Marine Employment
The marine industry is unique. The differences in dealing with issues presented by seafarers as opposed to shore based staff, the commercial environment, the constraints of operating in multiple jurisdictions and working within maritime, as well as employment law, guarantee that specialist legal advice is required. It is also fundamental that with an ever increasing amount of employer regulation, it is clear that employers need to be proactive and manage risk when considering their employment law issues.
At Wilsons, we have the expertise to help. Deborah West is a marine employment expert with extensive experience in both contentious and noncontentious
marine related employment issues, and works with some of the leading companies in the marine sector. Originally working in Southampton, Deborah is now based in Salisbury, which is just 30 minutes from the coast where many of her clients are based.
A recognised expert in Chambers UK, Deborah is rated not only for her general employment law expertise but also for her niche marine employment practice. Chambers Guide to the UK Legal Profession reports that clients find her “on top of her game, knowledgeable, personable and great at keeping all the balls in the air.”
Deborah is supported by an experienced employment team and we are able to offer our clients a number of tailored flexible fee options to suit their businesses together with an option to insure against legal costs and compensation awards.
Some examples of the services we offer:
- A specialist helpline service to deal with all day to day queries
- Drafting of and advising on crew agreements, contracts of employment, policies and collective agreements
- Negotiating collective agreements with trade unions
- Liaison with unions to resolve members’ collective and individual complaints against their employers
- Advice on contractual issues/disputes
- Advice on the handling of disciplinary and dismissal issues, taking into account the interaction between disciplinary and dismissal procedures and the Merchant Navy Code of Conduct
- Advice on the handling of medical fitness and disability issues, including the
termination of employment of seafarers who are not medically fit - Defending employment tribunal and court claims
- Advice on jurisdiction issues and the implication of UK employment rights
- Liaison with foreign lawyers on the interaction between UK and foreign employment laws
