Rhodri Thomas

Rhodri advises on breach of contract claims, including wrongful dismissal, constructive dismissal and bonus/commission claims, redundancy, discrimination, harassment and victimisation, whistleblowing, disciplinary and grievance issues, restrictive covenant enforceability and team moves, confidentiality issues, and Employment Tribunal, High Court, and appeals courts tribunal litigation.

• Conceived, established and led a managed service platform for volume Employment Tribunal litigation, handling 120+ claims per year for a UK listed PLC.
• Conducted and supervised multiple Employment Tribunal proceedings for a global cosmetics business.
• Advised on, and prepared for, injunctive relief to restrain breaches of non-solicitation clauses for a media and PR employer.
• Advised a US-based technology business on restraint and recovery proceedings involving misuse of database material by a former employee.
• Acted for a private equity business on separation with the managing director of a media sector portfolio company.

Rhodri advises on the employment law aspects of corporate M&A, in- and out-sourcings and restructurings (including extensive TUPE experience), national and international employment law advisory projects, senior and c-suite executive appointments, employee relations and HR best-practice advice, employment status, maternity/paternity/adoption, and redundancy planning and consultation.

• Led on all UK employment law aspects of a wide variety of corporate M&A transactions for global household name clients.
• Advised a multinational textile business on the employment and TUPE implications of transferring a product and retail line.
• Supervised and delivered a 50-jurisdiction employment law project on COVID-19 vaccination implications for a global IT business.
• Extensive day-to-day advisory work for a multinational business in the transportation logistics sector.
• Extensive day-to-day advice for a multinational business in the pharmaceutical logistics sector.

Rhodri is instructed by UK and international clients on the design, implementation, and operation of employee incentive plans, including bespoke share schemes, global matching plans, and incentive aspects of corporate transactions.

• Advised a multinational retail PLC on matters relating to implementation of a global employee share and cash incentive program.
• Advised a Middle East investment business on structuring and preparing a bespoke share incentive plan and related materials.
• Advised a NYSE-listed multinational chemicals business on and implementing a global matching share plan.
• Advised national and global businesses on understanding and addressing the employee incentive implications arising in a wide variety of corporate M&A transactions.

Rhodri advises on internal and regulatory investigations involving GDPR compliance, FCA compliance, bribery, and workplace investigations, guiding multinational clients through complex employment and data privacy issues across sectors.

• Advised a global construction sector business on employment and data privacy law implications of an internal and regulatory investigation into bribery and anti-competition activities.
• Advised on a GDPR compliance employment review and gap analysis project, including UK implications and coordination of multijurisdictional advice.
• Advised a global industrial/manufacturing business on employment and data privacy law implications of a multinational anti-bribery investigation.
• Conducted disciplinary and grievance investigations on behalf of a household-name media business.
• Advised a multinational IT business on the conduct of a discrimination and harassment investigation.
• Advised two global businesses on employment and data privacy law implications of internal and regulatory investigations.
• Advised a c-suite hedge fund executive on employment and regulatory implications of his exit from the business, working extensively with regulatory colleagues in relation to FCA conduct compliance.

Rhodri advises UK and international shipping clients on employment matters including MLC compliance, crewing agreements, executive terms, confidentiality, and cross-border due diligence in complex M&A and tender processes.

• Advised an international shipping company on the impact of the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) on its seafarers’ terms and conditions of employment and preparing MLC-compliant crewing agreements.
• Advised on crewing agreement requirements for UK flag leisure vessels.
• Prepared and advised on crewing agreements and confidentiality agreements for the crew of a high-net-worth individual’s private yacht.
• Employment due diligence and M&A advice in connection with the auction tendering of a multinational shipping company with offices in approximately seven jurisdictions.
• Advised UK and international shipping businesses on senior executives’ and directors’ terms of employment and employee incentive arrangements.

Rhodri advises financial services clients on high-value employment matters including executive exits, team moves, TUPE, redundancy, regulatory remuneration, discrimination claims, and enforcement of post-termination restrictions.

• Led on various Employment Tribunal claims (including discrimination and whistleblowing claims) for a global household name bank.
• Advised on UK law employment law implications of the acquisition (and subsequent TUPE integration) of a financial services business, including conducting due diligence and advising on structuring considerations and transaction documents, workforce retention arrangements and regulatory remuneration matters.
• Advised a private-equity model investment business on its high-value separation with a c-suite executive.
• Advised a global payments business on enforcement of restrictive covenants against a senior executive moving to a competitor.
• Advised, and negotiated on behalf of, a senior individual in the financial/trading sector on his US$30m consultancy arrangement.
• Acted for inter-dealer brokers in High Court injunction proceedings in relation to post-termination restrictions.
• Advised a senior executive in the insurance sector on the implications of a team move to a competitor and negotiation of his employment and indemnity arrangements with the new employer.
• Advised a UK hedge fund on a redundancy procedure.
• Advised a global consultancy firm in connection with the employment and TUPE implications of terminating its provision of large-scale pension administration services to a third party.
• Represented a multinational consultancy firm in a seven-figure sex discrimination Employment Tribunal claim.

Rhodri provides support on employment issues including international restructurings, offshore workforce management, incentive schemes, and UK integration projects across mining, renewables, and geophysical sectors.

• Created and advised on a ‘Build, Operate, Transfer’ staffing model for a global natural resources business.
• Advised a global mining business on a large-scale international staff restructuring and redeployment project.
• Advised on all aspects of employment law for the UK functions of an international and offshore geophysical company, including advising on jurisdictional matters pertaining to offshore employees, the relocation of employees upon a change of premises and managing redundancy programs.
• Created and established a bespoke share and share-related staff incentive program for an advisory business in the renewables sector.
• Advised on the UK integration and restructuring of two business streams for an employer in the solar power sector.

Recognised by The Legal 500 for Employment: Employers 2026

Recognised by The Legal 500 for Employment 2024

Member of the Employment Lawyers Association (ELA)

Co- author of “GDPR: Employee personal data – handle with care”, Employment Law Journal, December 2020