until I realised I had to be FCA registered. Anything to do with a dispute means there is a potential claim. It’s madness but there it is and not being registered invalidates PI insurance.

The government wanting TU’s to grow. It’s another route as easy to set one up.

Are you registered?

https://www.cipd.org/uk/the-people-profession/careers/routes-into-profession/claims-management/

You won’t be able to sign off the settlement agreement, you’d need to have a relationship with a lawyer to do that. Otherwise it’s hard to see the benefit of people coming to you as opposed to a lawyer

I don't represent employees, help them make claims or deal with their employer. This is where a union/legal advisor comes in. Mine is more coaching based with going through processes, letting the employee consider their options and empower them to make their own decisions. I support employees to navigate situations themselves and have the right insurance cover for this. I am also upfront with them in case they need a solicitor or ACAS rather than the suppprt I provide.