Colleague Spotlight
David Eastwood, Head of Team, Legal Services
David's background
With a career spanning three decades and numerous different roles and fields, David is undoubtedly one of WorkNest’s most seasoned legal experts. Having first entered our ranks as a Senior Adviser in October 2014, he quickly became a highly-valued presence, and was soon appointed to the position of Head of Team.
Today, he continues to fulfill this role managing a team of nine predominantly home-based legal advisers whilst maintaining relationships with dozens of clients. Having previously worked primarily in food retail for national supermarket chains before joining EW, David now supports clients from the facility management, manufacturing, care, transport and professional services industries, making him an all-rounder when it comes to employment law.
Alexandra’s qualifications
LLB Law Degree (Hons)
Postgraduate Diploma in Employment Law
An interview with David
Tell us more about your background?
Like many in my position, the journey began with becoming a fully qualified solicitor. This included the usual steps, such as a law degree and a legal practices course. More unusually I conducted my training whilst working in an “in-house” position. Since then, I’ve spent the majority of my career in food retail, working for national supermarket chains initially as in-house employment lawyer and later as Head of Employment and Employee Relations and so with a significant HR aspect to my role. My first in-house job covered a mixed bag of employment, trading standards, consumer protection and civil litigation. Over time and as the employment work grew, I recruited a team to deal with the other areas. I also undertook a 12-month role for an international facility management provider before joining WorkNest in 2014. Having started out as a Senior Employment Law Adviser, I then moved on to the Head of Team role, and now manage a team of nine legal advisers. In all, I now have around 30 years of experience of dealing with employment law issues, so I think I’ve seen, if not it all, at least most things!
What does your role at WorkNest entail?
Despite being Head of Team, much of my role consists of answering emails and calls, so I’m never far removed from the realities of client issues. Other than that, my main responsibilities are looking after my team of consultants and ensuring they are supported, as well as managing client relationships. I would say that I’ve now dealt with around 60 different clients during my time at WorkNest, including organisations in the manufacturing, care, transport and professional services industries. If I’ve developed a style over the years, I would say it’s direct and to-the-point. Employment law can be a minefield, so I truly believe this is the best way to go.
Which aspect of the role do you enjoy the most, and which do you find most challenging?
Even after 30 years in the field and six years at WorkNest, I still take great pleasure in providing solutions and options to enable clients to get the best outcome for the organisation. That really is the essence of employment law, and you have to thrive off that in order to succeed. However, there are of course challenges to overcome, and I would say that striking a fine balance is the one that stands out. More specifically, balancing the need to be respectful of clients with the requirement to often tell them that they are wrong. This can be tricky to achieve.
What do you think has changed in recent years in terms of employee relations and the role of the employer?
This obvious answer is of course COVID-19. This has changed things both positively and negatively. Many employees are, to an extent, resigned to losing their jobs or at the very least having reduced incomes. However, as a result, they are more inclined to contest this due to a severe lack of other opportunities. Though tricky terrain to navigate, this presents a very interesting landscape in the world of employment law. My one piece of advice to employers, now and always, is to make note of when each new employee passes the 23-month mark in their role.
What have you done recently that has made you proud?
I recently assisted an employer in identifying that two employees they wanted to make redundant could in fact be dismissed with no risk or cost if they acted the following day. This was a revelation to the employer, and made life much easier for them at the time. This might not seem like a big, glamorous or even desirable event, but I feel this sums up why this role can be so satisfying at times. When a client takes heed of your advice, follows through with it and eventually reaps the rewards, it’s a great feeling.
How would you describe WorkNest’s support, and what makes it unique?
After more than three decades in the field, I can say with sincerity that WorkNest is a truly unique and high-quality organisation. In particular, we offer a financially stress-free experience for clients, with no hourly fee to worry about. This gives them the freedom to achieve much more with their adviser than they might have done otherwise. Secondly, I’d be the first to attest to the sheer quality of the team. Here, we have a team of outstanding Employment Law consultants, and I feel confident in saying that, between them, they could tackle any case.
Who you’ll be working with
Greg Guilford
Director of HR Consulting
Client stories
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Gus Hosein
Executive Director, Privacy International
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WorkNest supports our 280 staff members with Employment Law and Health & Safety and has provided quality management training too.”
Lisa Best
Head of Service Delivery, Catalyst Choice
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We get a great deal of comfort and satisfaction knowing that we have support as and when we need it, in a decisive and responsive way.”
Richard Berry
Group HR Director, Culina Group
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We moved our legal support to WorkNest (formerly Law at Work) having previously used a time and line law firm. It was important, though, that an all-inclusive fee structure did not come at the expense of quality. Thankfully we’ve been delighted with the service we’ve received from WorkNest.”
Chief Executive
Waverley Care
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What we recognised in WorkNest is the background that they have. They are able to supply knowledge and experience in a number of disciplines, which enables us to develop our business in a way that’s safe, to do it on time and with a quality to it.”
Debbie Rainbow
Director of Human Resources and Health & Safety,
Bluestone National Park Resort
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Celia McKeon
Chief Executive, The Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust (JRCT)
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As the company started to get larger, we knew we had to protect our employees and our contractors both onsite and in the offices. WorkNest is exactly what we needed to move the company forward.”
Joanne Beaver
Operations Director, Beaverfit
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Pineapple have worked with the team at WorkNest (formerly Law at Work) since 2003, and we have built a trusted partnership together. We particularly like WorkNest’s concise and practical advice concerning employment law/HR issues and also appreciate their totally supportive approach in all areas of health and safety.”
General Manager
Pineapple Dance Studios
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I’ve taken WorkNest into every organisation that I’ve worked with. I’ve introduced them to many teams and many colleagues and referred them with absolute pleasure because I genuinely trust in the service that we get.”
People Director, The Works
