As soon as you offer to employ someone, and that offer is accepted there is an employment contract. The contract should ideally be in writing, but can be verbal or implied.
A contract, whether written, verbal or implied is a formal agreement between you, the employer, and your employee. The contract sets out the employment conditions, rights, responsibilities and duties of both the employee and employer.
Not all people that undertake work for you will be employees, you may subcontract certain tasks or use self employed ‘consultants’, this isn’t an employment contract but a ‘contract to provide services’.
The employment conditions, rights and duties etc, are the ‘terms’ of the contract and the parties must comply with these terms otherwise they will breach the contract. Terms can be changed usually with the agreement of both parties.
A written statement
An employer must make a number of the important conditions of employment clear, and give employees a ‘written statement of employment particulars’. This statement isn’t an employment contract but it will include the main conditions of employment.
The employer must provide the written statement within 2 months of the start of employment, if employment continues.
A written statement must include as a minimum:
- the business’s name
- the employee’s name, job title or a description of work and start date
- if a previous job counts towards a period of continuous employment, the date the period started
- how much and how often an employee will get paid
- hours of work (and if employees will have to work Sundays, nights or overtime
- holiday entitlement (and if that includes public holidays)
- where an employee will be working and whether they might have to relocate
- if an employee works in different places, where these will be and what the employer’s address is
- how long a temporary job is expected to last
- the end date of a fixed-term contract
- notice periods
- collective agreements
- pensions
- who to go to with a grievance
- how to complain about how a grievance is handled
- how to complain about a disciplinary or dismissal decision
A written statement doesn’t need to include the following (but it must say where the information can be found):
- sick pay and procedures
- disciplinary and dismissal procedures
- grievance procedures
Failure to provide a written statement
If an employee does not receive a written statement, they could:
- Ask you for one
- If you still fail to provide one they could, take out a grievance against you.
- Make a complaint to an employment tribunal. The tribunal will decide what the employment particulars in the statement should have been. The Tribunal can, in certain situations, award Compensation to your employee of 2 or 4 week’s pay.
Implied terms
If you are not clear about certain terms in the contract with your employee, terms may be implied into the contract.
Examples of an implied term include:
- employees not stealing from their employer
- the requirement for you to provide a safe and secure working environment
- a legal requirement such as the right to a minimum of 5.6 weeks’ paid holidays
- something necessary to do the job like a driver having a valid licence
- something that has been done regularly in a company for a long time like paying a Christmas bonus
- To ensure the agreement between you and your employee is clear, use a clearly written employment contract.
RML members are able to use the RML Employment Contract. If you are a member and you would like to use the RML employment contract This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.and we will provide you with a spreadsheet which you can complete with employee details etc. When RML receives your completed spreadsheet we will create the contracts and email the completed contracts to you, there is no additional charge it's part of your subscription.
