Milestone Avocats specializes in supporting companies with key issues related to individual and collective employment relations.
In matters of individual employment relationships, Milestone Avocats provides guidance from the recruitment stage—drafting tailor-made employment contracts and structuring appropriate management packages—through to the termination of employment contracts, where the firm plays a critical role in securing procedures, whether for dismissals, mutual terminations, or negotiated departures.
Regarding collective employment relations, Milestone Avocats assists companies in organizing employee representative elections, negotiating and drafting collective agreements, implementing measures to ensure health and safety at work, and anticipating professional risks.
Milestone Avocats also supports companies and/or investors in connection with business combinations, reorganizations, social management of mergers and acquisitions, business and activity transfers, and insolvency proceedings.
In addition, the lawyers in Milestone Avocats’ labor and employment law department regularly represent companies and/or their executives before the competent labor courts in both individual and collective disputes.
Lastly, Milestone Avocats frequently represents senior executives in exit negotiations to define the best strategy and to secure and optimize severance packages.
- Drafting employment contracts: choosing the appropriate contract type and customizing key clauses
- Free Share Plans
- Share Warrants for Company Founders
- Share Subscription Warrants
- Carried Interests
- Amendments to working conditions
- Promotions
- Internal mobility
- Management of long-term absences
- Exercise of disciplinary authority
- Termination of employment contracts: optimization and securing of the process
- Organizing employee representative elections
- Drafting and negotiating collective agreements with employee representative bodies (e.g., working hours, remote work, gender equality, profit-sharing schemes, workplace health and safety, occupational risk prevention)
- Managing collective labor disputes
- Conducting social audits: review of HR practices, legal compliance, and assessment of social risks (employment contracts, working hours, employee benefits, etc.)
- Managing HR due diligence: identification of social liabilities, analysis of associated costs, and strategic recommendations to secure transactions
- Developing the operation’s projected timeline Post-deal restructuring support: transfer of employment contracts, harmonization of employee statuses and HR policies
- Employee representative relations: information and consultation procedures with employee representative bodies, management of negotiations, and drafting of collective agreements
- Compliance management: integrating social obligations into the new entity, addressing any existing gaps or non-compliant practices
- Handling employment-related litigation : legal support in case of disputes with employees or staff representatives related to the transaction
- Strategic advisory : guidance on the social implications of external growth or divestment projects
- Training and awareness for management teams : ensuring understanding of social issues and legal obligations in M&A transactions
- Defining reorganization strategies: job protection plans (PSE), standalone voluntary departure plans (PDVA), collective performance agreements (APC), collective mutual termination agreements (RCC)
- Information, consultation, and negotiation with employee representative bodies or trade unions within the framework of collective agreements
- Managing litigation risks
- Preparing and managing employee representative information/consultation procedures
- Appointment of employee representatives (Works Council)
- Handling economic redundancy procedures tailored to the specific phases of insolvency proceedings
- Preparation of sale plans
- Implementation of turnaround plans
- Structuring and presentation of takeover bids
- Coordination with court-appointed insolvency bodies
- Representation before commercial courts
- Termination of employment contracts
- Working time regulations
- Harassment
- Discrimination
- Equal treatment
- Breach of the duty of good faith in the performance of the employment contract
- Collective bargaining
- Employee savings schemes and employee share ownership
- Employee representative elections
- Trade union law
- Social security law : workplace accidents, occupational illnesses, gross negligence
- Criminal labor law : obstruction offences, undeclared work, discrimination, harassment, health and safety violations
- Defining an exit strategy
- Social and tax optimization of severance packages
- Protecting executives’ personal liability : support in cases of alleged misconduct related to their role (mismanagement, civil or criminal liability, insolvency proceedings)
- Litigation prevention and management : disputes related to termination of office, deferred compensation, or restrictive covenants
