Employment Contracts - The Facts! 

There are various issues to consider when drafting contracts of employment, some of these are explained below.

Do I need to give my workers employment contracts?

Every employee has a legal right to receive a 'written statement of employment particulars’, which sets out the terms of employment. You should give this to your employees within two months of starting their job.

What happens if they are not issued, is there a fine?

In certain circumstances an employment tribunal can make you pay your employee between two and four weeks' pay (capped at £350 per week) if you have not supplied a written statement/contract.    This means that failure to provide your employee with a complete statement could currently cost your business as much as £1400.00!!!

Are there terms that must go in the contract?

Yes, the law states that certain terms must be included, these include the job title or a brief description of the work the employee will be doing, when the employee will be paid and how much they will earn.

Can I put other terms in the contract?

Absolutely, we would often recommend that the document, depending on the nature of the organisation and job, contains clauses relating to overtime, flexibility, holding a driving license and post employment restrictions.    Where Company sick pay is paid, state that the payment of this benefit is at your discretion to avoid an abuse of the scheme. These clauses are often required to protect your business; you never know when a problem is around the corner!

Should our discipline and grievance procedure form part of the employment contract?

If a disciplinary procedure is contractual and an employee has been dismissed without the company following it, he or she could argue that the dismissal was wrongful, that is, in breach of contract.  The employee could claim damages representing the value of the wages or salary and other benefits he or she would have received had the disciplinary procedure been followed in full.  All employees including recent starters could make this claim.   We therefore recommend that careful thought be taken to avoid this situation occurring.

Will EBS draft our employment contracts?

Yes, as part of our retained agreement we will draft or review our clients contracts of employment.  This means that we will draft a comprehensive contract for each type of job within your Company. This service is available for a nominal fee.  Contact our firm for further details.