Employment Law – Employment Contracts

An employer will need to provide an employment contract or statement of terms within two months of the employees start date. The statement of terms is the absolute bare minimum requirement, as it does not protect the employers properly from any disputes that may arise. It is more essential to draw up an employment contract, as it is generally better for both parties. The contract allows the employer to specify an employee’s duties and responsibilities, this way the the employee knows exactly what is expected of them in the course of business.

A standard employment contract will include; the name of the parties; employment contract start date; deductions; expenses; holidays; employee’s job title and description; place of work; hours of work; probationary period; salary; assessments; sickness & disability; pensions; notice; restrictive covenants; grievance and disciplinary procedure; retirement; severability; prior agreements; jurisdictions; and particulars of employment.

The names of the parties must be the employer’s organisation details and the employee’s name and address. It is important to include a small statement to say that employment with a previous employer does not count towards the various rights that are gained by employees after one and two years’ service. Therefore the employee starts again from 0 with the new employer. The employee’s job title and description should be what the recruitment advertisement stated or subsequent offer letter, which means it also suits the employer to allow for flexibility in the employee’s role of work. The place of work should be also be specified, to allowing the employer to specify the location of where the employee will work and also allow the employer to specify any other location for the future which gives the employer greater flexibility.

The employee’s hours of work must be stated. If the employer reasonably requests the employee to work additional hours, then the employee must agree to do so. But the additional hours cannot exceed 48 hours work per week as stated in the Working Time Regulations. At the start of an employment, an employer can specify a trial period for the employee, with the option of a short notice at the end of the trial, if the employee has not fulfilled the employer’s expectations, and the employer can also extent the trial period if need be. The employee’s salary must be included in the employment contract, which details the gross salary before tax, national insurance and any other deductions, as well as when payment is to be made.

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