Four employment law situations when you should call a lawyer

As an HR manager, you know certain decisions keep you up at night. Not because you lack competence, but because some situations simply require a second pair of eyes – especially when both human and legal aspects need to be weighed together.

Here are four situations where an early conversation with us can make the difference between a resolution and a drawn-out conflict.

Long-term sick leave – how long is too long?

An employee has been on sick leave for over twelve months. Medical certificates continue to arrive, but the business needs the role filled. You are wondering whether termination is even possible.

This is one of the toughest HR questions. You are balancing an individual’s health and livelihood against operational necessity – and mistakes can be costly. You may even risk discrimination claims if the process is not handled correctly. In cases like these, ask yourself: do we have a medical prognosis? Have we documented all reasonable accommodation efforts? Should we offer redeployment?

Incapacity as grounds for termination carries strict legal requirements in Finland. Mishandling can result in significant compensation awards.

When pay differences raise questions about age discrimination

Finnish law requires objective justification for wage differences. Intuition isn't enough – you need evidence to back it up.

Pay discrimination is a high-stake issue with significant legal implications. If the matter escalates, it can affect both the company's reputation and employee engagement. You can't have significant pay differences without documented, objective reasons to back them up.

Age discrimination adds further complexity, particularly during redeployment, restructuring or internal recruitment. If you terminate someone from a department, you may need to justify that age played no role in the decision.

Harassment complaint against senior management

An employee reports being harassed by their manager – a member of the management team. The complaint includes serious allegations of verbal aggression and abuse of power. 

This cannot be handled through normal HR channels when the accused is part of management. Who conducts the investigation when the accused is a team leader? How do you ensure both thoroughness and impartiality? Maintaining neutrality and confidentiality is critical. 

An incorrect investigation process may result in inadequate support to the victim while the accused faces unfair treatment. External legal experts can ensure proper process.

Terminating an employee on parental leave

Your company needs to make redundancies due to financial reasons. One affected employee is currently on parental leave. How and when should such a decision be made, and when can the termination happen?

Parental leave is strongly protected under Finnish law and rightly so. That does not mean termination is impossible in cases of genuine economic necessity. However, it requires the employer to handle the process correctly and maintain crystal-clear documentation showing that parental leave was irrelevant to the decision. The burden of proof lies entirely with you as the employer.

These situations have one thing in common: they arise when human considerations collide with legal complexity. The right path isn't always obvious. An early conversation with an expert can save time, money, and prevent lasting damage to relationships.