Intellectual Property

What is it and how do I protect it?

Intellectual property rights are valuable. They can define your business. They are an asset which can be used to raise finance in appropriate cases. The message is clear, as a business owner your duty is to protect the intellectual property of your business.

Intellectual property includes, logos, company branding, trade marks, copyright, business name,domain names. In short it encompasses the intellectual output of the business.

It is a wide area and we will confine ourselves to examining Intellectual property in the area of employment law and best practice.

Intellectual property rights and employees

Where staff are creating intellectual property at work, the postion is that this usually belongs to the employer. This covers all types of intellectual property from research to databases and beyond.

A grey area can arise where the work is created outside office hours or indirectly from another project. To avoid confusion, doubt and dispute, you should deal with this in the employment contract. The terms and conditions of employment should have a specific clause (or clauses) dealing with these issues. It should also cover the question of the moral rights to the work. The author generally retains the moral rights to the work unless assigned in the contract.

A record should be kept by the employee of all innovative work which they carry out on behalf of the employer. You should ensure that this is kept up to date.

What about freelance contractors and intellectual property?

Similar issues to those mentioned in the preceding paragraph can arise in relation to using a freelance contractor. You need to ensure that tyhe contract gives your business all rights to the use of the property. Otherwise you may be confined to a one off use for a particular campaign.

Keeping it private

In order to prevent the misuse or even loss of your intellectual property you need to take steps to keep the information secure until you can take the necessary legal steps to protect it.

This may involve confidentiality agreements , keeping the information secure, minimising access to it.

You should seek legal advice in relation to your particular circumstances.

The purpose of this article is to highlight the need to protect your intellectual property.

What steps should I take next?

Defending or enforcing a breach of intellectual property rights can be expensive. It is always better to avoid litigation where possible. Getting advice now can save you a fortune later.

If you have any questions in relation to protecting the intellectual property of your business please contact us using the orange Tell Me More button below and we will call you back at a convenient time.

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Image courtesyTraci Lawson                                        

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The reality of Workplace Stress

How to recognise it and deal with it

We all need some stress in our lives. We wouldn't get things done without it. This article is about what happens in the workplace when too much stress is placed on the employee as a result of work practices. We are not referring to stress caused by factors outside work, which finds expression at work. Someone coping with the death of a loved one may carry that stress into the workplace, as we are not machines and cannot always compartmentalise our feelings and reactions.

So let's look at work related stress and ask, are you increasing or decreasing the stress ?

How do you organise the work of the business? Since the downturn in the economy many businesses have been forced to cut down on overheads. This can manifest itself in the form of under staffing. It can happen that from time to time the need for staff outstrips the supply. When that is infrequent, it is generally not a cause of overbearing stress. Where the under staffing is regular, often used as a way to get the best value out of the wages bill, that it can lead to work related stress. Constantly requiring employees to go above and beyond the call of duty can drain, even the best employee. Take a look at your work procedures. Can you tweak them to help eliminate work related stress.

What is the real cost of work related stress?

Stress in the workplace affects both the employee suffering from its affects and the business.

It is an obvious fact that a person suffering from work related stress is less efficient.

What happens if they leave? Apart from the risk of an employment appeals tribunal claim, there is the additional effort involved in hiring and training a new worker.

It is definitely a better use of your scarce resources to carry out an assessment of your workplace procedures and how they impact on all of your workers. If you don't have the time, outsource it. If you choose to simply ignore it, you may find your time taken up in defending a claim for personal injury arising from workplace stress. The is more time consuming and more expensive. Apart from that you don't want to be responsible for causing injury through stress,to any of your employees.

Claims for personal injury due to work related stress can be very expensive. So too can claims for constructive dismissal.

What can I do as an employer to manage workplace stress?

First you can look at how work is organised. Is it fairly distributed according to skill level? Does too much pressure fall on one person when it comes to getting the project over the line? Do any your employees seem stressed? Try to find out what is causing the stressed reaction. If it is work related, then look at ways to relieve the cause of the stress. The important skill is listening to what your employees are saying. You may discover something which will help the efficiency of your business, as well as remove a potential source of stress.

Are there procedures I can follow to reduce the incidence of stress in the workplace?

Examine your grievance procedures, if you don't have any, contact us and we will prepare procedures designed for your particular circumstances.

We recommend that the nature of the grievance is set out in writing by the employee. This avoids doubt later on and provides an accurate record of any complaints made.

We also advise on a procedure for investigating the complaint in a fair manner and dealing with it in an efficient way.

Having the procedure in place is not enough. You must make it clear to each employee that the grievance procedure is there for their benefit. They must not be discouraged from using it.

The importance of good record keeping cannot be overemphasised. If the matter ends up in court or before Workplace Relations Commission a well maintained record system will prove its worth.

Review and implement your bullying in the workplace policy and your Sick Leave policy .

Download        Guide on Work Related Stress, here ;

Get a      Disciplinary procedures policy here ;

Consider implementing the Work Positive management process in your business. It is a free process. Endorsed by the Health and Safety Authority. It is  designed to encourage a safer workplace for all.

Download         Getting Started Work Positive, here;   

I don't have the time or staff numbers to investigate a complaint. Can I outsource it?

Stress in the workplace and investigating complaints can have serious consequences if not dealt with in a professional, expert manner.

We can provide the independent resources to investigate any grievances complained of, and furnish our recommendations in an unbiased way. This helps protect you from litigation and keeps your workforce content in the knowledge that you care enough about them to call in professionals.

Our qualified experts have over thirty years experience in employment law in Ireland.

If you would like to discuss managing stress in the workplace please contact us using the orange Tell Me More button below and we will contact you at a time that suits. 

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The electronic cigarette in the workplace

How to prevent an outbreak of vaping

As almost always happens when addictive substances are banned, alternatives spring up to replace them. In 2004 the Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2002 was introduced. It banned smoking in the workplace and other areas. An alternative to smoking has grown in popularity, in the form of the electronic cigarette. It is a nicotine containing product. It vaporises liquid containing nicotine, which can then be inhaled. It claims to replicate the sensation of smoking, but without the harmful carcinogens. Nicotine is still addictive and the e cigarette can still pose a fire hazard in the workplace. The legislators are working to catch up on the impact of e cigarettes on society and the European Commission has published a proposal for a new EU Tobacco Products Directive. The current position is however that no legislation is in place which would ban the use of e cigarettes in the workplace.

What should I do as an employer to protect my employees from e cigarettes in the workplace?

While the legislation is being considered, it would seem prudent to upgrade your workplace smoking policy to include the new method of obtaining nicotine. Be careful how it is worded as you may end up banning nicotine patches and other aids to quitting smoking. You should take legal advice from experienced experts before altering your workplace policies.

Contact us using the orange Tell Me More button below. 

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Image courtesy Vaping360  

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