Some of our clients

HR Advice in Dudley for Businesses With Their First Few Employees

SafeWise are HR advisors for Dudley businesses that have gone from working alone to having people who work for them. Nobody at that stage wants an HR department. They want to know what they are responsible for now, and which bits to sort first.

The Day You Become an Employer

The Employers' Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969 requires you to hold employers' liability insurance, at least 5 million pounds of cover, from your first employee onwards. The certificate has to be where your staff can see it. Both get missed when you take somebody on in a hurry.

The right to work check comes before the first shift, not after it. Do it for everyone you take on, including someone you have known for years, because checking only some of them is where discrimination claims begin.

Holiday Is the First Thing You Get Asked About

Under the Working Time Regulations 1998 a worker builds up 5.6 weeks of paid holiday a year. On a five day week that comes to 28 days, and bank holidays can count towards it if your contract says they do. Part timers get the same 5.6 weeks pro rata to the days they work, which is where the arithmetic trips people up.

Pick a holiday year and decide what happens to leave nobody took. Write both down before the first request lands. Omnia, our HR system, holds the requests and puts approved leave into a shared calendar, with permissions you set.

Who Counts as an Employee and Who Does Not

Most small businesses start with a mix: one person employed, somebody self employed who is there most weeks, and a friend who helps out on Saturdays. The labels matter, because holiday, notice and unfair dismissal rights follow employment status, not what the arrangement got called. They matter more from 1 October 2026, when right to work checks stop applying only to PAYE employees and begin covering agency, gig and labour only arrangements too. Our note of 03/09/2026 on the right to work changes sets out who is caught and who is not. If you are not certain which of yours is which, that is a five minute phone call, not a project.

The Second Hire Is Where Consistency Starts

With one employee you can settle things as they come up. With three you cannot, because whatever you gave the first person is now the precedent, and the second one will hear about it. Four things are worth writing down early.

A staff handbook, so the answer to a question is the same whoever asks it
How you record hours, lateness and time off, agreed before anybody tests it
Who approves holiday while you are away
Where employee records live, and who besides you can open them

None of it has to be long. It has to exist and be the same for everybody.

Support Sized for a Handful of Staff

An HR membership is a monthly service, and the smallest workforce band starts at one to ten people, so a business with two or three staff is not paying for something built for a hundred. You get one advisor who learns the business, and advice by phone and email as often as you want it.

Take HR by itself, or pair it with safety cover and you get a separate advisor for each. The day you took somebody on, your duties under health and safety law started as well. We have been advising employers across the West Midlands since 2012.

Dudley HR support for businesses taking on their first employees.

More About Us

Insurance Before the Start Date:
Employers' liability cover has to be in place before your first employee starts, not once you get round to it.

Check Before the First Shift:
Right to work checks happen before anybody starts, for every person you take on.

Same Rules for Everybody:
Whatever you settle with your first employee becomes the standard for the next one.

Ask Before You Promise:
Most of what goes wrong with a first employee was agreed verbally in week one. Ring while it is still a question.

Talk It Through Before Your Next Hire

Ring 01922 279 129 and tell us how many people you have taken on, or send your details below and an advisor will be in touch within 24 hours.

Speak to an expert today!

Choose the support that’s right for you

At SafeWise, we provide practical solutions to keep your business compliant, protected and running smoothly. From expert Health & Safety support to HR guidance, tailored training, and ready-to-use resources, our services are designed to give you confidence and peace of mind.

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Health & Safety

Guidance, audits and policies to keep your workplace safe and compliant.

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HR

Advice and support to manage people, processes and compliance with ease.

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Training

Courses designed to build knowledge, improve skills & support compliance.

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Resources & Templates

Documents and tools that save time and simplify compliance.

Client satisfaction is at the heart of what we do

With over 125 five-star reviews and a 92% client renewal rate, SafeWise is proud to be the trusted partner for businesses across the country. Here’s what our clients have to say about working with us.