Preparation of employment contracts

Technically, an employee has a contract with you as soon as they verbally accept their job, but preparing a written version can help clarify matters for both you and your employees. It could also help to resolve any disputes that occur during their employment. Crucially, it is a legal requirement to provide an employee with their terms and conditions of employment.

Davis Blank Furniss Solicitors can help you prepare a legally binding contract that covers all the necessary areas, ensuring both you and your employee know exactly what your rights and responsibilities are.

What should you include?

Fundamentally, an employment contract should make it clear what an employee’s duties and rights are, as well as outlining the conditions of employment.

You should include:

• Start date of employment
• Job title/description – Does the employee know exactly what is expected of them?
• Hours of employment – Will there be any unsociable working hours or overtime required?
• Pay – How much and how often will an employee be paid?
• Location – Where is the employee expected to work? What are their obligations if relocation is required?
• Holiday – Does their annual entitlement include public holidays?
• Notice period
• Pension schemes

Employees must also be informed about sick leave policies, how to raise a grievance (and with whom) and the company’s disciplinary procedures.

Implied terms

There are some elements of the employment contract that are implied, and therefore won’t need to be expressly stated. For example:

• If the job requires workers to hold certain documentation, e.g. a driver’s licence
• Rights and responsibilities covered by law, e.g. minimum holiday entitlements, the fact that employees shouldn’t steal from you
• Longstanding company policies, e.g. bonus payments