Lewis Silkin’s employment team shortlisted in Law Society Awards

The Law Society Excellence Awards highlight the outstanding work done across the legal profession over the past year, with the Excellence in Practice Promotion category looking at creative campaigns and initiatives used to communicate with clients, staff and stakeholders. Lewis Silkin has been recognised in this year’s shortlist for the curation and development of the firm’s furlough guidance materials and related content through its Covid-19 hub.

Following the announcement of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme on a Friday evening in March 2020, a team from Lewis Silkin’s employment practice reviewed the government’s guidance and by Sunday had published an initial practical analysis. This was swiftly followed by detailed, FAQ-style guidance for clients as soon as further details of the scheme were released. Our dedicated team then kept the guidance updated, often over the weekend, as the government continually released new information and changes. There have been over 50 updates to the furlough FAQs in total.

The firm’s furlough guidance was followed by publication of practical materials and benchmarking surveys on further Covid-19 issues, such as health and safety, sick pay and absence, workplace testing, vaccinations and staffing decisions on reopening workplaces. These were widely praised by clients and others across industry, and were referenced in guidance issued by the House of Commons Library.

Enhancing Lewis Silkin’s status as a major thought leader on concerns arising from the Covid crisis, the firm later launched its Resourcing for 2021 content hub collating guidance on the various people issues that companies face as they recover and move forward from the pandemic.

The Law Society Excellence Awards will be held on 7 October 2021.