Good Afternoon. I'm brand new to this app. My role is based in the UK but covers Europe, specifically for colleagues in the UK, France, Switzerland, Germany, Finland and the Netherlands, but we are growing at a rapid rate, so this reach may well expand to include further countries within the EMEA region. I was wondering if anyone can recommend any courses, qualifications, suppliers etc. to support me in this role. It's expensive reaching out to lawyers for minor matters, but also from a personal development point of view, I'm keen to grow with this role. Thanks in advance for and advice or recommendations you may be able to offer.
I think it might help if you said a little more about the scope of your role.
Little point me telling you I supply recruitment assessment tools, or offering a suggestion of good H&S trainers if you are a rewards specialist looking for suppliers of salary surveys etc in your different operating countries.
I am sure there are members here with knowledge in any area you might need, they just need to know the signposts
FedEE are a good source of employment law information - it's not hugely in depth but will give you some of the basics.
I dont think you will find a course to cover all those countries as they will all have a myriad of differences. For example in France, there are different collective agreements depending on industry type that will specify certain terms and conditions. You will need to understand which one applies to your business and then read them (they are usually in French and I never found good translations) so if you dont speak the language it will be even harder. In Switzerland, different Cantons have different rules etc.
It is very easy to come unstuck on something that you wouldnt even think of as it is not an issue in the UK. If you are going to be employing a number of people in those countries then you really need to find some local resources in each country that can give you a steer on the right way of doing things. For example if you are hiring country managers in those countries, make sure they are knowledgeable about the employment legislation and can help guide you. When you get to things like dismissing someone I would always recommend you take some proper legal advice as it would be very easy to get it wrong!
Some of the law networks such as Ius Laboris and Employment Law Alliance (ELA) have newsletters that you can sign up for that gives you a good update on specific issues in various countries.
This is no substitute for a proper, accredited training course in international HR, but in the interim I recommend getting onto Reddit and reading the r/AskHR subreddit. It has a strong US focus, but questions are tagged with country indicators, so it's quite easy to scroll down and spot questions from countries in which you're interested.
There's zero filter for professional competence, but you can usually spot the really stupid answers, and even non-expert answers can often give examples and insights from their workplaces to prove an idea of common (if not good) practice.
I cannot emphasize enough that it's *not* a source to be relied upon, but in terms of getting an insight into the overall distinctions in international employment law, it's a very good starting point for the operational HR professional.
Hi Fiona, my role covers a number of countries you mention and I've benefitted from a few workshops run by some of the major law firms in London. They're quite pricey but some of them included comparing different approaches per country vs the EU directives which I have found very helpful.
