Employment contracts should be in writing, not only is this a legal requirement under s1 of the Employment Right Act 1996 but it avoids disputes later as to what the terms of the contract were.
There are certain things that should be included in a contract of employment in order for it to be s1 compliant. The following must be contained within the same document:
- The names of the employer and employee
- The date the employment starts and the date the employee’s period of continuous employment began
- Pay (or method of calculating it) and interval of payment.
- Hours of work.
- Holiday entitlement and holiday pay.
- The employee’s job title or a brief description of the work.
- Place of work.
Other terms should be included but do not have to be in the same document. These are:
- Terms related to work outside the UK for a period of more than one month.
- Terms as to length of temporary or fixed term work.
- A note giving certain information about disciplinary and grievance procedures.
- A note stating whether there is a contracting-out certificate in force under the Pension Schemes Act 1993.
- Details of any collective agreements directly affecting the employment.
- Terms relating to absence due to incapacity and sick pay .
- The notice periods for termination by either side.
Employer may also want to consider including other matters such as deductions clause and restrictions on termination which will protect them. It is important that the employer tailors the contract to the employee and their business. Other terms can also be implied into contracts by law or custom and practice.
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